“Apple Computer issued a software update Thursday to fix a problem that caused hundreds of newer MacBook laptops to shut down suddenly — but one longtime industry analyst suspects Apple’s solution might force the computers to run more slowly,” Jon Fortt blogs for Business 2.0.
Fortt reports, “Rob Enderle, principal analyst with Enderle Group, said that based on user comments in Apple’s online support forums he suspects the laptops have been shutting down because of overheating problems with the main logic board and ‘heat sink,’ a device that’s meant to cool the machine. ‘What they appear to be doing is doing a firmware update to step down the processor,’ Enderle said. ‘If you can step down the processor, say, 5 or 10 percent, you can lower heat dramatically.'”
Fortt reports, “But if indeed Apple is doing that, another result is decreased laptop performance. Enderle likened it to throttling back a V8 engine to make it behave like a V6. It won’t get as hot, but it won’t go as fast either. ‘It would be really good to see if we can find someone who’s gotten the problem and measure the performance before and after the firmware update,’ Enderle said. Unless support forum users are misinformed about the logic board and heat sink being the issue, ‘the only way you can fix a problem like this without physically taking the machine apart is to step down the processor.'”
Full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Darkness” for the heads up.]
MacDailyNews Take: Anyone who uses Rob Enderle, principal analyst (and only analyst, unless, for some reason, you count his wife Mary) with Enderle Group, as an expert in basically anything except the act of talking out of one’s ass is seriously unwise. You’d get sounder advice asking Rob Glaser how to finish a marathon than you would asking Rob Enderle what a specific Mac firmware update accomplishes. Our sources tell us that the firmware update issued by Apple yesterday does not step down the MacBook processor, it corrects an issue with the MacBook’s temperature sensor that caused some MacBooks to shut down too early when protecting against thermal damage.
If Rob Enderle isn’t on a mission to spoof the term “tech analyst” in an effort to expose the total lack of qualifications necessary to become one, he should be.
Related MacDailyNews articles:
Apple releases MacBook SMC Firmware Update 1.1, addresses issues with random shutdowns – October 26, 2006
What is Apple doing about MacBooks suffering from ‘Random Shutdown Syndrome?’ – October 21, 2006
Apple to repair ‘random shutdown MacBooks’ free of charge – September 08, 2006
Enderle: ‘4th quarter will be Apple’s hardest since the first iPod Christmas’ – September 18, 2006
Enderle spouts some incredible nonsense about Apple iPod+iTunes – July 07, 2006
Enderle: If Apple can’t double market share it will abandon Macs – May 02, 2006
Big surprise: Enderle was wrong about Apple’s holiday quarter Mac sales – January 19, 2006
Tech pundit Enderle: ‘Microsoft wrote the first Mac OS’ – September 28, 2005
Tech Pundit Enderle: ‘fourth quarter should be ugly for Apple’ – August 09, 2005
Enderle: ‘Surveys indicate demand for Apple’s products is dropping like a rock’ due to Intel switch – August 01, 2005
Tech Pundit Enderle: ‘This year will be more difficult for Apple Computer’ and iMacs in earthquakes – January 24, 2005
Since when did Enderle become an expert in firmware? He’s not an engineer for Apple, is he?
Enderle is a complete tool. He has 0% evidence for his conjecture. There are so many things this update could be doing thathis idle speculation is just that. Its also grossly irresponsible to make owners fear their laptops are being forced to run slower, when as one poster points out, the fans could just be sped up or set to run more frequently.
Almost every observation Enderle has to make about Apple products is laughable. Do you remember the one about the iMac when it came out? He said that he would be wary of owning one – especially if he lived in San Francisco – in case an earthquake caused it to fall off a table and break the screen.
And he gets paid to write this stuff! Unreal!
Reason #1,037,265 why I read MDN:
If Rob Enderle isn’t on a mission to spoof the term “tech analyst” in an effort to expose the total lack of qualifications necessary to become one, he should be.
The sad thing is that the mainstream media quotes him ALL THE TIME!!! My 3 year old cousin knows more than he does.
MDN, please stop posting stuff from Enderle. It’s a waste of time to even read the headline. You already know he’s a tool so stop giving him free publicity.
Yeh, I don’t understand why big media companies seem to quote him all the time, he knows jack sh*t about Macs, spouting out this nonsense is irresponsible, could Apple not sue him and put him out of business, he’d suit a job in BestBuy selling Zunes to schmucks.
Was it Mary who worried about the iMacs tipping over in the event of an earthquake all those years ago?
Or is my memory not serving me well?
