How are the M1 Mac Bluetooth Issues still not fixed in 2023?!??

[TheSynchronizer]

Honestly, it's just unbelievable and so disappointing that I'm even making this post.

So here's the scenario that proves that it's the macbook to blame: Case 1: M1 iPad Pro 11 connected to TV using usb-c to HDMI dongle, connected by bluetooth to a keyboard, mouse, and Beats Studio Buds. No issues at all, flawless experience.

Case 2: M1 Macbook Air (in the exact same location) connected to TV using the exact same usb-c to HDMI dongle, connected by bluetooth to the exact same keyboard, mouse and Beats Studio Buds. Result: Audio 1-2s drop outs every 5-10 seconds consistently.

Solution: Disconnecting the mouse from macbook to stop audio dropouts (unnecessary on the iPad 😐)

Ofcourse I've tried different mice, different keyboards, same exact story. AirPods Pro seem to work a lot more consistently but that is not an excuse or acceptable at all.

Exact same results in both clamshell and non-clamshell mode. Literally the only difference in each scenario is the device, proving how trash the bluetooth in the macbook is compared to the iPad.

How in the actual..... are these new-generation expensive laptops incapable of simultaneously running a standard set of bluetooth accessories??

I'm a day one M1 user, and since Big Sur I've really, really tried to be patient with some of these literal core functionality issues, but in 2023 on Ventura 13.2 I've realised this is likely never being fixed.

What an absolute joke.

 

[gradi]

This guy has his M2 Pro Mac Mini and I have it cued up to where he talks a bit about some more longstanding Mac problems that never get fixed.

Persistent Mac Problems That Are Never Fixed

Long standing never fixed basic bugs that users must live with and constantly be annoyed by is just part of the Apple Tax, I guess. I keep finding them. Not obscure things, basic things. Not a good way to go for a company that if it was a country would be the 8th richest in the world.

Apple’s GDP Makes it 8th Richest Country in the World

https://www.macobserver.com/news/apple-eighth-richest-country/

Apple has 165k employees. Surely one or two could spend a few weeks to fix some of the simple, basic bugs that have been around forever.

 

[Yebubbleman]

Honestly, it's just unbelievable and so disappointing that I'm even making this post.

So here's the scenario that proves that it's the macbook to blame: Case 1: M1 iPad Pro 11 connected to TV using usb-c to HDMI dongle, connected by bluetooth to a keyboard, mouse, and Beats Studio Buds. No issues at all, flawless experience.

Case 2: M1 Macbook Air (in the exact same location) connected to TV using the exact same usb-c to HDMI dongle, connected by bluetooth to the exact same keyboard, mouse and Beats Studio Buds. Result: Audio 1-2s drop outs every 5-10 seconds consistently.

Solution: Disconnecting the mouse from macbook to stop audio dropouts (unnecessary on the iPad 😐)

Ofcourse I've tried different mice, different keyboards, same exact story. AirPods Pro seem to work a lot more consistently but that is not an excuse or acceptable at all.

Exact same results in both clamshell and non-clamshell mode. Literally the only difference in each scenario is the device, proving how trash the bluetooth in the macbook is compared to the iPad.

How in the actual..... are these new-generation expensive laptops incapable of simultaneously running a standard set of bluetooth accessories??

I'm a day one M1 user, and since Big Sur I've really, really tried to be patient with some of these literal core functionality issues, but in 2023 on Ventura 13.2 I've realised this is likely never being fixed.

What an absolute joke.

I've only ever really used the Apple Touch ID keyboard (the one without the numeric keypad) and the current Magic Trackpad with an M1 iMac and have had no issues. But it sounds like you're thinking that first party products don't have as much difficulty? Have you filed Feedback with Apple yet?

 

[TheSynchronizer]

This guy has his M2 Pro Mac Mini and I have it cued up to where he talks a bit about some more longstanding Mac problems that never get fixed.

Persistent Mac Problems That Are Never Fixed

Long standing never fixed basic bugs that users must live with and constantly be annoyed by is just part of the Apple Tax, I guess. I keep finding them. Not obscure things, basic things. Not a good way to go for a company that if it was a country would be the 8th richest in the world.

Apple’s GDP Makes it 8th Richest Country in the World

https://www.macobserver.com/news/apple-eighth-richest-country/

Apple has 165k employees. Surely one or two could spend a few weeks to fix some of the simple, basic bugs that have been around forever.

I agree it really does seem that way, it’s part of the Apple Tax. Part of having that exclusive access to macOS / Apple software that is impossible to natively have otherwise.

Using a mac is generally a great experience, until you unfortunately run into some basic feature not working as expected on your expensive machine, and suddenly the ‘magic’ is broken. Suddenly the “It just works” is not the case anymore.

Sometimes it just seems like Apple has gotten way too comfortable sitting at the top.

 

[gradi]

Last year I had an M1 iMac 16gb/512gb with Bluetooth Apple Magic keyboard and mouse. Keyboard and mouse were about 20 cm from the iMac. No other Bluetooth devices in the home. Wired internet connection. Sometimes the keyboard and/or mouse would lose connection. Very annoying. Also, when waking from sleep mode sometimes there was a long delay before they would reconnect. I got rid of the iMac and got an M1 Mini 16gb/512gb with a wired keyboard and wired mouse.

