Apple has released a patch that it hopes will address a heat-related issue in the 2018 Touch Bar MacBook Pro notebooks.
The now-somewhat-infamous heat issue on the Core i9-powered 15-inch 2018 Touch Bar MacBook Pro has been identified as a software flaw in the system’s thermal management software, and Apple is rolling out a macOS patch to deal with the problem.
“Following extensive performance testing under numerous workloads, we’ve identified that there is a missing digital key in the firmware that impacts the thermal management system and could drive clock speeds down under heavy thermal loads on the new MacBook Pro,” noted an Apple spokesperson. “A bug fix is included in today’s macOS High Sierra 10.13.6 Supplemental Update and is recommended.”
The macOS High Sierra 10.13.6 Supplemental Update is billed as a “stability and reliability” update, and is recommended for all users, including both 13-inch and 15-inch models with Touch Bar, incorporating Intel’s 8th Generation “Coffee Lake” Core i5, i7 or i9 processors. New MacBook Pro users will need to manually select and install the update from the Mac App Store.
The heat issue was brought to light by YouTube videographer Dave Lee last Tuesday and was independently corroborated via other test.
It was initially suspected to affect new models with a Core i9 chip, likely because that model is clocked highest and can be driven to a higher temperature fastest. For many users, the problem didn’t show up at all.
Following testing, it was confirmed that the issue wasn’t hardware-related, but instead the result of a software error that only revealed itself in specific, heavy and sustained workloads.
Without the fix, the new machines could turn in benchmark results that were worse than the previous models they replaced, unless the machines are externally cooled beyond what the Apple-engineered solution could provide.
Following the update, the new notebooks should reflect performance consistent with Apple’s stated claims that the latest generation of Intel processors run significantly faster than the models they replaced.
If you’ve had a chance to try the patch and have any feedback to offer, please let us know about your experience in the comments.
Via AppleInsider