The Performance tag is appropriate for questions about improving or troubleshooting the performance of Apple hardware and software. These may include, for example, questions like: Is it necessary / possible to upgrade <older-model hardware> to handle <new version of OS X>? Why does ...
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1answer
7 views
Updating to SSD or Updating RAM for MacBook Pro
I am using MacBook Pro for the last 1.5 years. Here is my configuration.
13" MacBook Pro, min-2010
2.4 GHz Core 2 Duo
4 GB RAM
OS X Lion 10.7.4
Would you recommend upgrading to SSD for fast ...
0
votes
4answers
40 views
Does the performance increases when the memory increases in Apple products?
I am planning to buy an iPad 3. My choices are,
iPad 3 - 32GB with wifi
iPad 3 - 16GB with wifi + 4G
I'm so confused to select my best choice.
Actually the problem is, some of my friends telling ...
3
votes
3answers
103 views
Alternative activity monitors for OS X?
I’m a bit intrigued by the new detailed activity monitors and progress indicators in Windows 8 (copying files, the task monitor, network activity, etc.) It got me thinking: surely there must be some ...
1
vote
1answer
58 views
What is the performance bottleneck when launching large applications on OS X?
I have an Early 2011 13" Macbook Pro (i5 2.3Ghz).
I've upgraded it to have 8GB 1333 ram and an OCZ Vertex II (120GB) SSD.
There are a couple of heavy lifting apps on my mac that take roughly around ...
1
vote
1answer
114 views
How to speed up an iPad 2?
My iPad 2 (32gb) is about one year old and he is getting very slow. I've tried restarting the iPad and quitting all apps but with no real success.
There is about 5 GB of free storage space.
Any ...
1
vote
0answers
29 views
helpd uses 100% CPU after installing any application with documentation
I see that after installing a software that ships with documentation in OSX’s help document format, the helpd process uses 100% CPU for up to 5 minutes or so. I also see this when you first install ...
0
votes
1answer
61 views
Process “ubd” high CPU usage
I noticed my MBP got really slow, which must be strange with SSD and 8GB of RAM.
So I opened the Activity Monitor to discover a process called ubd keeps its CPU usage very high, about 120% most of ...
1
vote
1answer
52 views
MacBook Pro battery and speed issues
My sister's MacBook Pro often shuts down at ~20% battery. It won't turn on again until it has been plugged in for about 10 minutes.
2
votes
1answer
54 views
How to check if my iPhone's connection is being throttled?
AT&T now throttles the connection speeds for those on the unlimited plan. How can I know if my iPhone's connection is being throttled or if I'm just getting poor speed due to other reasons?
0
votes
1answer
122 views
Any better way to purge the inactive memory?
Running purge command in the terminal to free the inactive memory isn't really what I think about Apple.
Lion isn't doing a great at all when it comes to free the inactive memory.
Free memory is ...
1
vote
2answers
89 views
Mac book pro is very slow
I have a mac book pro late 2011.
It has a very powerful hardware. But it is very slow. For example when I'm making expose geisture, there appears 'loading circle' and mac lags for 4~5 seconds. Same ...
0
votes
2answers
58 views
Mac Pro 2008 OS X 10.6.8 random restarts, grinding HDD
So I've had my Mac Pro since 2008. I currently have OS 10.6.8 on it. In the last week, it has restarted itself twice while I was in the other room. Since I wasn't there, I don't know if there were any ...
2
votes
0answers
135 views
Animated GIF images are slow on iOS
Animated GIF images seem incredibly slow since iOS 4.3ish. Prior to that, animated GIFs worked just fine and had the same speed as on a computer. I don't mean loading the GIF, but the speed of the ...
7
votes
4answers
237 views
How can I simulate having a slow CPU?
I am almost done coding my webapp-game. It runs on all modern browsers. However, I want to establish some minimum requirements for it.
Thus, I need a slow Mac. However, I don't have access to a slow ...
25
votes
5answers
2k views
Do computers slow down as they age?
I have an eMac I bought in 2004. I just used the system restore CD to re-install Panther, iLife '04, Internet Explorer for Mac(!), etc. I don't have any timed specs from "back then", so I can't answer ...
4
votes
2answers
120 views
Will a reset make my old iPad faster?
I have an old iPad (the first generation), and over time it has become unbearably slow. Now I understand that I cannot expect apps designed for faster iPads to work perfectly on this old device. ...
