iMac horribly slow after screensaver or sleep

[upsguy27]

My new i5 iMac has been really slow after I get out of its screensaver or take it out of sleep. Even if its on the screensaver for a minute, moving the mouse causes it to freeze and try to load the desktop. This takes about a minute before my computer is fully functional again. Also, I don't know if this is just me thinking this or if its actually a problem, but the computer seems a lot slower than my previous, a 24" 3.06Ghz iMac.

Another thing, the fans seem to spin a lot more with this computer. Watching a YouTube or Hulu video makes the fans spin a ton. I've never had that happen with a Mac before. The computer also gets literally too hot to touch. Anybody else have this?

Also, on a (kind of) unrelated note, Windows performance with this is horrible. I've tried Windows 7 and Vista, and both run... adequately. The fans also spin a ton in Vista (what I currently have installed due to there being no 27" drivers for 7 yet).

Has anybody else had this kind of disappointing performance? What should I do?

 

[upsguy27]

Anybody know what I should do?

 

[GaresTaylan]

Hmm, not sure. My new iMac doesnt have this issue I just forced the screensaver on to be sure. Maybe you should call apple and explain to see if they have any ideas.

 

[upsguy27]

As I use this computer more, it seems to be much slower than my old 24" iMac. I'm trying to talk to someone on Skype using video chat, and it makes the iMac get really hot (133 F) and the fans are running at full speed. Skype also constantly freezes and the video chat is jerky. Really, doing anything causes the fans to spin. Is this something I should be worried about?

 

[upsguy27]

At this point I think there's something wrong with my Mac... let me know if you guys think the same. I just left my Mac running for 10 minutes, came back and the screen was black. So I woke it up, and when the display came on I saw this.

I've owned Macs for 5 years, and not once have I seen this. What's going on?

 

[iSee]

If you have third-party RAM or devices, try removing/disconnecting them and see if that helps. If not, call Apple Care.

 

[upsguy27]

If you have third-party RAM or devices, try removing/disconnecting them and see if that helps. If not, call Apple Care.

I just added more RAM on the 24th, but the computer was like this long before then.

 

[tomacintosh]

Have you downloaded the 10.6.2 update? That supposedly fixed some Flash related performance issues. If you have and it's still the same, I recommend calling Apple, it sounds like your Mac has hardware issues.

 

[Pedro74]

I am having the same Issue. Granted I ordered it with the minimum memory (planning on upgrading) but its got a 2TB HD. When I wake it up from sleep, the color wheel spins for about a full minute, before the computer functions properly. I keep thinking, my 4 yr old powerbook G4 that I did a hack job of replacing the HD, operates faster. What gives? Anyone have any idea? I expected this machine to be blazing fast comparitively.

 

[upsguy27]

Have you downloaded the 10.6.2 update? That supposedly fixed some Flash related performance issues. If you have and it's still the same, I recommend calling Apple, it sounds like your Mac has hardware issues.

This computer came with 10.6.2 installed.

I am having the same Issue. Granted I ordered it with the minimum memory (planning on upgrading) but its got a 2TB HD. When I wake it up from sleep, the color wheel spins for about a full minute, before the computer functions properly. I keep thinking, my 4 yr old powerbook G4 that I did a hack job of replacing the HD, operates faster. What gives? Anyone have any idea? I expected this machine to be blazing fast comparitively.

Yeah, that's exactly what happens with mine.

 

[Pedro74]

So I shouldnt bother ordering additional memory from Crucial or New Egg? I was vaguely thinking/hoping that would solve it? No such luck? Does you screen saver scroll through your iphoto library? And if so, is it a big Library? I guess I'll be calling Apple Care tonight....

 

[upsguy27]

So I shouldnt bother ordering additional memory from Crucial or New Egg? I was vaguely thinking/hoping that would solve it? No such luck? Does you screen saver scroll through your iphoto library? And if so, is it a big Library? I guess I'll be calling Apple Care tonight....

I don't know, this happened long before I installed new memory... No, my screensaver is Arabesque.

