MacBook Air EFI update 1.0

dzhiurgis

macrumors member

Original poster

May 29, 2007

40

5

• Apr 8, 2008

• #1

Hey,
i've just found this update on software update. Strangely link to kb doesn't work, completely no information on apple site.

 

S

Scottyk9

macrumors 6502a

Jun 18, 2004

656

95

Canada

• Apr 8, 2008

• #2

I got the notice of the update too, but no details for the update are up on apple's support page (as you mentioned).

Think I might wait a bit, as my MBA is working flawlessly right now.


Also looks like Al bluetooth keyboard update is available.

 

dzhiurgis

macrumors member

Original poster

May 29, 2007

40

5

• Apr 8, 2008

• #3

Succesfully updated:

 

S

Scottyk9

macrumors 6502a

Jun 18, 2004

656

95

Canada

• Apr 8, 2008

• #4

And?

Did you have any problems with you MBA prior to the update (fans, core shutdown)? Any difference in the fans speed at "rest"?

 

Sun Baked

macrumors G5

May 19, 2002

14,945

165

• Apr 8, 2008

• #5

The iMac also updated to 1.3 along with their keyboard firmware...

Missed what apple is fixing with all these EFI updates.

 

dzhiurgis

macrumors member

Original poster

May 29, 2007

40

5

• Apr 8, 2008

• #6

No problems at all. However, it might be a placebo or smth, but it seems to work more silently.

The update stated something very usual: "increased stability bla bla"

 

AoWolf

macrumors 6502a

Nov 17, 2003

958

2

Daytona Beach

• Apr 8, 2008

• #7

"This update fixes several issues to improve the stability of MacBook Air computers."

Can't be a bad thing...I hope!

 

O

ozthegweat

macrumors 6502

Feb 20, 2007

253

233

Switzerland

• Apr 8, 2008

• #8

Hope this fixes the "CPU core shutdown while watching video" issue.

 

A

aristobrat

macrumors G5

Oct 14, 2005

12,292

1,403

• Apr 8, 2008

• #9

Hmm, no reboot required. Weird.

 

MRU

macrumors Penryn

Aug 23, 2005

25,370

8,952

a better place

• Apr 8, 2008

• #10

aristobrat said:

Hmm, no reboot required. Weird.

Click to expand...

Are you sure you actually installed it, or just the efi updater.

After you have completed the software download, you must manually start the EFI update which will be located in the utilities folder.

Otherwise all you have done is download the update, not actually install it.

 

R

rom

macrumors regular

Jun 7, 2006

101

0

• Apr 8, 2008

• #11

aristobrat said:

Hmm, no reboot required. Weird.

Click to expand...

Install it first and then it will run and ask you to shutdown. No reboot indeed.

 

R

rom

macrumors regular

Jun 7, 2006

101

0

• Apr 8, 2008

• #12

Fans

Seems like there is something going on with the fans. It used to hover consistently on 6200rpm when you start doing some "work" but now, it is more dynamic.

Testing video.

 

Clix Pix

macrumors Core

Oct 9, 2005

22,854

51,366

8 miles from the Apple Store at Tysons (VA)

• Apr 8, 2008

• #13

Safely and easily installed here -- no problems! I don't notice anything different, but then again I was not experiencing any problems with my MBA anyway.

 

R

rom

macrumors regular

Jun 7, 2006

101

0

• Apr 8, 2008

• #14

Update

Ran two youtube videos simultaneously on Safari 3.1 and fans running at 6200rpm but no core shutdown, no playback pauses. Looking good.

 

iHerzeleid

macrumors 6502a

May 5, 2007

555

0

• Apr 8, 2008

• #15

Cores still shutdown under heavy load but are much quicker to come back.

 

Mhaddy

macrumors 6502

Oct 26, 2005

445

1

Canada

• Apr 8, 2008

• #16

Will install once I get home and to a power source

 

R

rom

macrumors regular

Jun 7, 2006

101

0

• Apr 9, 2008

• #17

iHerzeleid said:

Cores still shutdown under heavy load but are much quicker to come back.

Click to expand...

Have not experienced core shutdown yet but so far, performance is way better.

 

iHerzeleid

macrumors 6502a

May 5, 2007

555

0

• Apr 9, 2008

• #18

rom said:

Have not experienced core shutdown yet but so far, performance is way better.

Click to expand...

it is. but WoW kills a core.

 

R

rom

macrumors regular

Jun 7, 2006

101

0

• Apr 9, 2008

• #19

iHerzeleid said:

it is. but WoW kills a core.

Click to expand...

Heheh. WoW kills orcs as well.

Seriously, though - have you experienced other instances when the core shuts down? Not counting games, of course.

 

bananas

macrumors 6502

Aug 1, 2007

293

23

• Apr 9, 2008

• #20

I had no issues before, but installed the update anyway. No noticeable changes here. My MBA is as good as it was.

 

Eidorian

macrumors Penryn

Mar 23, 2005

29,196

394

Indianapolis

• Apr 9, 2008

• #21

ozthegweat said:

Hope this fixes the "CPU core shutdown while watching video" issue.

Click to expand...

It sounds like you're talking about Flash videos which are always a mess on OS X. Please don't call it an issue when Apple did document it at one point.

rom said:

Seems like there is something going on with the fans. It used to hover consistently on 6200rpm when you start doing some "work" but now, it is more dynamic.

Testing video.

Click to expand...

rom said:

Ran two youtube videos simultaneously on Safari 3.1 and fans running at 6200rpm but no core shutdown, no playback pauses. Looking good.

Click to expand...

I was hoping that Apple would tweak the thermal profiles. My MacBook seems to need a higher temperature before the fans spin up now as well.

 

aussieinrome

macrumors regular

Apr 5, 2008

179

0

Rome, Italy.

• Apr 9, 2008

• #22

This seemed to be a rather harmless update that happened automatically on my MBA. Does anyone know what it actually does?

 

ThanatosId

macrumors regular

Jun 29, 2007

177

0

• Apr 9, 2008

• #23

Has anyone noticed that Memory is better used? Before the update, I always had over a gig inactive. Since, inactive is sitting consistently under 100Mbs.

 

O

ozthegweat

macrumors 6502

Feb 20, 2007

253

233

Switzerland

• Apr 9, 2008

• #24

Eidorian said:

It sounds like you're talking about Flash videos which are always a mess on OS X. Please don't call it an issue when Apple did document it at one point..

Click to expand...

No, I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about the issue of which many threads exist in this forum. A core shuts down when watching video (not flash) on an external display and kernel_task uses ~60% CPU, which results in very low framerates. The core comes back (and kernel_task goes down to normal levels) the second I close the video, so this can't have anything to do with temperature, as the temperature wouldn't go down that quickly.

There is a 20$ solution with lowering the voltage, but I prefer a free, Apple-approved fix.

 

Eidorian

macrumors Penryn

Mar 23, 2005

29,196

394

Indianapolis

• Apr 9, 2008

• #25

ozthegweat said:

No, I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about the issue of which many threads exist in this forum. A core shuts down when watching video (not flash) on an external display and kernel_task uses ~60% CPU, which results in very low framerates. The core comes back (and kernel_task goes down to normal levels) the second I close the video, so this can't have anything to do with temperature, as the temperature wouldn't go down that quickly.

There is a 20$ solution with lowering the voltage, but I prefer a free, Apple-approved fix.

Click to expand...

I've noticed the external display threads as well. Apple did have knowledge base article on core throttling having some relation to the GPU usage as well.