Mac Mini bluetooth issues fixed in Mac Studio?

[F23]

The rumors suggested the Mac Studio would have a plexi glass top for better signal strength. Turned out it's the same all body aluminum. So I'm wondering if the weak bluetooth signal issues that have plagued the Mac Mini will be fixed in this new form factor?
Issues I personally have with the M1 Mac Mini are audio cutting out over bluetooth consistently and frequently, mouse lag. No I don't use the USB A port, and I turned off WiFi and use ethernet. I was hoping for a form factor redesign with glass to allow for better connectivity.
Guess I'll have to wait a while for the Mac Studio to be used for people to report if it's better.

 

[Boyd01]

The rumors suggested that a new *Mini* would have a plexiglas top, the *Studio* rumors didn't exist until a couple days ago. There may yet be a new Mini with a plastic top.

"It's likely we'll see a new version of the ‌Mac mini‌ when Apple introduces the M2 chip later this year"

Mac Mini and Mac Pro are Apple's Last Two Remaining Intel Macs With Launch of Mac Studio

With the launch of the new Mac Studio that replaces the higher-end 27-inch Intel iMac, Apple has just two Intel Macs left in its lineup - the Mac Pro...

www.macrumors.com

But, of course, it will also be interesting to see how well bluetooth performs on the Studio.

 

[MajorFubar]

The key is just not to use wireless devices. I get that it should just work, but they come with so many other burdens that I can't see why people are drawn to them so much. I sold my first-gen wireless Apple keyboard and Magic Mouse because there was no way to use them permanently tethered and have since bought an aftermarket Apple-layout wired keyboard and the Magic Trackpad 2 which can at least be left plugged in. No regrets. Also no bluetooth outages and no batteries going flat. Heaven, after ten years of woe.

Bring back a wired keyboard with power-switch...so those of us who hide our Mac Minis and Mac Studios out of sight and out of reach don't have to go crawling around to switch the darn things on.

 

[monkeybongo]

Based on the aluminum build, I'd assume the bluetooth issues would remain unless the vent holes in the back help the range.

 

[F23]

Based on the aluminum build, I'd assume the bluetooth issues would remain unless the vent holes in the back help the range.

to make it even worse the bottom is now fully metal with a thin plastic ring vs on the Mac mini the bottom was a big plastic plate. so it could be even worse lmao

 

[Fishrrman]

A Fishrrman prediction:
I wouldn't "get my hopes up" about improved BT performance in the new Studio...

 

[Edgecrusherr]

I just saw this while looking up something else, and thought I'd answer the question for anyone that may be searching for it.

I have an M1 Mac mini and M1 Max Mac Studio. The Studio's bluetooth is better, but can still be an issue. For example, my studio is stacked with an OWC miniStack STX and an older miniStack Max, both made of thick aluminum. Having these on top of the Studio killed any real usefulness of the Bluetooth, but putting the Studio on top allows the Bluetooth to work pretty well.

For examples:
The Studio is in the corner of my desk, audio will still cut out if I'm using AirPod Pros and bend over to pick something off the floor, or walk about 2ft out of the room the Studio is in.

To compare:
Any MacBook made since 2016 lets me walk around the entire house (same floor) without audio cutting out (unless I'm on the other side of the refrigerator or near the microwave when it's on). My M1 Mac mini is in the living room, inside a wooden entertainment center, with the front exposed, and it's Bluetooth is so bad that I have to use a USB 4.0 dongle connected and set as he default to even get keyboard coverage from the couch.

How I believe the Bluetooth is setup on these 2 machines:
The Mac mini's Bluetooth antenna is built into a plate on the bottom, that's just under the plastic "foot". I think this is the big problem with the Mac mini, the radio antenna sensually pointing downward, in the hopes that the signal bounces off of whatever surface you have it on. It looks like Apple designed the studio to bounce the signal out of the top. I'm not certain, but I believe this is because there's no bottom antenna plate on the Studio, from what I can see the teardown videos, and the antennas for both the Bluetooth and the Wi-Fi are in the inside right side (Bluetooth) and back (Wi-Fi), and that black apple logo on the top is plastic, so I believe the radio signals emanate through there.

 

[diegog]

Is there an external antenna one can buy to solve this?

 

[Fishrrman]

"Is there an external antenna one can buy to solve this?"

They're called USB bluetooth adapter/dongles.
Many different ones are available, but [I've heard] that not all work, and among those that DO work, some work better than others.

There are topics here from others who have gone that route.

For best results, you would want to put the adapter at the end of a "USB extension cable", like this:

Amazon.com: Usb3 Extension Cable

Amazon.com: usb3 extension cable

www.amazon.com

The point of the extension cable is to "get it away from" the back of the Mac, and closer to the devices it will connect to.

I believe there are some terminal commands that need to be entered, that will essentially "switch off" the Apple bt and focus the connection on the 3rd-party adapter.

I don't use bluetooth, myself.
I'm just not interested.

 

[diegog]

"Is there an external antenna one can buy to solve this?"

They're called USB bluetooth adapter/dongles.
Many different ones are available, but [I've heard] that not all work, and among those that DO work, some work better than others.

There are topics here from others who have gone that route.

For best results, you would want to put the adapter at the end of a "USB extension cable", like this:

Amazon.com: Usb3 Extension Cable

Amazon.com: usb3 extension cable

www.amazon.com

The point of the extension cable is to "get it away from" the back of the Mac, and closer to the devices it will connect to.

I believe there are some terminal commands that need to be entered, that will essentially "switch off" the Apple bt and focus the connection on the 3rd-party adapter.

I don't use bluetooth, myself.
I'm just not interested.

Oh, perfect!
I'll give it a shot and report back.
Thanks!

 

[rpmurray]

... I think this is the big problem with the Mac mini, the radio antenna sensually pointing downward ...

I'm trying to visualize the radio antenna sensually pointing downward.