 

[TheSynchronizer]

I've only ever really used the Apple Touch ID keyboard (the one without the numeric keypad) and the current Magic Trackpad with an M1 iMac and have had no issues. But it sounds like you're thinking that first party products don't have as much difficulty? Have you filed Feedback with Apple yet?

Indeed, just a mouse and keyboard works great for me too! Surely the bare minimum right?

The poor MacBooks however struggle with having bluetooth headphones to go along with that too.. whereas the mighty iPad runs the triple device combo without breaking a sweat.

And oh yes, my good old friend Product Feedback. I’ve used it countless times. However I think mine and many other M1 owners feedback might have been accidentally going into the junk folder ever since Big Sur because all sorts of bluetooth issues have become a staple of the M1 community. Many posts from many people going back a long time now.. me bringing this issue up again is old news really.

 

[TheSynchronizer]

Last year I had an M1 iMac 16gb/512gb with Bluetooth Apple Magic keyboard and mouse. Keyboard and mouse were about 20 cm from the iMac. No other Bluetooth devices in the home. Wired internet connection. Sometimes the keyboard and/or mouse would lose connection. Very annoying. Also, when waking from sleep mode sometimes there was a long delay before they would reconnect. I got rid of the iMac and got an M1 Mini 16gb/512gb with a wired keyboard and wired mouse.

I do find it a bit funny that this company is reportedly striving to make port-less devices soon🤣.

I find myself using wired connections whenever I can too. It’s just so much less of a headache. And I guess for connecting to my TV I’m going to be forced to use the iPad instead of a macbook - which in itself brings various other limitations.

 

[senttoschool]

My Logitech 2S Master mouse has such a high latency that it's essentially unusable with my M1 16" Macbook Pro & m1 Air. No idea if it's on Logitech or Apple's side.

 

[TheSynchronizer]

My Logitech 2S Master mouse has such a high latency that it's essentially unusable with my M1 16" Macbook Pro & m1 Air. No idea if it's on Logitech or Apple's side.

Not too sure, but I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s fault on both sides. Apple likes to hide a lot of configuration settings from the user and instead automises them - something could be messing up for that mouse. Likewise, Logitech’s macOS drivers might not be working as intended.

 

[Basic75]

Apple has 165k employees. Surely one or two could spend a few weeks to fix some of the simple, basic bugs that have been around forever.

What does it tell you if they don't fix them? That some "controller" or "manager" has "calculated" that some unhappy users cost less than fixing the issue? Some of these unhappy users might upgrade earlier, that's a win! Or that Apple has reached critical size and inertia and is unable to track and fix issues in a timely manner? Or that there are too many "basic bugs" to fix them all?

 

[Paradoxally]

My Logitech 2S Master mouse has such a high latency that it's essentially unusable with my M1 16" Macbook Pro & m1 Air. No idea if it's on Logitech or Apple's side.

That mouse comes with a 2.4 Ghz dongle, that would give you a much better experience provided you have an adapter or dock because of the lack of USB-A ports.

 

[Aggedor]

I have the same issue with my Bose QC45s.

 

[senttoschool]

That mouse comes with a 2.4 Ghz dongle, that would give you a much better experience provided you have an adapter or dock because of the lack of USB-A ports.

No, the dongle has the same issue. High latency. Feels like the cursor is noticeably behind the physical movement of the mouse.

 

[Basic75]

No, the dongle has the same issue. High latency. Feels like the cursor is noticeably behind the physical movement of the mouse.

Do you have the same issue with a wired mouse?

 

[nvmls]

These have been unfixed like forever literally, obviously many people don't experience them, but also many do, like the audio cracking noise bug, took them only what... 4-5 years. At the end of the day, they don't care, unless it drives revenue, feedback is simply plain ignored. If we look at the state of many stock apps like Music, Safari, Messages, Mail... they are left in the dust with the same & new bugs from worthless new features, with a nose dived UX.

 

[TheSynchronizer]

5. If none of these work, try another machine. Maybe it’s a hardware issue.

I can confirm that the issue is exactly the same on both my 14 inch M1 Pro on Monterey, as well as my M1 Air on latest Ventura.

Thanks for the other tips though, I'll give them a try to see if any of them could help.

 

[TheSynchronizer]

Could be a bug or design issue. I can tell you that I’ve found issues with Logitech accessories and Bluetooth. My mouse was jumpy until I switched to the Logitech dongle. Maybe try with Apple Keyboard and Magic Mouse.

Indeed, the mouse works okay using the usb dongle it's included with instead of bluetooth. This allows my bluetooth keyboard and headphones to then work fine too.

However what's interesting here is the fact that my iPad has no issues at all running these three bluetooth devices at the same time - no audio cut outs, no mouse lag, nothing. And it has the exact same M1 chip as the laptop! To me it does all just seem to narrow it down to macbooks having weaker bluetooth capabilities, honestly.

