Sam Oliver
Apple's new Mac operating system, OS X Yosemite, appears to have bugs related to Wi-Fi connections, with users reporting slow transfer speeds and dropped signals after upgrading.
Many of the issues are detailed in a growing thread on the Apple Support Communities forums, which as of Friday morning has nearly 80,000 views and 700 replies. The issues appear to apply to a variety of routers and Mac systems, and only began to appear after the Yosemite update was installed.
Readers have also reached out to AppleInsider to note their own issues, most commonly intermittent Wi-Fi connection drops. Users report having problems at both 5-gigahertz and 2.4-gigahertz frequencies.
Some have reported being able to address the problem with a variety of different solutions, including creating a new Wi-Fi service, deleting and reconnecting to a preferred network, turning off Bluetooth, or keeping their MacBook connected to a power source. Still others claim to have had success with more extreme measures such as deleting the Bluetooth.plist or SystemConfiguration, or resetting their system's PRAM, though none of these appear to resolve the problem for every user.
Some posting on Apple's official support forums said they tried calling Apple Care or taking their Mac into an Apple Store to see if a retail "Genius" could fix the problem, but connection issues continued to persist.
The apparent Wi-Fi issues found in Yosemite are joined by Bluetooth problems reported on by AppleInsider earlier this month. In particular, users say that Bluetooth accessories — including Apple's own Magic Mouse, Magic Trackpad and wireless keyboard — experience lag and stuttering after their Mac has been updated to OS X Yosemite.
Last month's release of iOS 8 for iPhone and iPad was also beset with a number of Bluetooth bugs, particularly when attempting to connect an iPhone to a car's Bluetooth handsfree system. Some of those problems are said to have been fixed by the recent launch of iOS 8.1.
AppleInsider Staff
Malcolm Owen
Oliver Haslam
Andrew O'Hara
Wesley Hilliard
William Gallagher
Christine McKee
64 Comments
I don't have dropped connections, but it doesn't respect the network order you set. It seems to allow traffic to wifi even if it's a lower priority.
I also have a weird issue that i can't see my time capsule unless wifi is turned on, even though I have a wired connection.
My wi-fi has never been so fast / stable: 1. Macbook 15" early 2013 2. iPad Air 3. iPhone 5s 4. AirPort Time Capsule 2013 (or something!) I've been using Yosemite since developer preview till now!
I'm experiencing this.
Before Yosemite I was getting 20-30 mbs on Wifi.
Now I'm getting 1-5 mbs.
I'm using an AirPort Extreme router.
WTF Apple, seriously WTF.
Have you power recycled your cable/DSL modem (and router) recently? Can you run a speedtest between devices on your LAN and see if they are slow as well? I find my problems are usually related to network issues outside my LAN.
I tested my iMac running Yosemite are the results are consistent. I have an older Airport base station and am hardwired as well. Disconnected enet cable when testing WiFi (one floor below). iPhone is a 5s. My results don't mean you're not having a problem. It just appears I'm not and I'm using an early 2009 iMac. All three tests going to a Comcast server in Seattle.
I've experienced these issues on my MBP. Periodically, I have to turn off and on WiFi because it just freezes. Occasionally, I also have to reboot my router. For me, it's acting exactly the same way as the iPad WiFi issues that have been described previously by others. I haven't had any problems with my Ethernet-connected iMac, like another commenter reported.
I have been having erratic wifi connectivity issues with my iPad Air after upgrading to 8.1. Restarting the iPad seems to work every time, but that's getting to be a bit of a pain. I have no doubt, however, that Apple will issue an update if there is really a problem.