 

[DesignerOnMac]

At this point I think there's something wrong with my Mac... let me know if you guys think the same. I just left my Mac running for 10 minutes, came back and the screen was black. So I woke it up, and when the display came on I saw this.

I've owned Macs for 5 years, and not once have I seen this. What's going on?

I have an iMac 2.8 Extreme, older model than yours as you know. Shortly after I setup my iMac I also got this screen. I followed the directions but the problem did not go away.

I called AC and they told me to reset the SMU. Apparently, something happened to the hardware inside the iMac. They told me to shut down the imac, unplug the power cord, and the hold down the power button in the back for 10 seconds. Let go of the button and then hit it again to turn the computer on. This supposedly resets the hardware to the original factory settings.

I did the above, and have had no issues ever since. Don't know if this will help you but worth a try, no?

Next suggestion would be to call AC or take your imac to the local Apple Store if one is close to you.

 

[iSee]

IMO, there's definitely a problem that needs to be fixed.
I suggested taking out the RAM as a way to determine whether you should call Apple first or whoever you got the RAM from.

If the problem does not go away when the RAM (and other third-party devices) is removed, then you should call Apple.

If the problems go away when the RAM is removed, then the problem is probably the RAM and you should call whoever you got it from for an exchange.

I just added more RAM on the 24th, but the computer was like this long before then.

Hm... It could be that there are two problems happening here.
1. Slowness.
2. The crash (resulting the the restart screen you posted).

It might be that 2. is due to the new memory while the slowness is something else. It you see the crash repeatedly, try removing the RAM and see if the crash goes away. If so, #1, reseat the RAM. If the crashes resume happening with the RAM in, get the RAM replaced.

To get 1. fixed, either search around for solutions on the internet or call Apple Care: 1-800-APL-CARE. If you do find a solution, post the fix here.

 

[upsguy27]

So, I took out the "bad" RAM, and things are still bad. More weird things have been happening... the mouse started jumping all over the place as I described here. At first I thought it was my 360, then I thought it was something wrong with the wireless, but when I plug in a wired mouse it does the same thing. The same thing happens with the keyboard. I've tried restarting the computer, resetting the SMU, etc. The only thing to try now is reinstalling the OS, but that's going to take some time as all of my files are on here.

The computer has also been having really weird moments where after I use it for a while clicking only partially works. For example, in Safari, I can only highlight text, and I can right click, but when I try to close a window nothing happens. Also, when I click on any tab in Safari it will instantly close that tab instead of going to it. Also, the fans have been spinning a lot more recently. Why is all this happening?

 

[IIIMPower]

I'm having the EXACT same problem with my new 2011 Mac Mini i5 with mountain lion. Sometimes I can't even get it to wake up from sleep or show the user login box and then I'm forced to force shut down with the power button. If I can login after the screen saver or sleep, it is horribly slow to the point of it can't keep up with me as I type. The Mini was migrated from my old MacBook pro so maybe something wrong with the os? Idk.. It's frustrating as heck though. In activity monitor my 16gb of memory and CPU are barely being used and I have a lot of space left on my hard drive still but it still acts slower than my old intel core duo (not even core 2 duo) MacBook pro with 2gb ram.... wtf??

THIS SOLVED MY PROBLEM, might work for you - As AC told DesignOnMac, I just reset the SMU and also the PRAM and now everything works well again. Maybe resetting both does something?

Resetting NVRAM / PRAM
1. Shut down your Mac.
2. Locate the following keys on the keyboard: Command (⌘), Option, P, and R. You will need to hold these keys down simultaneously in step 4.
3. Turn on the computer.
4. Press and hold the Command-Option-P-R keys before the gray screen appears.
5. Hold the keys down until the computer restarts and you hear the startup sound for the second time.
Release the keys.

Resetting SMU
1. Click the Apple logo in the upper left corner of your screen and choose "Shut Down..." to turn off the Mac.
2. Leave the Mac turned off for at least 15 seconds.
3. Press and hold the power button on the back of the Mac.
4. Plug the power cable into the back of the Mac while continuing to press the power button.
5. Plug in the power cable and then release the power button.
6. Press the power button again to turn on the Mac. Your SMU has been reset.