Q: My macbook is still hot, slow, with a noisy fan: ANY ideas? I've run First Aid and reset my SMC but it didn't help. Ma ... more
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Nov 2, 2015 11:02 AMby etresoft,OGELTHORPE wrote:
etresoft wrote:
Replacing your old hard drive with an SSD would be a dramatic improvement. I have a Samsung 840 EVO.
The problems that I mention with Samsung SSDs seem to be confined to the newer EVO 850 models.
That's interesting. That is the only model that OWC even lists for that particular machine. They weren't price competitive on the OWC website anyway. Samsung might suffer from the same huge market effect the same way Apple does. They sell so many drives that there are going to be huge numbers of problem reports. OWC is a special case though. You can just go to OWC, buy and forget. Their stuff always works and is competitive on price. If I were buying from somewhere other than OWC, I would be much more likely to buy a Samsung. On Newegg, reviews and ratings for the Samsung 850 are very good, although not quite "perfect" like the Samsung 840. I try to use OWC when possible, but if I have to buy something else, I would go to Newegg for reviews.
As for compatibility, Samsung may not list Mac compatibility because currently there are no Macs that are compatible. Macs simply aren't upgradeable at all anymore so Samsung can't make that claim. But if you add a "Mac" filter to the Newegg reviews, people seem to have good luck with them in their older Macs.
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Nov 2, 2015 11:12 AMby OGELTHORPE,It is a mixed bag with the Samsung SSDs if you search these forums. Considering the number of negative comments, I cannot endorse them even with those who have had good results.
OWC SSDs seem to be bullet proof based on what I have observed on these forums.
I have installed three Crucial SSDs in my MBPs and have experienced good results. One should make certain that with the Crucial SSDs, that the latest firmware be installed.
Ciao.
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Nov 2, 2015 2:34 PMby etresoft,Hello again viviansoho,
There are no problems that I am aware of. Did you call an official Apple Store or an Authorized Apple Repair centre? I wouldn't be surprised if an Apple Store refused to upgrade a machine. They are in the business of selling new machines and providing warranty service. But you should be able to find an independent repair shop that will do it. I only recommend an Authorized Apple Repair facility because they should be familiar with Macs. If one shop won't do it, just call another one. Go to http://locate.apple.com, pick your country, then click the big "Service" button. Enter your location, choose "Mac", and click "Go".
For example, if I were in "soho" in NYC, I would probably call Mike's Tech Shop first and maybe Tekserve from the results list. I'm not recommending those places. They just look like likely candidates. Both places advertise that they do upgrades.
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Nov 2, 2015 3:10 PMby OGELTHORPE,viviansoho wrote:
Are there problems with installing an SSD into this old a macbook pro?
NO! Why not do it yourself? Look at this video and see exactly what is involved. It is NOT rocket science.
http://eshop.macsales.com/installvideos/macbookpro_13_unibody_early11_hd/
Ciao.
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Nov 2, 2015 7:49 PMby viviansoho,So something I should have done a long time ago was an wipe and reinstall. Fan still purring louder than it should be for just safari running, but not horrible. At least I can even text this message cause earlier today, I was typing and just waiting for each letter to come onto the screen. I ran Etre Check again and this is what I have. Does it look any better?
EtreCheck version: 2.6.3 (223)
Report generated 11/2/15, 10:43 PM
Runtime 3:25
Download EtreCheck from http://etresoft.com/etrecheck
Click the [Click for support] links for help with non-Apple products.
Click the [Click for details] links for more information about that line.
Hardware Information: (What does this mean?)
MacBook Pro (13-inch, Early 2011)
[Click for Technical Specifications]
MacBook Pro - model: MacBookPro8,1
1 2.7 GHz Intel Core i7 CPU: 2-core
4 GB RAM Upgradeable
[Click for upgrade instructions]
BANK 0/DIMM0
2 GB DDR3 1333 MHz ok
BANK 1/DIMM0
2 GB DDR3 1333 MHz ok
Bluetooth: Old - Handoff/Airdrop2 not supported
Wireless: en1: 802.11 a/b/g/n
Battery: Health = Normal - Cycle count = 467 - SN = W01256F30D3BA
Video Information: (What does this mean?)
Intel HD Graphics 3000
Color LCD 1280 x 800
System Software: (What does this mean?)
OS X El Capitan 10.11.1 (15B42) - Time since boot: less than an hour
Disk Information: (What does this mean?)
TOSHIBA MK5065GSXF disk0 : (500.11 GB) (Rotational)
EFI (disk0s1) <not mounted> : 210 MB
Recovery HD (disk0s3) <not mounted> [Recovery]: 650 MB
Macintosh HD VI (disk1) / : 498.88 GB (486.04 GB free)
Encrypted AES-XTS Unlocked Converting
Core Storage: disk0s2 499.25 GB Online
MATSHITADVD-R UJ-898 ()
USB Information: (What does this mean?)
Apple Inc. FaceTime HD Camera (Built-in)
Apple Inc. Apple Internal Keyboard / Trackpad
Apple Inc. BRCM2070 Hub
Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller
Apple Computer, Inc. IR Receiver
Thunderbolt Information: (What does this mean?)
