M1 issues: post them all here!

[notgonna]

Thanks for the response. I guess you are right, the combination of non-native apps (MS Teams mainly) and using an external monitor (at default resolution) seems to have such a massive RAM hit that I don't think this machine is for me. Its a shame really as I'm a research student and we communicate via face time and iMessage so I had been balancing an iPad and a windows machine and was hoping to have one machine to do it all. It also appears to suggest that most students that are using office etc are going to run into the same issue. I am surprised that no one is mentioning this and al the focus is on benchmarks and video editing etc - all I want to do is have Word and safari with more than a few tabs, and then the usual stuff like mail, calendar etc. Guess I'll have to wait for some optimisation or a few more months until I can afford a 16gb machine.

Try the beta of Office for M1 native. And note this:

"According to Erik Schwiebert, Principal Software Engineer for Apple products in the Office Experiences group at Microsoft, Office is already available for M1 MacBook laptops and M1 Mac mini via the beta channel. The public release date has not been set, but beta is usually the last stage of testing before updates become available to the public. Schwiebert adds that Visual Basic is fully functional in the beta and compiles to native M1 code. Visual Basic is used for the most powerful macros in Microsoft Office, so this is an important milestone. Microsoft Teams is not yet working but is in progress."

 

[Fomalhaut]

I've had the following issues with my M1 Mini:

1) Sleep doesn't work as expected - assuming the light on the Mini should change in brightness when it's sleeping. The screens turn off but the Mini's LED stays lit at a constant brightness. However, there is a slight noise from the attached speakers when I wake the screen, which might indicate that it had disconnected and reconnected to the audio interface the speakers are connected to.

2) Safari has crashed a couple of times in the last 4 days. I think this happened during or after a sleep event (which may have failed) but it's a bit concerning because I do a lot of work in web-based documents.

3) I use a Dell D6000 dock with DisplayLink into which 2 x 1080p monitors are connected. I've had several issues with this.
i) where the screens weren't visible at all (after a reboot). Unplugging and plugging in the dock a couple of times fixed the issue
ii) Similar story with the Rode AI-1 audio interface. Doesn't always return after waking from a dark screen. Again, unplugging the dock twice fixes it (once is not enough!)
iii) I had a bizarre problem where I couldn't move my cursor to the 2nd screen, where the login prompt was located, even though I could move off the first screen into some "invisible" space. Again, reconnecting the dock fixed it.
iv) similar issue with an invisible window that couldn't be found or moved to a visible screen, and a browser window that got stuck on one side of the screen and couldn't be moved.

So most of the issues are dock related, which is an inconvenience but not a show-stopper. It does mean I have to position the Mini where I can easily unplug the dock though, so it is not ideal ergonomically.

 

[Fomalhaut]

Forgot one:

USB connections (via TB3 or USB-3) ports are measurable slower for sustained external disk read/write compared to the same disk plugged into my MBP16. c. 140MB/s write difference for a SATA3 SSD.

This appears to be a common issue.

 

[Fomalhaut]

Issues!!!. If you look in the specific AS section of the forum and many of the M1 reviews, you would think the M1 is the holy grail of computing and as such it's not capable of having issues. I am surprised the Apple collective have not trashed the OP for making such a thread.

We're a more reasonable bunch here on Macrumors, and are happy to look at facts

 

[Fomalhaut]

Mac Mini M1 doesn't seem to like ANY audio interfaces. I've tried Thunderbolt (through adapter) Focusrite Clarett and USB Roland Studio-Capture. These are High-End units. Now they're useless because of Mac Mini. It's gotta go.

I'm using a Focusrite Scarlett and Rode AI-1 without issue - probably because use CoreAudio and don't require drivers.

If your interface needs a driver, then I suggest contacting the manufacturer to see what their M1 support plans are.

 

[Bmolad]

My wifi keeps disconnecting after some time, sometimes it goes to 0.1 mbs. Anyone else have this problem? Any suggestions?

 

[Akulareb]

My wifi keeps disconnecting after some time, sometimes it goes to 0.1 mbs. Anyone else have this problem? Any suggestions?