7
votes
3answers
375 views
What has changed Finder list view in Lion to make “Calculate all sizes” exponentially faster?
Since way before Mac OS X came on the scene, we have been able to ask the Finder to Calculate all sizes in order to determine the sum total of readable file size space contained in each folder for the ...
5
votes
1answer
84 views
How can I figure out which tab in Safari is using CPU?
I usually have several tabs open in Safari in the background, and sometimes I see it taking up an unusual amount of CPU (PluginProcess or WebProcess).
How can I figure out which tab (or tabs) is ...
1
vote
1answer
101 views
Any performance gains when disabling secure virtual memory?
To disable secure virtual memory in 10.7, one does the following:
sudo defaults write /Library/Preferences/com.apple.virtualMemory DisableEncryptedSwap -boolean yes
However, are there any benefits ...
5
votes
3answers
196 views
Using FaceTime without the video
I have a first generation MacBook Air that heats up a lot when playing videos, and almost grinds to a halt after a few minutes of playback.
Is there a way I could turn off the video during FaceTime ...
2
votes
3answers
149 views
What impact can a dual monitor setup have in overall performance?
I have a MacBook Pro late 2008 (2.4GHz Core 2 Duo with 4GB memory) and am considering getting a second 24" monitor. I understand having a dual monitor setup may decrease performance, but how much ...
-1
votes
2answers
57 views
Does showing a flashing time separator slow down a Mac?
Is there any reason to be concerned that showing flashing time separators would slow down my Mac, since the computer now has to keep flashing the separator? What about showing seconds? Why or why not?
...
4
votes
3answers
176 views
How would enabling FileVault alter my system and TM performance?
What are the pros and cons, performance-wise, of enabling and using FileVault? Is there any at all, or does it slow a computer down significantly or on the contrary speed it up? Also, what effect will ...
5
votes
3answers
110 views
Does moving my home folder to an non-boot drive decrease performance?
I'm going to get an SSD, making that my boot drive and moving the existing hard drive to the optical drive bay. I will keep my data on the original hard drive.
MacPerformanceGuide.com says "If the ...
3
votes
3answers
1k views
How does the new iPad's A5X graphics processor affect PDF rendering speed?
How much, if any, has the new iPad has gained in PDF rendering speed with the A5X processor (quad-core graphics)?
2
votes
2answers
75 views
Is there any way to hamstring my system?
I'm looking to temporarily reduce the amount of cores and RAM available to my system, as well as the processing power.
I've written a server that uses epoll (Linux) and I want to get a rough ...
0
votes
0answers
38 views
iPod Touch performance (causes? solutions?)
iPod Touch Performance
My iPod Touch
3rd Generation
(…I think. It’s the last generation without cameras, and without the retina display. Model: PC008LL )
Capacity: 30㎇ (total), ≈6.4㎇ (free)
...
4
votes
4answers
331 views
How can I boost the performance of my MacBook?
I know that upgrading my MacBook with extra RAM can help boost the general system performance.
Recently, I upgraded from OS X 10.5 to OS X 10.6.8. I thought that my RAM upgrade would speed up my ...
2
votes
1answer
64 views
Why does OS X format MS-DOS filesystems so much faster than Windows does?
When I format a MS-DOS filesystem using Disk Utility in Mac OS X it takes only a few seconds, but when I format a FAT32 filesystem in Windows it takes several minutes.
What is OS X doing differently?
...
1
vote
2answers
555 views
How can I disable CPU throttling and CPU disabling?
On a 2011 17" MacBook Pro (i7, 10.6, 16GB ram) I do not have any options in the energy saver preference panel to control CPU throttling. I need to be able to disable CPU throttling for short periods ...
3
votes
2answers
129 views
Help identify what process is using CPU when active processes suggest machine is idle
After rebooting, and with only the activity monitor open, my MB Pro (10.6, i7) shows a very high idle % (98% or higher) but then shortly after drops down to 40% - 50%.
There are no processes in the ...
0
votes
0answers
41 views
How can I turn off the S.M.A.R.T disk check in Disk LED?
I want to disable the SMART disk check service that Disk LED provides. The only related preference I can find in the application is to select a run interval between five and 30 minutes. There is no ...
0
votes
0answers
29 views
Measure Application Load Times?
Anyone know a way to measure application load times? I've looked at instruments but having a hard time pinning down the statistic/event I should be looking for.
I want to measure how long it takes ...
0
votes
1answer
126 views
Is there a slowing of app download speed when an iPad is locked?