Gavron,
Here’s what I did:
1. I clicked the MacDailyNews related articles link to “Tech Pundit Enderle: ‘This year will be more difficult for Apple Computer’ and iMacs in earthquakes” – January 24, 2005
2. Then I read the article and found that it was Rob Enderle who wrote for DesignTechnica, “I live in California, earthquake country, and the old iMac was one of the most stable products in its class, the new one places the weight too high and relies on a base that is too narrow making it likely that it would fall. Falling glass can be a huge hazard in a home late at night when you are trying to get the kids and family to safety during an earthquake.”
Hope this helps.
Ah, so Enderle is now using the same principles of responsible analysis as Republican commentators who just “put the question out there” when they have no proof or corroborating evidence of any sort.
MDN needs to post items like this about Enderle in an effort to counter his disinformation campaign.
MW: anti. Anti-Enderle. (How does it know?!)
Correct MDN Headline:
“Enderle brainware steps down brain speed to stop random shutdowns”
This is analysis? “What they appear to be doing is doing a firmware update to step down the processor,” Enderle said.
“It would be really good to see if we can find someone who’s gotten the problem and measure the performance before and after the firmware update,” Enderle said.
ok – so he has no clue if what he is asserting is fact or not. Instead, he wants someone ELSE to do the research necessary to prove his point, AFTER he makes it…
Gee, let me try… “It appears everything Enderle has ever said is untrue. It would be really good to see if we can find someone who’s actually read what he’s written to see if any of it is true.”
Wow! That was fun, how about… “It appears gravity doesn’t exist. It would be really good to see if we can find someone who’s actually studied gravity to see if it does.”
Rob Enderle is supposed to be the Principle Analyst for the Enderle Group – Just what did he Analyze here? Anyone who pays this man is a fool. (It would be really good to see if we can find someone who disagrees with me).
Rob is a market analyst, as in if he spreads FUD about Apple and their Macs then his client, Dell, will benefit.
I can’t believe writers pay him for this bullshit. They should be charging him advertising rates instead.
I too thought you should stop posting anything that falls out of the face of Mr. Mustache, but I have to admit the responses you get are the best. I laugh my Enderle off. Then you have to go and add a blob (pardon the pun) of Rob Glaser to it and you have a full fledged comedy sketch. I’m conflicted but I’m laughing – Thanks!!
My 2 cents –
“But if indeed Apple is doing that, another result is decreased laptop performance. Enderle likened it to throttling back a V8 engine to make it behave like a V6.”
On this point he is an expert. Microsoft OS Bloatware + AntiVirus + AntiMalware + AntiAdware + AntiSpyware + etc. The V8 then becomes a 1 hp Briggs and Stratton.
Yeah Rob. That is exactly what Apple has done. They’ve slowed the porcessor down. There can be no other possible answer. douce bag. Sounds like something Microsoft would force the box assemblers to do.
porcessor? ‘the hell is that? Sorry all!
PROCESSOR
I updated both the MacBooks I have and noticed no performance slow down whatsoever. Additionally, his argument is moot because my MacBook that did shut down randomly (the other never did) shut down several times while the Mac was cool. It has nothing to do with heat and I suspect everything to do with the heat sensor mechanism (as in, it thought the MacBook was over heated when it was in fact at room temperature or slightly below).
I like the term Fortt reports. Fortt retorts. Fartt departs. There, fixed it!
I live in tornado country, and now I feel stupid for buying an iMac. All that glass and PVC flying around while I’m…..flying around.
I guess Enderle graduated from the Mainstream Media School Of BS with a BS in BS. “Let’s take something that has happened, think about what could happen, throw in some bad results, and then act like it’s a fact until someone disproves it.” Should change his name to “Rob Endefacts.”
If you wanna have some laughs, go re-read this crap from the “other” Enderle Group analyst:
http://www.macnewsworld.com/story/36515.html
and then contrast, two years later with this:
http://www.macdailynews.com/index.php/weblog/comments/mossbergs_fall_computer_buyers_guide_apple_imac_the_best/
Seems Simple,
thanks!
From the historical articles referenced concerning about the original iMac and the G5 iMac, Mr. Enderle seems extraordinarily afraid of things being unstable… Perhaps that reveals something deeper about Mr. Enderle?
I need a real man. A man that uses a Mac. My husband is such a tool…..
Why not check it out yourself with this free app.
Will show frequency, voltage and temp.
http://www.coolbook.se/CoolBook.html
I secretly love Macs….
What a load!
someone should update his firmware.