 

[arw]

If you contact Apple, the only advice they give you (after hours of diagnosis), is to disable 2,4 GHz Wi-Fi in your router and use 5 GHz only. I guess you have tried that or it‘s not possible for you?

 

[TheSynchronizer]

If you contact Apple, the only advice they give you (after hours of diagnosis), is to disable 2,4 GHz Wi-Fi in your router and use 5 GHz only. I guess you have tried that or it‘s not possible for you?

Unfortunately it’s not really an option for me to turn off 2.4 ghz wifi.

However, it still doesn’t explain why the macbook struggles and the iPad is fine! They’re both advertised to have the same Bluetooth 5.0 capabilities.

False advertising? Apple hiding something?

 

[arw]

Unfortunately it’s not really an option for me to turn off 2.4 ghz wifi.

However, it still doesn’t explain why the macbook struggles and the iPad is fine! They’re both advertised to have the same Bluetooth 5.0 capabilities.

False advertising? Apple hiding something?

From my hours of testing various scenarios with Apple technicians, I can only conclude: incompetence or budget cuts and insufficient testing.
(It is an Intel model but 100% OS related: Older version of macOS work perfectly fine. Newer version of macOS and exactly the problems you describe.)
Lately I get the impression, that either user feedback is ignored or the internal communication is just really bad.
So I wouldn't get my hopes up for a solution - Except going completely wired via ethernet adapter and Wi-Fi off. You could try that just to see if it's an interference problem that can be circumvented that way.
But don't use a cheap (unshielded) USB 3.0 adapter - they also interfere with BT / 2,4 GHz WiFi.

 

[ApplesAreSweet&Sour]

My Logitech 2S Master mouse has such a high latency that it's essentially unusable with my M1 16" Macbook Pro & m1 Air. No idea if it's on Logitech or Apple's side.

I use the same mouse and have the same setup plus an M1 mini.

I had the connection dropping randomly, audio signal from Macs to AirPods distorting, Logitech mice and keyboards acting up, not being able to log in upon booting, Watch not unlocking Macs(don't know if Watch connects to Macs via Bluetooth or Wifi?), etc.

But since disabling FileVault and doing a clean install of Ventura both AirPods and the 2S and MX Keys and all other devices connect almost perfectly.

Only minor gripe I have left is how AirPods just do not auto-switch to Mac without answering the "connect" prompt.

Yes, I know there's no logical explanation to why doing what I did would fix shoddy Bluetooth.

But it certainly wasn't fixed in an update. Simply installing Ventura or any of the updates to it did not help.

*Bluetooth and Wifi is enabled on all my Macs. Disabling wifi and going ethernet only also didn't help.

 

[magbarn]

I don't know if Apple is still using Broadcom or even worse Mediatek for their Wifi/bluetooth, but these symptoms are consistent with the issues I would see on my Windows laptops with bluetooth devices that would go away once I upgraded the wifi/bluetooth card to Intel. Of course we don't have that option with the latest solder everything Apple devices....

 

[antiprotest]

Many bugs take Apple 10+ years to fix.

For example, a recent Mac update finally fixed the text-to-speech bug in macOS in which the voice selected in Read Screen is not used in Speech>Start Speaking (rather, an old robotic voice is used). This bug had existed for at least 10 years. There are several other examples.

It is possible that Apple will fix the bluetooth bugs so that our children will no longer have to suffer them.

However, it does not mean that Apple will fix it even after 10+ years. It is totally up to their whim.

 

[MallardDuck]

Honestly, it's just unbelievable and so disappointing that I'm even making this post.

So here's the scenario that proves that it's the macbook to blame: Case 1: M1 iPad Pro 11 connected to TV using usb-c to HDMI dongle, connected by bluetooth to a keyboard, mouse, and Beats Studio Buds. No issues at all, flawless experience.

Case 2: M1 Macbook Air (in the exact same location) connected to TV using the exact same usb-c to HDMI dongle, connected by bluetooth to the exact same keyboard, mouse and Beats Studio Buds. Result: Audio 1-2s drop outs every 5-10 seconds consistently.

Solution: Disconnecting the mouse from macbook to stop audio dropouts (unnecessary on the iPad 😐)

Ofcourse I've tried different mice, different keyboards, same exact story. AirPods Pro seem to work a lot more consistently but that is not an excuse or acceptable at all.

Exact same results in both clamshell and non-clamshell mode. Literally the only difference in each scenario is the device, proving how trash the bluetooth in the macbook is compared to the iPad.

How in the actual..... are these new-generation expensive laptops incapable of simultaneously running a standard set of bluetooth accessories??

I'm a day one M1 user, and since Big Sur I've really, really tried to be patient with some of these literal core functionality issues, but in 2023 on Ventura 13.2 I've realised this is likely never being fixed.

What an absolute joke.

Do your ipad and mac use the same bluetooth version?

The antennas are also completely different - the mac may actually be more sensitive to interference since it's a larger footprint.

 

[HackMacDaddy]

The last Apple machine that „just worked“ for me is the mid 2012 MacBook Pro which is why I still use it to this day without any hickups.
It‘s really frustrating that yearly OS updates with questonable features are more important than bugfixes for a stable OS. It would be good to test the exact scenarion on a M2.