Apple Inc. thunderbolt_bus
Gatekeeper: (What does this mean?)
Mac App Store and identified developers
User Login Items: (What does this mean?)
None
Other Apps: (What does this mean?)
[running] com.apple.xpc.launchd.oneshot.0x10000006.EtreCheck
Internet Plug-ins: (What does this mean?)
Default Browser: Version: 601 - SDK 10.11
QuickTime Plugin: Version: 7.7.3
3rd Party Preference Panes: (What does this mean?)
None
Time Machine: (What does this mean?)
Time Machine not configured!
Top Processes by CPU: (What does this mean?)
19% distnoted(4)
18% nsurlsessiond(2)
10% cloudd
3% WindowServer
2% helpd
Top Processes by Memory: (What does this mean?)
467 MB kernel_task
283 MB mdworker(20)
135 MB helpd
111 MB softwareupdated
111 MB mds_stores
Virtual Memory Information: (What does this mean?)
305 MB Free RAM
3.70 GB Used RAM (1.27 GB Cached)
0 B Swap Used
Diagnostics Information: (What does this mean?)
Nov 2, 2015, 10:01:49 PM Self test - passed
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Nov 2, 2015 7:54 PMby viviansoho,Line - I'm not sure what you mean. I get that I should look at the activity monitor. Without any applications open, yes the fan is still humming louder than it should be, and is a bit hot. Recently, the only time it's not humming is when it is asleep or shut down. I just did a wipe and reinstall of El Capitan and same thing: fan is humming (not majorly loud), a little bit hot. Power I do have safari open (nothing else).
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Nov 2, 2015 8:54 PMby Linc Davis,If the fan has suddenly become noisy, that may be because the bearings are worn out or there is some other mechanical problem. A malfunctioning fan could also cause the machine to run hot and slow. I suggest you make a "Genius" appointment at an Apple Store to have the machine checked out—a free service. Then, and only then, you can decide whether it's worthwhile to upgrade the memory and storage. Doing that in the presence of a bad fan will either have no effect or will make the problem worse.
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Nov 3, 2015 2:27 AMby OGELTHORPE,I do agree with Linc Davis that the fan should be examined by an Apple store genius bar technician. Running An Apple Hardware Test may offer a clue:
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201257
Note that an error free AHT is not definitive.
Ciao.
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Nov 3, 2015 2:34 AMby OGELTHORPE,Linc Davis wrote:
Then, and only then, you can decide whether it's worthwhile to upgrade the memory and storage. Doing that in the presence of a bad fan will either have no effect or will make the problem worse.
How do you arrive at the conclusion that it can 'make the problem worse'? If more RAM reduces the number of swaps, the HDD, a prime energy user, will be accessed less, thus less energy will be required and less heat will be produced.
Ciao.
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Nov 3, 2015 6:53 AMby viviansoho,I've done the apple hardware test, nothing was found. Computer is running waaaaay faster today and I'm going to slowly add back files and applications as I use them so as to closely monitor cpu. Fan is still purring but not as badly but well, it's still early in the day. Crossing my fingers.
(But a memory upgrade wouldn't be a bad idea either, since I do need more)
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Nov 3, 2015 10:05 AMby etresoft,Hello again viviansoho,
The Apple hardware test is one of those "failure only" tests. If it says there is a problem, then there is. If it doesn't say there is a problem, it means nothing. There could still be a problem. (That is pretty much what OGELTHORPE said too.)
It is certainly possible that your fans are louder and slower than normal. Without hearing it, it is difficult to say. Mine is certainly loud enough but I see no evidence that it is any louder than it has always been. My old white MacBook I had before was like a jet airplane taking off any time I tried to watch videos. My 2011 MacBook Pro is definitely better than that, but still pretty loud.
If you are going to have people look at the hardware, then by all means, have them look at all possible issues. But I strongly believe that anyone with an old MacBook, 4 GB RAM, and an old hard drive should seriously consider a RAM and SSD upgrade. It won't make your machine as fast as a new one, but it will make it almost as fast. EtreCheck includes a timer. Your machine was able to run an EtreCheck report in 3:37, 4:12, and then 3:25 on an empty machine. Those are three times as slow as my similar machine which is packed to the gills with Xcode and other developer software. The hardest part of an SSD upgrade is the reinstall which, alas, you're already doing and will have to re-do if you upgrade your hard drive. But you re-do it on an SSD, it will go about three times as fast.
Although EtreCheck is certainly not a valid benchmark, your run times are actually pretty good for an old mechanical hard drive.
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Nov 5, 2015 1:21 PMby viviansoho,Hi again
Just an update. Went to the apple store and they checked out my hd, my fan, etc. Everything is totally fine! However, I had accidentally clicked on Filevault when I did a reinstall, which might be eating up my RAM. Also, El Capitan takes up more RAM than Snow Leopard and Yosemite, so there's that. Since an SSD is pretty pricey, I'll hold off on that, but I will indeed upgrade to 8GB memory.
Thanks for all your help
Vivian