MacBook Air here, mine does the same. It starts with a loss of signal shown in the icon then complete disconnect and keeps hanging while trying to reconnect if I reconnect the airport manually it works for minutes then does it again. Have to turn off and on the wifi. Same behaviour with Bluetooth that randomly looses connection with my devices then try to reconnect

 

[Bmolad]

MacBook Air here, mine does the same. It starts with a loss of signal shown in the icon then complete disconnect and keeps hanging while trying to reconnect if I reconnect the airport manually it works for minutes then does it again. Have to turn off and on the wifi. Same behaviour with Bluetooth that randomly looses connection with my devices then try to reconnect

Do you think it’s possible that it might be a big sur problem? Seems like other people might be suffering the same problem but they don’t have the m1 macs. I’m hoping it’s not hardware

Problems with WiFi on macOS Big Sur | Apple Developer Forums

developer.apple.com

WIFI issues with Big Sur

I have been using Macs since 2008. I have had more problems with Big Sur than any other MacOS since I started using them. I am currently running a 2019 MacBook Pro and a 2019 iMac. WIFI works for a while after a restart and then quits. I have reset the PRAM and SMC on the MacBook Pro. I...

forums.macrumors.com

 

[Akulareb]

Do you think it’s possible that it might be a big sur problem? Seems like other people might be suffering the same problem but they don’t have the m1 macs. I’m hoping it’s not hardware

Problems with WiFi on macOS Big Sur | Apple Developer Forums

developer.apple.com

WIFI issues with Big Sur

I have been using Macs since 2008. I have had more problems with Big Sur than any other MacOS since I started using them. I am currently running a 2019 MacBook Pro and a 2019 iMac. WIFI works for a while after a restart and then quits. I have reset the PRAM and SMC on the MacBook Pro. I...

forums.macrumors.com

Well, I hope so because the drops are terrible while the XBOX controller is connected.
I also seen my Bluetooth mouse slow down while I had 3 devices connected to it, probably not enough bandwidth to start with but I thought that version 5.0 is capable of handling this sort of load

 

[Jakwob]

Anyone else getting their battery drained when using a USB-C hub or an external display through USB-C to HDMI cable, even whilst in sleep and display switched off? Thought it was just me but seeing a few cases of this on Reddit. M1 MBP

 

[trulsdd]

My MBPs screen is totally fckd up because of staingate. After 3 days(!!!) I can see signs of the same on my brand new MBA.... How tf can Apple NOT fix this?! How hard can it honestly be?!

Annoys the hell out of me.

 

[jerryk]

My MBPs screen is totally fckd up because of staingate. After 3 days(!!!) I can see signs of the same on my brand new MBA.... How tf can Apple NOT fix this?! How hard can it honestly be?!

Annoys the hell out of me.

Quit cleaning the screen so often. Also, only use water and microfiber cloth. And never wipe more than once or twice. Over and over polishes the coatings right off the display.

 

[trulsdd]

I've never cleaned the screen! This is a major design weakness, and one I would have thought Apple had fixed by now.

Whats the point of selling a portable computer if you can't transport it without risking destroying the screen?

 

[Superhai]

I've never cleaned the screen! This is a major design weakness, and one I would have thought Apple had fixed by now.

Whats the point of selling a portable computer if you can't transport it without risking destroying the screen?

Sometimes one wonders what people are doing in front of their computers. Sometimes better to quickly think of something else.
Anyway I am happy mine is good.

 

[Bluepig45]

Bluetooth connectivity appears to be questionable at best. My headphones drop audio for a second quite a bit using Spotify. I don't know if this comes down to Spotify not being a native app, a Big Sur issue, or an M1 hardware issue. I'm currently testing with Apple's native Music app to see if it happens there too. If not, I'll chalk it up to Spotify...and just as I typed it the bluetooth dropped using Music. This is a Sur or Apple hardware problem. My computer will be going back if this continues.

It took me 25 minutes to get my new Mac mini M1 to recognize my Logi MX Keys, after several variations, restarts, and finally using the Logi unified wireless BT option, both the MX Master and MX Keys started working on the Mac mini. If this happens to you, you will need a wired keyboard to get you to the point of being able to connect the wireless input devices. Another help will be do download the Logi support software, and it will expedite your configuration. Neither Logi device would connect to the Mac mini with the built in BT.

 

[Bluepig45]

Beach Ball Hell for me. Just posted details, but the quick version: Shipped it back to Apple and bought a current 16” MBP instead.

My boot up time on the new M1 Mac mini (16/512) is substantially longer than my i3 (32/128) 2018 Mac mini. I'm hoping as I have it longer (I'm just now at 24 hours) the learning will kick in and boot times will improve. Never thought I'd be waiting 15 seconds for any computer in 2020 to post. Chrome is open and go, Surface is now instant on, and the iPhone starts getting ready as you're picking it up. Waiting for the next software upgrade in hopes of efficiency enhancements, and a BT fix.

 

[Bluepig45]

After using my Mac mini M1 for a day now, I have some thoughts and notes. When I started it, it was a bit hit and miss, but after installing the update to 11.0.1, many of them went away. So if you have bought a new one, the first you should do is update it! For most apps so far it is awesome.