Are you sure that “principal analyst” (pa) doesn’t stand for primary ahole?
How about that vaunted “SpeedStep” technology sported by Wintels in years past. In order to extend battery life the CPU slowed down when you unplugged your laptop. And it was touted as a desireable feature!
Well fanboys aside, if Apple IS stepping down the CPU’s in order for them to function properly then there is a problem BIG TIME for Apple. People are paying for the CPU speed advertised, if it cannot run at that speed then we are dealing with false advertisement. You fanboys need to pay attention to this one, if Apple isn’t doing this then fine, but if they are then you didn’t get what you paid for.
Pay attention to this one gents.
Alienware,
IF is a big word. There is not one shred of evidence that Apple did anything related to the clock speed of these machines. Nothing, nada, nill, zip, zero, zilch! There are lots of IF’s you can think of: IF the world ended tonight, IF I became a billionaire, IF aliens are living in your colon, but I am not going to give any credibility to them unless there is some evidence they are actually true. This is typical “journalism” these days: find something people are interested in, make up a crisis about it and shout it from the roof tops. Never mind that it has nothing to do with reality.
I tested with that coolook app before and after I installed the new firmware. I couldn’t see any difference at all!
http://www.coolbook.se/
MDN: But… What do you REALLY THINK of Enderle?
What do you REALLY THINK of Enderle?
I couldn’t answer that on the web, it’s to volger.
I will say he knows nothing about Macs or Apple and shouldn’t even bother talking about either.
I sent my MacBook in for repairs and got it back with a new heat sink and was told to upgrade to the latest firmware and software. After doing that the machine actually DID throttle down speed as soon as I reached 2*100% load – it went from 2 GHz to 1 GHz :/
It still shut down, so I sent it in again and got a new logic board and cooling kit and now it runs full speed. I was told that the logic board solution was only intended for some MacBook serial ranges and mine wasn’t in it – for those the fix was heat sink and software. It didn’t fix my problems though.
After I got the machine back with a new logic board I haven’t had any problems though – with or without the new firmware. On the other hand it could be too early to judge it for certain yet. I’m happy for now though.
Some hard evidence can quickly put this one to bed.
Report your processor speed before and after the update. Nuf said.
This is quite an allegation to make when he doesn’t really know what is going on
Well his claim should be easy enough to test – run benchmarks before and after the firmware update.
If after the update the benchmarks are lower, then he was right. If not, then he’s talking out of his arse…. again!
If my grandmother had wheels, she would have been a bus.
The quote from Enderle’s web site says it all…
“For over 20 years Rob has worked for and with companies like Microsoft, HP, IBM, Dell, Toshiba, Gateway, Sony, USAA, Texas Instruments, AMD, Intel, Credit Suisse First Boston, GM, Ford, ROLM, and Siemens.”
I wonder if he says anything about Toyota or Chrysler.
OK folks… lets do the math to show how much a moron Rob E. is…
If this new firmware update slowed down your processor speed 5 – 10%, then you wouldn’t liken it to changing from a V8 down to a V6. A step down from a V8 to V6 is a 25% change. That is fairly significant, whereas enderle states earlier that the firmware upgrade steps down the processor 5 – 10% .
Sorry, but 5% to 10% delta is nowhere near 25%. Now that’s truly speaking out of you ass without a paddle…..
sorry – that last phrase made no sense at all.
Enderle, putting the “anal” back in analyst!
Looks like the new MacBook Pro DOES do this.
Go to http://www.apple.com/macbookpro/intel.html and see footnote 1.
“MacBook Pro continuously monitors system thermal and power conditions, and may adjust processor speed as needed to maintain optimal system operation.”
Maybe he is right?
the only bigger ass than Enderle is macdailynews for feeding him.
Hey Mr. Mr.
You are right, the CPU will continuously monitor and regulate frequency and voltage. But it has always been like this, even on Dell laptops with CoreDuo.
It’s called Enhanced Speed Step. You have to do this on the powerhungry X86 CPU, otherwise the battery would run out in no time.
Mr Mr:
Up until a few years ago, computers would run flat out, always at their maximum (or set) speed, and using fan also set to run full speed.
Then, to reduce noise, fans had temperature sensors so they weren’t noisy all of the time.
