Macbook Pro 2018 overheating, and other strange problems

Hello Apple support community, I am a long time Apple admirer but I'm so unhappy with my latest purchase. I bought my MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2018, Four Thunderbolt 3 Ports) about a month ago. Since then, I noticed that this notebook feels more like a trashy Windows computer with lots of problems, unlike a real mac like my old Macbook Air. That one used to work perfectly. I am extremely unhappy with my purchase and also want to let every Apple fan know that this laptop is faulty.


So the biggest issue with this computer is that even under very light load, it overheats. Like the palm rests become uncomfortable because they are too hot, and don't even get me started how it feels if I use it on my lap. I literally have to wipe the computer every 10 minutes because of the sweat caused by hot palm rests. I got the same issue with the first Macbook Pro 2018 I bought, I then got it replaced, but there is no difference at all. Before touching on every issue, let me show you some proof that this computer's cooling system is not working properly. Writing this post, I am very uncomfortable because of the heat on my legs.


Here's what Apple says about the heat. It will surely decrease the life of my computer:


User uploaded file

I am also really disappointed by the bad battery life of this laptop compared to my 2015 macbook air. Here's a picture of the battery life under normal load: (I think it is so bad because of the heat problem)

User uploaded file

User uploaded file

Here's the battery life when the computer is cold:

User uploaded file


For the heat issue, I took different screenshots in different scenarios and have a label for each photo, describing what it is about. I screenshotted the fan speeds, cpu temperatures and the computer load everytime I noticed unusual things.


Here the computer is really really hot:

User uploaded file

This is a screenshot when the palm rest felt really hot:

User uploaded file

This is when computer is kind of under some load, but doesnt feel so hot:

User uploaded file

This is when computer was really hot but fans were not working:

User uploaded file

This is when it was hot and fans running slowly:

User uploaded file

Fans running fast while not hot:

User uploaded file

A screenshot when everything feels totally normal, computer doesnt feel hot:

https://pasteboard.co/HDURYKP.png

This is when the bottom of the computer felt extremely hot:

https://pasteboard.co/HDURF8nf.png

This is when the temperatures look cool but the bottom of the laptop is burning:

https://pasteboard.co/HDUR8NH.png

When laptop was cool but fans running crazy:

https://pasteboard.co/HDUQP0c.png

When my hands are really hot because of the burning palm rest:

https://pasteboard.co/HDUQCic.png

When laptop is burning yet no fan working:

https://pasteboard.co/HDUQsY4.png


Here are some other problems occurred you would not expect from a real Apple notebook(These kind of -windows computer- style issues never happened to my 3-year-old MacBook Air):

- Airdrop doesnt work when connected to VPN. I've tested this and I'm sure that VPN connection blocks Airdrop usage between my macbook and iPhone X


macbook pro 2018 sound got stuck in the middle of the song - had to force restart the computer - YouTube

macbook pro 2018 screen gone - had to force restart the computer - YouTube

macbook pro 2018 won't turn on after crashed - YouTube

macbook pro wont sleep - YouTube


I am hoping to get support here because trying to get support through live chat and phone support, but they just kept asking for hardware test and stuff, and hardware tests didn't show any issues. I contacted Apple through feedback also, noting everything, but they did not respond. I need real Apple engineers to notice my report of strange problems and acknowledge them. This laptop disgraces Apple's quality. The overheating is absolutely not normal for this laptop. This laptop gets hot even if you only have safari open with 2 tabs

macOS High Sierra (10.13.6)

Posted on Sep 14, 2018 4:23 PM

Reply
89 replies

Jan 15, 2019 12:24 PM in response to Green Meanie

Hi guys. Experiencing the same issue. Got my first one in december 2018 replaced it with a new one after 14 days, which came in yesterday - started working on it today same issue! As soon as you work on it and it can be a simple task such us browsing or answering a few emails on safari it is overheating like crazy. If you don't it cools down. Also the battery drains like 1% per minute if you are working on it. I don't even know what will happen when I start working on 2 screens, after effects and photoshop (did not even install them). My config is 13", i7, 16gb ram.


So as far as I understood it was not a hardware issue. If it has really to do with mojave, how can I go back to high sierra with this new mbp?


Anyone else found any solution in the meantime. I'd really like to keep this as this is my first mac after windows, but neither on windows I experienced this. My HP spectre still has a 3-5h battery life after 3 years full usage, while this one *** after being on it for only 3 hours.


Thanks!



​[Edited by Host]

Dec 23, 2018 10:06 AM in response to jaysun029

So what do you do with the 68% memory that is not being used? Modern OSs use all available RAM to store recently and often used data/apps. This gives instant access to needed resources. When additional RAM is needed by another app then the stored data is immediately replaced with the newly needed data. Once again, what is the advantage of having unused RAM? Maybe on old slow systems there may have been an advantage but this is 2018, new systems have figured out how to best use all available RAM.

But you are welcome to argue symantics and spout old technogy.

Dec 23, 2018 10:38 AM in response to BobTheFisherman

Bob, you are right about ‘lap’ use. But the rapidity of heat buildup and extreme temps are not good in any event. Your reply regarding RAM is a specious argument as noted by jasun. Apps and internal processes do not use all available resources if they do not require them. Your logic implies that the more ram you have, regardless of the actual requirements, will result in faster and more efficient machine. You are wrong. Experts do declare that overpurchasing RAM can be gratuitous and wasteful.