But here are a few issues I had.

I have a 4k TV, and it works great, but on HDR it does chroma subsampling instead of full RGB and text look poorer than my old i5 Mac mini which was able to output 4k HDR with full RGB. On the other hand, HDMI seem very stable.

For HDMI audio it only support 48kHz sampling frequency for PCM audio, although you still can choose up to 24 bit and 8 channels. It seem the quantisation is better, so 44.1 kHz source don't sound as bad on 48kHz as on my previous Intel Mac. But I can't go higher or lower on HDMI audio. As a curiosity I can select up to 96kHz/32 bit on the built in speaker, and I find that funny.

I also have some intermittent oddities and beachballs, and while some may be the result of a newly setup system, I think also there are much more bugs in the "M1" version of Big Sur than in the "Intel" version. Apps under Rosetta are less affected as far as my observations go, but I will wait and see how it will be after running it for a while.

It connected fine to my wireless mouse, keyboard and trackpad during install, and mostly there are no issues. But suddenly the mouse does loose bluetooth connection, it is just for a short while and it quickly reconnects. And it does not matter if I am near my Mac or far away.

For some reason Steam in full screen is a lot slower than when it is in a window.

I have a feeling that Big Sur 11.1 and 11.2 will include a lot of bug fixes for the M1 Macs. To be honest the OS feel a bit like when you install the first versions of the betas after WWDC.

An interesting anomaly I just had occur, and really badly hope it was a one off. I was in the middle of Word doc, with an update going on at the same time, and without notice I got the coolest screen saver turn on while typing. It was the coolest screen saver I've ever seen, but nothing I did would turn it off or let me exit out, so I was forced into a hard (power on) reboot. It has not happened again, and my doc was saved, but it sure did not make me happy.

 

[Bluepig45]

Hi,

I have the M1 Mac mini and the M1 MacBook Air (both base models) - I also have the 2018 i7 Mac mini with 32 GB RAM and eGPU (RX 580) and a 2016 MacBook and a 2019 15" MacBook Pro (base model, but with 16 GB of RAM).

The M1 MBA seems to be fine, have not had too much time to use it the past week since I got it but it convinced me to also get the M1 Mac mini. I normally browse that WWW and use Plex and my heaviest task is editing 4K H.264 footage in FCP (with some MotionVFX and other plugins). For that the M1 MBA was quite fast, thus the decision to get the M1 Mac mini for home.

But while the M1 Mac mini does perform well in FCP (at the beginning), after some time, the Mac becomes laggy, opening or switching apps seems to take a while (up to 10/15 seconds), then the in-app performance is lacking too, Safari at the moment had problems recognising my keys while pressing them or it takes a second or three to open a new tab an register the letters I have already pressed.
Clicking in the menu bar to take a closer look at some items sometimes takes another second or two.

As far as I have gathered, it might be related to uptime, as the Mac is quite responsive with every task the first hour or two.

At first I thought it was related to USB, Thunderbolt and Bluetooth, as I have the OWC 14-port TB3 Dock connected (now not anymore, it has to be replugged after a restart) and an MX Master 3 (for Mac, hahaha) via Bluetooth (now via Unify Dongle) and an USB 3 device.
Now I just have connected the display to the innermost USB-A port and connect from the Dell's four USB 3 ports (one Unify Dongle, one SSD and whatever comes next).

During initial setup I also had the problem of not being able to connect the MX Master 3 (it would have been its first computer, just bought it) or the Magic Keyboard with Numpad (A1843, worked fine on the 2018 i7 Mac mini).
Then I had the idea to connect my old Apple keyboard with USB cable (which works fine on the 2018 Mac mini and a Windows 10 box - its main use) and a USB mouse.
The mouse was registered if connected directly to the M1 Mac mini, but not via the USB keyboard, which also did not get recognised. A "logickeyboard" for FCP X helped me out in the end.
I still cannot get the M1 Mac mini to recognise the Apple USB keyboard though.

I also did a clean install at some point (this sentence took five seconds to appear after I typed "I als"), which is a bit more cumbersome, but doable using this Apple Support KB. (looking up the link in the Safari browser history took almost a minute with all the lag, but I will restart once this is posted)

The clean install did not help. I am on the verge of returning the M1 Mac mini or getting it replaced (however long it takes nowadays), as the performance in FCP is WOW and 4K playback is buttery smooth, but the overall performance is merde.

PS: The CPU was hardly above 30% (using iStat Menus), though the RAM usage is often around 75% (pressure around 70% - mostly yellow).


Well, anyone any ideas?

