Mac OS X Lion WiFi issues

AbraBaby wrote:

Dear bb007,

So sorry you are having this issue, join the club. To my knowledge, there is no universal fix. If you page through the thread, you may find some temporary ones, but basically, Lion and wifi are NOT FRIENDS. It's a shame. Many have downgraded to the previous version of the OS because of this issue. If you have a new computer that came with Lion pre-installed, that probably isn't an option for you, I'm sorry. DOES ANYONE KNOW OF A NEW FIX THAT I'M UNAWARE OF? (I've tried a dozen from this thread - thanks for trying to help, everyone.)

Please just ignore Carlos' sniping remarks on this thread, which make you feel as if YOU are the problem. You are not. This is a ridiculous glitch with Lion which for months and months has gone UNADDRESSED by Apple. Shame on you, Apple, for not paying attention to this issue, and for the robot-like mentality you apparently instruct your AppleCare "customer service reps" to exhibit. Especially Carlos (who is either an Apple rep or has drunk some serious Apple KoolAid), who continues to post unhelpful comments and suggestions here, such as "it's your wireless phone," or "I have the same computer, so it must be your settings."

LION IS CAUSING THIS ISSUE, and it has not been resolved or addressed by Apple for many months. It is a shame that many longtime loyal Apple customers such as myself are being ignored on this issue and made to feel as if we are the problem. It is losing Apple customers, and frankly, I've advised friends NOT to upgrade to Lion or purchase it with an Apple product until this issue is resolved. For people who rely on wifi daily, it is more than an inconvenience, it is a dealbreaker.

We expect more from Apple. And, Carlos, please, if you can't say something actually helpful, please just stop? Newbies to this thread don't need to be sent on a wild goose chase. Unless you have an actual FIX, please stop.

Thank you.

@AbraBaby, May I call you Ben?,... cause you strike me as a Ben, what suggestions have you provided to people? Listen Ben, becase the name Ben is much more accomodating to you... and you should follow your own advice... "f you can't say something actually helpful, please just stop."

I'm also suffering from this, with an 11" MBA. 10.7.3 did nothing for me, neither did re-installing Lion myself, or leaving my computer at the Apple store for them to investigate (they also tried reinstalling Lion, said it was fixed, and as soon as I got home I saw it wasn't).

Seeing that there are a few hundred thousand views of this issue in the Apple Support forums (across multiple threads, but some single threads have that many views) this makes me think that this is on the scale of the iPhone antenna issue, but Apple just hasn't acknowledged this yet (the Genuises even said that there was not all that much they could do if this chronic problem doesn't go away because it's not an "official" Apple issue).

So how was it that the antenna problem finally got big in the media, forcing Apple to address it? Maybe if a few people in this support community have tech journalist friends, they can get this issue more prominently featured. $100B in the bank, I'd expect Apple would think that fixing this is important. Sad to see that the company's getting like Microsoft...keeping to locked-in release schedules and releasing products even if they aren't yet good enough (case in point, Mountain Lion!).

With the move to wireless, this problem is even worse, because we're stuck unless we buy an ethernet to USB converter and happen to be in a place with an etherenet jack.

key words: I'm also suffering from this, with an 11" MBA. 10.7.3 did nothing for me, neither did re-installing Lion myself, or leaving my computer at the Apple store for them to investigate (they also tried reinstalling Lion, said it was fixed, and as soon as I got home I saw it wasn't).

sgt_harris wrote:

I'm also suffering from this, with an 11" MBA. 10.7.3 did nothing for me, neither did re-installing Lion myself, or leaving my computer at the Apple store for them to investigate (they also tried reinstalling Lion, said it was fixed, and as soon as I got home I saw it wasn't).

Seeing that there are a few hundred thousand views of this issue in the Apple Support forums (across multiple threads, but some single threads have that many views) this makes me think that this is on the scale of the iPhone antenna issue, but Apple just hasn't acknowledged this yet (the Genuises even said that there was not all that much they could do if this chronic problem doesn't go away because it's not an "official" Apple issue).

So how was it that the antenna problem finally got big in the media, forcing Apple to address it? Maybe if a few people in this support community have tech journalist friends, they can get this issue more prominently featured. $100B in the bank, I'd expect Apple would think that fixing this is important. Sad to see that the company's getting like Microsoft...keeping to locked-in release schedules and releasing products even if they aren't yet good enough (case in point, Mountain Lion!).

With the move to wireless, this problem is even worse, because we're stuck unless we buy an ethernet to USB converter and happen to be in a place with an etherenet jack.

Go to a public library and see if there is any difference. Otherwise, start at the modem, then go to the router! And if need be get a new modem and/ or router (or just focus on the router because that is what translates the signal coming in to something usable to surrounding computers) .

The guy at the Genius Bar saw the problem for himself (not as horrible a manifestation, but he saw it nonetheless). Their way of testing it was working was running a YouTube video in a loop for 3 hours and then checking the logs. I've seen some people say that maintaining a continuous data connection (or something like that, e.g. by streaming or a continuous ping) stops the problem via tricking the OS/system/whatever, so maybe their test just avoided testing the problem.