And last, no reply regarding battery life?


Dec 27, 2018 4:27 AM in response to jbk224bamacophile

So, I went to my local Apple store and my 'Genius', who was more than helpful, advised to change out the laptop for a brand new one. I have had it now running for 3 days---with High Sierra as my OS X. So far it has been running normally as I would expect. What is interesting is that, while at Apple, the issue of battery drain was not really addressed with any specificity. Yet, there are blogs/threads out 'here' that discuss the battery drain issue when moving into Mojave--and I only had the latest updated version. So, I am holding off d/l Mojave until I hear more and possible fixes. The heat problem was reduced as well.

Of course my original unit could have had a problem. So, if anyone has the same 2018 15.4/2.6 unit and is running Mojave without any issues; I would like to hear back.

Thanks for the feedback.


Feb 13, 2019 3:49 PM in response to denigada

Hi all, me again

I already posted on this forum stating that I have the same issue with my MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2018, Four Thunderbolt 3 Ports) 2.3 GHz Intel Core i5 16 GB 2133 MHz LPDDR3

I have notice that MACBOOK PRO starts heating when:


  1. I start a videoconferencing using GoToMeeting or Google Hangout.
  2. Using Lightroom and exporting RAW pics to JPEG format (CPU temperature is up 100 celsius degrees)


Anybody knows how to scale this to apple?...



Mar 14, 2019 12:15 PM in response to Network 23

Agreed, and that's exactly what I was trying to tell the earlier poster. People always think Apple is the only company that makes computers with issues. It's only because of Apple's high popularity and YouTubers who say negative things to get clicks. Grass isn't always greener. The Lenovo X1 Extreme was something many Windows users were waiting for. Lenovo quotes it as 15 hours battery life, but with the 4K screen the battery life gets cut down to a max of 6 hours with simple use. It's not much more with the standard 1080 HD screen. It gets very hot and drains the battery. Noisy fans on this machine is another big complaint.


Mar 27, 2019 9:00 AM in response to DPJ

Hi DPJ, thank you for your reply.


  1. No Chrome unless I have to test a website. I am a web developer and I use Safari for Wordpress. But I do use Chrome occasionally to test a webpage.
  2. I will check the activity monitor to find out which app is using high resources.


I do watch video and I have the MacBook Pro connected to an external display for this. Not sure if this contributes to high heat as I'm mirroring the display. But I normally turn off the display for this.


If all else fails, I'll try the PRAM reset you suggested. Thank you.

Apr 7, 2019 10:08 PM in response to rvs1963

I also have the 2018 13" MacBook Pro with 2.7 GHz Intel Core i7 & 16GB of RAM. When I first purchased the computer I had many similar issues as described here. I also visited the Genius Bar (all tested fine), performed numerous SMC resets and sent logs of both my Activity Monitor as well as Mac Fan Control. I finally reached a Tier II level support tech who suggested that I complete a new install of the OS (I was running Mojave 10.14.4) Thie computer has performed much better and cooler. I still experience rapid heat build-up on certain web sites. Everything from nike.com, cnet.com, theverge.com and even news sites such as cnn.com. The heat builds up almost instantaneously when one of these windows is open (doesn't seem to matter if it is Chrome or Safari by the way) I typically have 6-8 tabs open in Chrome and 2-4 in Safari. (my company uses Google apps primarily, so I don't have a choice as the systems are optimized to run in Chrome) In any case, it is maddening that a machine that in theory should be blazing fast can be impacted in heat and performance by one tab in either browser. Just crazy, I have not gone back to Apple as I am weary of reporting this. I am also curious if anyone has heard of 2018 MacBook Airs suffering similar issues.

Thanks to the community for any input or advice in advance.


Apr 8, 2019 12:01 PM in response to ozkar

What are your temperatures under what loads?


My temps are typically 40-50C idle, 60C active, 80C under load, 95-100C when all four cores and GPU are working hard.

My 2018 13" drives two monitors plus external drives and peripherals through a hub, editing photos and videos.


I don't think it overheats because it really has to be busy for the fans to come up.


And I don't think a Mac is overheating unless it is crashing and shutting itself down out of desparation. If it continues to run applications and complete jobs, keeping its temperature under the 100C Intel CPU limit, then I don't think it's overheating. If your Mac is staying under 90C then I really don't think it's overheating, it's just running hot.


I do not think overheating can be judged from a hot exterior alone. Sometimes that just means the Mac is successfully pushing heat outside. Internal and external temperatures can be very different. The internal temperature is what matters.

Jul 5, 2019 10:04 AM in response to DPJ

If none of your apps are stressing the CPU then there's no way it could be getting hot or remotely warm. That wouldn't be logical.


This is exactly why I am desperately trying to find a solution with various screenshots. I have used a Macbook Air before, putting it under very high load, it never got this hot. I can only use my laptop on the desk because it gets very very warm. I honestly never felt the bottom of this notebook cool, it is always hot. I think it is certainly defective.

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Macbook Pro 2018 overheating, and other strange problems

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