Same problem here related to the Logi MX product line. I have the MX Master 3 mouse, and the MX Keys. My Master 3 worked with the Logi dongle, but not the internal BT radio. The Mac mini (M1 16/512) sees both the MX Keys and Master 3, but only the Master 3 would work. I was able to get both working on the same Logi dongle, but to get there I had to reboot, use a wired keyboard to complete the initial Apple power on configuration. After that I had to go to Logitech and download the software tools for the MX products on a Mac. I removed the wired keyboard and did a power cycle on the Mac mini, and the Keyboard was still not there. Then I connected the wired keyboard, pulled the dongle for the MX Keys, and a pop up launched and asked me if I wanted to use the Unified BT feature (something to that effect) and add my MX Keys. After I did that both MX products worked, and I no longer needed the wired keyboard.
So far the internal BT radio is a bust (in my opinion). Oh yeah, and as I said in response to another poster, the boot time is horrible.

 

[BeatCrazy]

I have lots of patience! But these are some anomalies I've experiences with my Mac mini M1 8GB/512 connected to a Pro Display XDR:

• My very first restart (I initiated it), brought me to the macOS Recovery menu(!) where I of course was able to login, but was also presented the option to Erase.
• Once, coming out of sleep, I get just pure noise on the monitor, like static from analog TV. Had to force reboot.
• Apple Magic Trackpad 2 not recognized upon reboot, had to (re)connect via Lightning in order to pair
• Share menu - send webpage via iMessage just froze after I populated a recipient. Had to force quit iMessage
• Update from 11.0 to 11.0.1 froze, "there was an error during download", and I'm on a 1Gbps Ethernet connection, so I'm blaming macOS
• After a reboot, my wallpaper (one of the default Big Sur versions) just magically reset to the stock abstract colored wallpaper.

To be fair, none of my Intel Macs have ever behaved 100% right. But I had higher expectations, considering I'm using their flagship monitor + brand new machine, not even restored. Set up as new.

Assuming things settle down, I still think it's a great way to compute, and two steps ahead of an Intel-based experience.

 

[bsmr]

edit.

 

[consumeritis]

I think Apple did change something with the coatings to address staingate.

My 2015 MBP was affected pretty badly twice. The coating wore away around the edges and in the middle where the keys touch it. Both times Apple gave me a new screen no questions asked, even out of warranty. I cannot praise Apple's customer service enough.

The third screen has survived much longer. It does still get marks from the keys, but 99% of the time a gentle wipe with a microfiber cloth sorts it out. It is much improved from the previous ones. I'm certain Apple changed something with the coating, so modern screens are less prone to it.

Maybe something in the environment or soap on our fingers or the ambient temperature? Or maybe some screens just have a manufacturing defect and the coating isn't quite as reliable for some batches?

It does suck. If it's happened to you I'd contact Apple and see what they can do.

 

[jiholl]

M1 Macbook Pro.....Display brightness often...but not always...resets to 50% after waking from sleep. Seems to happen when I have auto adjust on or off. I imagine apple will fix wit update...anyone have luck with a solution yet? Thanks

 

[Mac... nificent]

Only issue for me with my M1 Mac mini is that it will not allow you to boot from a external SSD. I tried the Startup Security Utility as shown here;

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208198

but there was no external drive option. Other users of M1 machines on the Apple website have reported the same thing. I even went through the trouble of reformatting the SSD and reinstalling macOS 11.01 on it, but still no way to boot from it. Sadly I will probably have to return this M1, as I need to use the external drive.

 

[jdb8167]

Only issue for me with my M1 Mac mini is that it will not allow you to boot from a external SSD. I tried the Startup Security Utility as shown here;

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208198

but there was no external drive option. Other users of M1 machines on the Apple website have reported the same thing. I even went through the trouble of reformatting the SSD and reinstalling macOS 11.01 on it, but still no way to boot from it. Sadly I will probably have to return this M1, as I need to use the external drive.

Have you tried contacting Apple support? They might be able to help. With the right settings the M1 is supposed to be able to boot off external drives. Maybe I’ll try it later.

 

[Superhai]

Only issue for me with my M1 Mac mini is that it will not allow you to boot from a external SSD. I tried the Startup Security Utility as shown here;

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208198

but there was no external drive option. Other users of M1 machines on the Apple website have reported the same thing. I even went through the trouble of reformatting the SSD and reinstalling macOS 11.01 on it, but still no way to boot from it. Sadly I will probably have to return this M1, as I need to use the external drive.

Did you try to hold the power button till the options menu comes up? There you can choose which drive to boot from. But I have not tried with a ssd only a good old spinning one.