There's no rhyme or reason I can see to the connection issues. It isn't always on waking from sleep or logging in. Sometimes it just plain old craps out for no apparent reason (though there may surely be a reason under the hood). I have an older Mac and a PC that work just fine on the same router, and the problem also manifested on a totally different router in a different country.

Like many posters have said , if we pay this much for a computer, we expect it to work or be fixed if it doesn't (especially after shelling out for Apple Care). I'm not spending money on a new router or anything else when Apple released something with a bug in it. The reason I bought a Mac and not a PC is because I expect it to work.

Very good point afroman7600...I'd gladly shell out $30 for a brand new OS that fixes all of this, but I fear it will just come laden with a few more bugs that will make my life even more difficult!

So upgrading to newer technology in an OS is all right, but upgrading to newer technology in a router is not ok?

Not being given the information that we would need to is not ok. A lot of people using their machines in a work environment who can't afford the downtime this has caused would have waited to update if they knew the info in advance.

And more simply, we shouldn't even have to update hardware that works with pretty much any other device you throw at it. I would NOT gladly shell out $30 to fix a problem they should be fixing anyway. That's a ridiculous resolution to the problem lol. Have to buy anything new to fix the problem is ridiculous.

Sometimes when you get your tires rotated, it means also finding out one needs to have them balanced and even replaced.

Wow, you really are reaching new levels are ridiculousness with your posts. You are seriously saying everyone with networks that are functioning completely fine with ANY other device other than one running Lion should be expected to either pay for a new router, or pay for an OS upgrade rather than having Apple address the problem? You HAVE to be just trolling a this point?

no no... not trolling... but yes... a person should be prepared to make modifications if needed especially when upgrading.

Hah so the exact same computer running Snow Leopard works on the network along with dozens of other devices? It's upgraded, and won't connect anymore. So that's the customer's fault, not Apple responsibility in any way? Seriously?

It is no one's fault. Look we had for years a crt tv... and finaly some one gave us a flat screen tv... we needed to change the furniture that held the tv. It was not the fault of the television manufacture or the person that gave us the flat screen tv, or even our selves... sometimes it is what it is. No it is not Apple's responsibility in any way. That is my honest opinion. Do you remember when everyone in the United States was told that only digital tv reception would be now coming to them... it was no ones fault that everyone that did not have cable or sateltie had to go by a digital converter. Seriously.

Message was edited by: Carlo TD

This is not remotely the same thing lol. If you are releasing an OS that has incompatiblities with routers, then tell people. You could see the change coming with TV's, no one was aware of this problem or the potential of it when they updated their OS, or many would have choosen not to. People especially aren't expecting it when not a single other device or OS is having problems with their network.

RE the TV recpetion point you just added.... you said it yourself.... THEY WERE WARNED. No one was warned of this! No one is currently being warned of it either. New people show up in this thread every day with the problem.

I think you legitimately are trying to help some users and have offered good advice in many posts in this thread. But then you offset it with ridiculous statements like that.

I dont think it is the os per say... I have lion... and I have no problems, and I am using a refurbished 1st gen 1TB time capsule. I think so many people have a variety of networks or setups or configured differently, it is ultimately impossible to list every configuration. I was talking to a person that was still using Apple Talk, another person is using WEP (by the way WEP is on its way out). Another person I was talking to had to change a port number on their router. Another person, was using a WDS. I understand not everyone is able to update their routers, or is knowledgeable when firmwares become availabe. I dont even know when an update is available for my computer, I just turn on my computer and sometimes there it is a notification that an update exists. And some companies, just don't even update their equipment. It just turns for the most part into legacy equipment. It is very difficult to be backwards compatible while moving forward.

Carlo TD, your replies are starting to come across as put downs (even if not intended to be). My router's a year old and there's nothing wrong with it. Doubtful that my particular router needs replacing when thousands of people around the world, running Lion on different machines, and as both upgrades and pre-installs, are experiencing the same problem, which they've made an effort to pinpoint down to something with the OS. Granted, whatever the bug is doesn't affect ALL machines, but it affects a substantial number of them across a diverse enough population (statistically significant).

I see the point you're making, but when someone spends money on a product that is marketed as high quality and reliable (particularly if it's one that touts the benefits of doing everything wirelessly), and is paying a substantial premium for that supposed quality and reliability, and is paying for a warranty on top of that, it's perfectly logical that they'd assume that what they're buying will be high quality and reliable, and they have the right to expect that.

WiFi's a pretty basic thing. And as torndownunit suggests, if Apple knew that Lion was going to cause people problems, they should've said something. If, for example, it's been designed and tested for Apple routers only, they should've said so, and then at least I could've made an informed decision about whether I want to invest in a Lion machine or upgrade to Lion. If they didn't know about this problem when it was released, then they should be working their butts off now to fix this. It's not like Apple doesn't have the money to pay people to look into it - they hired all sorts of new engineers to fix their iPhone antenna problem.