Now, computers run slower and cooler when the processor speed isn’t necessary, and utilize thermal sensors so the CPU can actually run exceptionally fast in limited spurts. These spurts cause damaging heat, so they are monitored by sensors. “Optimal performance” is exactly that, all the speed it can possibly deliver when you need it, and it slows down and cools when you don’t, or if they are pressed too extreme for too long and may cause damage. Cars have been doing this since day-one. Imagine if your car’s engine was set to its maximum speed, where the idle was set equal to its top end RPM. The performance of the car would improve greatly. Your acceleration from every green traffic light would be at it’s max and you could travel around town at the car’s maximum speed (albeit to the detriment to your clutch, transmission and traffic citations). 100%, all of the time, and glowing a brilliant red under the hood/bonnet.
Electronics engineers couldn’t hear their screaming processors running at full tilt like Chevy V8, but they did see them get very hot. Originally, CPUs were clocked below their true maximum because such constant heat would greatly shorten their life span.
“Optimum” means giving you all the power you need when you need it. It does NOT mean emulating an 8-bit 6502 (Apple II) if it gets above room temperature.
I really love this site. All of these luke-warm IQs second guessing Apple’s PhD electronics engineers, and doing so from the wrong side of the keyboard. You guys aren’t any better than Enderle. Y’all make my side ache from laughter; a room full of fools claiming everyone else is an idiot. Too funny!
Simon,
YOU said it, my man! Luke-warm IQ’S one and all, with a**holes and bellybuttons galore, making the cynics on this site qualified to second-guess Steve, Apple engineers, God, the universe, and everything.
Yes, 9 X 6 DOES equal 54 in their pathetic, overheated little minds (“Hitchhiker” allusion), so jump back and just watch them tout their expertise in all things computer-related.
Again, THANKS, Simon. You’ve made my weekend!
I like this site very much, and I have done alot of posting in the last few months, but I also have to agree with Simon and Damacles. No other site I’ve ever been to second guess not only the engineers, but the marketing people and the CEO of Apple like the posters on this site.
We’re talking, objectively, about one of the world’s largest and most successful corporations, run by some of the best and brightest minds in world industry, and the idiots on this board think they know better. Maybe it’s because I’m in my late 50s, but I know my limits and where to draw the line on idiotic commentary about Apple and its motives, goals and expertise.
What a vision – Enderle forever going ’round and ’round in his car on Infinite Loop looking for Apple.
Too bad Enderle doesn’t have that sudden shutdown problem…
after actually testing my macbook after this firmware came out, it actually runs cooler, and as it did before also clocked it self lower when doing less work and higher when doing more work so yeah it’s true until you give it more work to do but it’s not just this firmware and as far as i’m concerned it’s what it’s supposed to do
Enderle likened it to throttling back a V8 engine to make it behave like a V6. It won’t get as hot, but it won’t go as fast either.
I thought that V6 or V8 referred to the power of the car. The number of cylinders may affect the acceleration of the car, but will it really affect a difference in the speed? Or is this just another presumption of Capt. E’s based in “oh, I thought…” and nothing more?
“The performance of the car would improve greatly. Your acceleration from every green traffic light would be at it’s max and you could travel around town at the car’s maximum speed (albeit to the detriment to your clutch, transmission and traffic citations”
Methinks you drive an automatic and don’t really understand cars very well.
In any case, if we accept the premise that the problem is largely due to the temperature sensors overheating, melting and failing then there’s only a couple of things the new firmware can be doing:
1) ignoring sensors when they go bad.
2) Changing the power management to better control heat buildup and avoid melting down the sensor.
3) Both of the above.
The fact that this needs to be done on repaired units as well as non repaired ones suggests that the repair doesn’t fully fix the hardware issue, just replaces a defective sensor for now with one which could melt down again in the future given the right circumstances (i.e heavy usage with a lot of heat production).
If you knew the sensors were melting down at X degrees, a logical way to solve the problem in software would be to make sure the processor doesn’t get that hot and melt them.
Clearly the temperature sensor melts down at a level lower than the processor can handle, or the unit would have already shut down to protect the processor and thereby the temperature sensor as well.
So the solution, if this is indeed the problem can only be to run the processor at a slower speed than it could be run in order to keep it’s operating temperature within the thermal tolerance of the temperature sensor.
By necessity this means less performance for ongoing computationally intensive tasks than letting the processor get hotter before throttling back the CPU speed.
In the case that a failed sensor is detected, the system would have to use some heuristic to very conservatively manage CPU performance to avoid the possibility of overheating.
Therefore logic dictates that if melted temperature sensors are the problem, then a software only fix almost certainly involves a hit to system performance.
Of course if you spend all your time surfing the web and reading emails, you CPU usage is probably on average only a few percent anyway, so you’re not going to notice any difference. It’s when you do sustained computing intensive tasks that a difference would show up.