How to Fix Common MacBook Performance Issues

The main reason people are drawn to MacBooks is the premium quality of the hardware and the seamless software integration. But, that doesn’t mean there aren’t any performance issues that you would run into. 

What should you do if this happens? You could visit an Apple Store or go see an expert or try their support, or you could try and fix it yourself. 

In the spirit of DIY, here are some of the common Mac problems and how to fix them.

1. Your Mac is very slow

Given how often you use your Mac, you may not have restarted your Mac. Sometimes, a simple reboot can help improve the performance. 

The first place you should check is the Activity Monitor. This will give you an idea of what is taking up more of your memory. 

Press Command + Spacebar -> Activity Monitor

Then look at CPU and Memory tabs. 

Click on the Memory column to sort by what is taking more memory. Close the app by using ‘Force Quit.’

Then check the CPU tab; if something takes up 80% of your CPU power, you should close that app or process.

If you keep having this ongoing issue, you need to upgrade your RAM. 

2. Your fan is very noisy
   

If your MacBook sounds like it’s about to take off like a plane, you either have a noisy fan or an overheated MacBook. To diagnose the fan noise problem, you need to get to the root cause.

• Is your MacBook very hot to the touch? Turn off all the apps and wait for a while before you turn them on again
• Once it’s on, identify if there is an app that’s hogging your memory and causing the MacBook to overheat, and you should kill the app 
• If your fan continues making a whirring sound, it could mean that your fan is faulty and needs to be replaced
• You can also get a stand designed for a MacBook to ensure proper ventilation

3. You have WiFi problems

You might be losing connection randomly, or you may not be able to connect to the WiFi at all. To try and solve this, you can turn on and off the WiFi connection. 

If that doesn’t work, restart your router and then try again. 

You can also change the WiFi network that you want to connect to. You might want to switch to 5GHz instead of 2.4 GHz since 5GHz works better at long ranges.

4. You have Bluetooth issues

If you see the annoying ‘Bluetooth Not Available’ message, here’s what you can do to fix it.

Restart your Mac and turn on and off Bluetooth devices. 

This can solve simple Bluetooth connectivity issues easily. You can also move other Bluetooth devices because those might be interfering with the signals. 

5. Your MacBook is not charging

There are two possible reasons for this – the charger is not plugged in or that the charger is faulty. It’s also possible that the outlet you’re plugged in is faulty. 

Here are three ways to fix this:

• Try a different outlet
• Try a different charger
• Remove the MagSafe 2 adapter

You might also want to look at resetting the SMC(System Management Controller) on your Mac. This can solve the charging problem. 

6. Your Mac is frozen
   

You may run into an issue where your Mac is frozen and either gets stuck on one app. Force Quit can help you solve this. Click on the app icon in the doc, hold Option and click and you will see the Force Quit action. 

If the app is not responding, press Command + Option + Escape – this will bring up a Force Quit menu.

If all else fails, press Command + Control + Eject to force a reboot. You can press down the power button to do this. 

Keep in mind that in some instances the files you have on the computer may change after forcing a reboot. You will need to restore them manually or create a backup in case something goes wrong.

7. Your Mac won’t shut down 

Sometimes your Mac won’t shut down immediately. This may be because some apps are running in the background. 

If, after waiting for a few minutes, your Mac still doesn’t shut down, an app or process may be preventing your Mac from shutting down. 

Check if you can see a bouncing app on the Dock. This means that there may be unsaved changes or a file that is still being saved. If you want to discard those changes, force quit the app. Your Mac will proceed to shut down.

8. Your Mac has sound problems

Is there no sound on your Mac? If your work does not require sound, or you do not watch movies or listen to music, the issue may not be that much of a problem. However, it is still better to take care of the problem. Here’s how you can get to the bottom of the issue:

• Make sure your volume is all the way up
• Check to see if it is connected to AirPods or a Bluetooth headset
• If you are connected to Bluetooth speakers, turn them on and off

If this doesn’t solve the issue, click on the speaker icon in the Dock and make sure you’ve selected the right source for the sound. You can also sell macbook singapore for better rates.

Conclusion

Most of these issues can be resolved if you reboot your MacBook. If that doesn’t help, or if you face a problem that’s not easily diagnosable, you should consider taking it to an expert.