Mid-2014 MacBook Pro suddenly feeling very slow

[johnc22]

This laptop has been a champ for almost ten years. The screen is kind of scratched, the battery is shot and should be replaced, but I'm able to keep it on the charger where I usually use it on the couch. What I've noticed in the past month is that Safari has really started to lag, like web pages take forever to complete loading, especially where there is a lot of dynamic content and presumably a lot of background JavaScript running to load the page completely. Sometimes the mouse just freezes for several seconds. I'll go to click something but as soon as I do the page has loaded more content and I end up clicking the wrong thing. It's lots of internet sites and has become more frequent.

I know this thing is ready to be put out to pasture, even Apple says my trade-in option is "we'll be happy to recycle it for you". It's kind of too bad, the thing is so well built and is mostly used for streaming Netflix, etc.. Will clearing cache, etc help or is this thing just too old for modern usage? Would switching to Chrome make a difference.

My wife has an M2 Air that feels super cheaply built compared to the solid chunk of aluminum they made this MacBook Pro out of. How are the new Pros?

Thanks!

 

[iMacDragon]

If the battery is completely shot it could be due to that, macbooks need at least a somewhat operational battery to run at full capability, even if on mains power.

 

[savagewatts]

Mine is still running great. Maybe try wiping it out and a complete reinstall?

 

[JPack]

When was the last time the heatsink and fan(s) were cleaned?

 

[Mac Hammer Fan]

Which OS is the topic starter running? Safari on an OS below Monterey should be avoided because of security reasons.

 

[MacPeasant123]

If the battery is completely shot it could be due to that, macbooks need at least a somewhat operational battery to run at full capability, even if on mains power.

To the OP, I agree with iMacDragon here as my old 2012 MacBook Pro suddenly got super slow (constant beachballing) and later I found out it was because the battery was useless. Once I got the battery replaced, it went back to working normally again.

 

[Fishrrman]

Apple charges $249 to replace the battery...
BUT...
They may not have any stock left to do a battery replacement for a 2014 model any more.

Others above are right about a nearly-failed or completely-failed internal battery impacting performance.

I believe if there is NO power coming from the battery (or if it's been removed), the Mac will drop to about 50% or so of "regular speed".

The old MBP been a trusty device for 10 years.
But... time marches on...

 

[StoneJack]

This laptop has been a champ for almost ten years. The screen is kind of scratched, the battery is shot and should be replaced, but I'm able to keep it on the charger where I usually use it on the couch. What I've noticed in the past month is that Safari has really started to lag, like web pages take forever to complete loading, especially where there is a lot of dynamic content and presumably a lot of background JavaScript running to load the page completely. Sometimes the mouse just freezes for several seconds. I'll go to click something but as soon as I do the page has loaded more content and I end up clicking the wrong thing. It's lots of internet sites and has become more frequent.

I know this thing is ready to be put out to pasture, even Apple says my trade-in option is "we'll be happy to recycle it for you". It's kind of too bad, the thing is so well built and is mostly used for streaming Netflix, etc.. Will clearing cache, etc help or is this thing just too old for modern usage? Would switching to Chrome make a difference.

My wife has an M2 Air that feels super cheaply built compared to the solid chunk of aluminum they made this MacBook Pro out of. How are the new Pros?

Thanks!

Its battery is gone. Replace it. If u don’t it may break your notebook or worse

 

[johnc22]

Thanks everyone, it sounds like consensus is that the battery is causing the slow-down. This laptop is so old I don't really want to invest in repairs or upgrades, or bother with backup and reinstall. I will probably give it to an animal-related charity near me and "upgrade" to a new M3 Air pretty soon. It has served me extremely well.

 

[Flyview]

Thanks everyone, it sounds like consensus is that the battery is causing the slow-down. This laptop is so old I don't really want to invest in repairs or upgrades, or bother with backup and reinstall. I will probably give it to an animal-related charity near me and "upgrade" to a new M3 Air pretty soon. It has served me extremely well.

I'll take it. haha. Having said that, how much free space do you have left? I noticed my late 2013 15" MBP started getting pretty slow when I let it get to 1-2GB left. I upgrade my SSD recently, cleaned out the fans and heatsinks, replaced the thermal paste with PTM7950 and undervalued, and it works like new. Of course it could still be the battery as well for yours.

 

[johnc22]

There's plenty of free disk space - I cleared a bunch of photos off the drive in anticipation of replacing it.

 

[za9ra22]

As an experiment, after backing it up to secure your data, wipe it and do a macOS reinstall. This will give you a clear picture of what its performance at least could be.