About to toss brand new MBP out the window...

Take a look at this thread: Slow MacBook Pro

beebrisk wrote:

I have read that...but I don't quite understand the whole thing..

What's an SMC?

And if I log in as a new user and all is well, how does that help me? How do I get it to work well with MY user account?

Sorry, I'm pretty good with some stuff, but not all and this is confusing....

THANKS!

If you make a new account and login, and if the slowness is no longer present it means that your issue is with software that is running in your main account. Knowing that allows you to look for it and remove it without being distracted by the possibility of a hardware problem.

Did you install a bloated antivirus program? These often play havoc with a computer's speed and stability. I would look first to antivirus or other programs before Mail, unless you installed a third party email client that is acting up.

beebrisk wrote:

I tried that and yes...it seems that the computer is MUCH faster on my test user account. So now, is it just a matter of trial and error when removing applications?

I have a suspicion it might be mail. Can I trash mail and then somehow just re-install it? How would I do that with Lion?

Sorry, this issue is all new to me, so any and all comments would be greatly appreciated. THANKS!!

Start by disabling or removing the items in your Login Items group, if that has the desired effect put them back one by one, test between each one.

You can also take your machine to an Apple Store and see if the people there can assist.

If you have more than ten or so files or folders on your Desktop, move them, temporarily at least, somewhere else in your home folder.

Disconnect all wired peripherals except keyboard, mouse, and monitor, if applicable. Launch the usual set of applications you use when you notice the problem.

Step 1

Launch the Activity Monitor application in any of the following ways:

☞ Enter the first few letters of its name into a Spotlight search. Select it in the results (it should be at the top.)

☞ In the Finder, select Go ▹ Utilities from the menu bar, or press the key combination shift-command-U. The application is in the folder that opens.

☞ If you’re running Mac OS X 10.7 or later, open LaunchPad. Click Utilities, then Activity Monitor in the page that opens.

Select the CPU tab.

Select All Processes from the menu in the toolbar, if not already selected.

Click the heading of the % CPU column in the process table to sort the entries by CPU usage. You may have to click it twice to get the highest value at the top. What is it, and what is the process? Also post the values for % User, % System, and % Idle at the bottom of the window.

Select the System Memory tab. What values are shown in the bottom part of the window for Page outs and Swap used?

Step 2

Launch the Console application in the same way as above, and select “kernel.log” from the file list. Post the dozen or so most recent messages in the log — the text, please, not a screenshot.

If there are runs of repeated messages, post only one example of each. Do not post many repetitions of the same message.

CPU % shift. That is normal, programs don't always use the same amount of CPU cycles all the time.

Idle CPU %. 95.xx% isn't bad. That means that 95.xx% of the CPU isn't doing anything.

Activitymontirod. That is the Activity monitor process, or part of it. IE what you are looking at, Activity Monitor.

RAM useage is very high with only Chrome, Adobe App manager and Activity monitor running. And your page ins and outs is also very high. Something is eating your RAM and that is part of your problem, if not all of it.

It is something in your original account. Stop using it and move to your second account.

Or Save your personal files, Wipe the Drive, and Reinstall Lion CLEAN. Then add your personal files and just the programs you really need.

All the kernel logs look OK. Most of that is your wirless card authentication.

Have no idea what IOSurface is (Will look it up).

iPhoto is updated through Software Update, not through the App store.

OnyX is OK. I don't know what Cocktail is or does.

EDIT:

Look at this thread from 2011. Not sure if there is an answer in it but I don't get these on my Macbook Pro.

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3216687?start=0&tstart=0

Please read this whole message before doing anything.

This procedure is a diagnostic test. It’s unlikely to solve your problem. Don’t be disappointed when you find that nothing has changed after you complete it.

The purpose of this exercise is to determine whether the problem is caused by third-party system modifications that load automatically at startup or login. Disconnect all wired peripherals except those needed for the test, and remove all aftermarket expansion cards. Boot in safe mode and log in to the account with the problem. The instructions provided by Apple are as follows:

• Be sure your Mac is shut down.
• Press the power button.
• Immediately after you hear the startup tone, hold the Shift key. The Shift key should be held as soon as possible after the startup tone, but not before the tone.
• Release the Shift key when you see the gray Apple icon and the progress indicator (looks like a spinning gear).

Note: If FileVault is enabled under Mac OS X 10.7 or later, you can’t boot in safe mode.

Safe mode is much slower to boot and run than normal, and some things won’t work at all, including wireless networking on certain Macs.

The login screen appears even if you usually log in automatically. You must know your login password in order to log in. If you’ve forgotten the password, you will need to reset it before you begin.

Test while in safe mode. Same problem(s)? It will be slow. The question is whether you get beachballs.

After testing, reboot as usual (i.e., not in safe mode) and verify that you still have the problem. Post the results of the test.

And after booting out of safe mode, did the problem come back?