I've noticed that downloading apps continue to download in the background as well as when the iPad is locked. Is there a speed decrease in either of these situations (assuming the foreground app isn't ...
0
votes
1answer
115 views
Why does Reminders seem to be syncing with the network, even though I have reminders turned off in iCloud settings?
I started using Reminders.app as soon as I got iOS 5.0, and for me it mostly works very well. As soon as I got an iCloud account, of course I turned reminder syncing on there as well.
However I soon ...
0
votes
0answers
38 views
Accuracy of wattage/amperage in iStat
I've got a 27" quad-core iMac (one generation old, I think...2.93 GHz i7) that, according to iStat Menus 3, puts more than 50 A of current through its CPU when operating at full capacity (such as when ...
1
vote
0answers
298 views
How to troubleshoot stuttering iTunes video playback while downloading on Mac OS X 10.7.2?
Observations: Recently, not sure when it happened, with upgrade to Lion or before, but I have not been able to cleanly watch a video of any type in iTunes while something [movie, tv show, app, ...
3
votes
3answers
90 views
Can the clock speed of my 2011 MBAir i7 be slowed to conserve power?
Most of what I do with my 2011 i7 MBAir could be done with 10% of the available processor power. Is there a hack to slow the processor to conserve battery for the 95% of the time I don't need it?
3
votes
2answers
200 views
Why might my mac be running extremely slowly at times?
This sounds like a pretty open, multi-possibility question, but I'm at a loss. I continually experience my mac falling behind by several words or characters. I mainly notice it in chrome and adium, ...
1
vote
3answers
974 views
What is the fastest iOS version for the iPhone 3GS?
I upgraded my wife's iPhone 3GS to iOS 5.0.1 and now basic tasks like opening apps like Texts/Phone dialer are now slower than before. I understand the 3GS is 2 years old, but just being able to type ...
2
votes
2answers
320 views
FileVault Performance Compromise?
I'm thinking of using FileVault to secure my computer - it looks like an ideal solution for everything. However, I'm wondering - will it effect the performance / battery life of my computer ...
0
votes
0answers
56 views
manga reader for ipad1
I'm currently using the app 'icomic', I got it about 2 years ago probably.
It's decent, but it can't display very large images very well, the images becomes super pixelated and unreadable.
There ...
0
votes
4answers
125 views
What can cause 90 second delays joining a wifi network?
I have been using my Mac Book Pro (15" Lion, latest version) for coming on a year.
I used to open the cover, it would search for my wifi, and in 15 seconds I could start web surfing.
Suddenly, in the ...
2
votes
2answers
72 views
How to decide on a new Hard drive for macbook pro
I have been using my Macbook Pro for about 5 years, it was the first model with the Intel chip. The 100GB hard drive is starting to go and I'm ready to replace it. I went over to Cnet to see what ...
1
vote
3answers
124 views
Worthwhile to reformat and re-install?
I had a 2 1/2 year old Macbook Pro. It was a 2.33 Intel Core 2 Duo with 4 GB of ram, 320 GB hard drive, running Lion.
An employee of my company left and his Macbook Pro was a 2.66 Intel Core i7 ...
1
vote
1answer
241 views
How can I fix Firefox's jagged scrolling on Lion?
I noticed that scrolling in Firefox on Lion is not very pleasant experience.
Is there a way to optimize it for better performance?
I tried smooth scrolling setting - but it didn't do anything.
0
votes
0answers
105 views
iPad/iPad2 - PDF page rendering speed
I would like to know how long (in milliseconds) does it take for the iPad/iPad2 to render a PDF page. Every page and every PDF are different, of course. I am interested in average figures if you have ...
1
vote
1answer
70 views
PDF rendering - how much is iPad2 faster than iPad?
I read that iPad2 graphics is faster than iPad. I would like to know how much is iPad2 faster than iPad at PDF rendering.
0
votes
0answers
135 views
Are there any tricks to improve Flash performance on MacBooks?
I have a MacBook Pro 15" 2011 and I'm always having issues with Flash performance. I know that neither Apple nor Adobe have been very keen to improve this, but it's becoming a serious nuisance to me.
...
2
votes
1answer
265 views
16, 32, 64 GB iPhone / iPod touch: are there any negative effects of size?
I am debating between purchasing the 32 vs. 64 GB iPod touch.
I would lean toward a smaller hard drive if there is an effect of size on speed or battery life. Aside from cost, are there any reasons ...
