Apple is in damage control mode and has come up with a quick fix for the speed throttling issue that was found to affect its latest 2018 MacBook Pro devices. While acknowledging the top-end MacBook Pro laptops powered by the Intel Core i9 CPU tends to buckle under heavy processing load, it also said that has been due to a software bug which has since been dealt with in the new update.
YouTube-based gadget reviewer Dave Lee has been the first to highlight the issue with the top-end MacBook Pro laptop when he showcased how the performance got impacted when subjected to video editing jobs using Adobe Premiere. He found the CPU speed getting throttled owing to thermal issues, which in turn made the laptop work longer to get the job done. Things however improved dramatically when Dave put the laptop in a freezer, which showed the issue has to do with some sort of a bug with the thermal management.
Apple too has confirmed the same in a statement issued along with the update, claiming a ‘missing digital key in the firmware’ led to the thermal management system behaving erroneously. That, in turn, was preventing the CPU to perform at peak speeds when pushed to the limits. Fortunately, all of that has been taken care of with the macOS High Sierra 10.13.6 Supplemental Update that Apple has come up with.
Apple also assured buyers they have subjected the new MacBook Pro to extensive and rigorous testing to ensure the laptop performs to its optimum each time. It also stated the new 15-inch MacBook Pro would be faster by 70 percent while the 13-inch MacBook Pro should be good for a performance increment by a factor of two. The company also stated they even replicated the specific situation that Dave Lee faced ensuring the update was robust enough to prevent unnecessary throttling of the CPU.
The new 2018 MacBook Pro devices initially were the focus of a lot of media attention though much of that had to do with the improvements meted out to the keyboard. That includes a new dust-proof casing introduced beneath the keys to ensuring there is minimal ingress of dust or other foreign particles. The speed throttling issue too had surprised many though its good to see the company taking heed of user’s feedback and releasing an update to rectify the same.