miniDP wire doesn't fit snug in 2015 MBP?

[Mac2c]

I have a 2015 MBP 15'' just bought a month ago, I've noticed that when the miniDP wire is connected to miniDP/TB2 port, the wire doesn't fit snug in the port. Is this normal?

I expected it to fit solid tight and snug but instead it moves around a lot if jiggled slightly.

I tried the other port and it's the same thing. I also bought a new minidp to dp wire from Accell, which is just slightly better but not worth the extra $ spent. Would be interested to know if this is the case for all 15" MBP 2015's?

 

[Mac2c]

Anyone?

 

[jerryk]

My mini-DP to DP cable is really tight on my 2015 15" rMBP. Almost too tight. Here is the one I have,

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004CAGDUA/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
[doublepost=1493240554][/doublepost]This one is also very tight.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00UHLC24O/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[Mac2c]

My mini-DP to DP cable is really tight on my 2015 15" rMBP. Almost too tight. Here is the one I have,

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004CAGDUA/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
[doublepost=1493240554][/doublepost]This one is also very tight.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00UHLC24O/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Interesting. Have you had any that didn't fit snug like the ones above? Mine just moves way too much

 

[ZapNZs]

My TB2 and MDP cables have always been like this...with the TB2 cables, there is a small gap exposed of the metal of the plug, and both TB2 and MDP cables have some slight horizontal play. Moving the ports side-to-side never results in any disconnects, so I can't say I've ever considered it an issue since most ports I have are usually characterized by a small amount of play.

 

[Mac2c]

My TB2 and MDP cables have always been like this...with the TB2 cables, there is a small gap exposed of the metal of the plug, and both TB2 and MDP cables have some slight horizontal play. Moving the ports side-to-side never results in any disconnects, so I can't say I've ever considered it an issue since most ports I have are usually characterized by a small amount of play.

View attachment 697600

View attachment 697601

That movement looks similar to mine. For me when the wire is pushed forward it disconnects from my Dell monitor. The reason I've become critical of this is because, I noticed that MBP gets quite warm for just viewing a 720p video. I figure if the connection is not secure it's bound to be a possible cause for the problem or other problems.

Does your MBP get warm/hot when streaming 720p video? I'm watching sports when this happens.

This is what I got going on.

 

[jerryk]

That movement looks similar to mine. For me when the wire is pushed forward it disconnects from my Dell monitor. The reason I've become critical of this is because, I noticed that MBP gets quite warm for just viewing a 720p video. I figure if the connection is not secure it's bound to be a possible cause for the problem or other problems.
Does your MBP get warm/hot when streaming 720p video? I'm watching sports when this happens.

I doubt it is your connection causing the issue with heat generation. If you are watching in a browsers, perhaps flash or some other add in is running and using all of the cycles. The decode of the video stream is much more compute intensive than displaying the decoded contents to the monitor.
[doublepost=1493243252][/doublepost]

Interesting. Have you had any that didn't fit snug like the ones above? Mine just moves way too much

Those are the only two I own, so for me the connections are very tight.

 

[Mac2c]

I doubt it is your connection causing the issue with heat generation. If you are watching in a browsers, perhaps flash or some other add in is running and using all of the cycles. The decode of the video stream is much more compute intensive than displaying the decoded contents to the monitor.
[doublepost=1493243252][/doublepost]

Those are the only two I own, so for me the connections are very tight.

Hmm, I'm viewing the stream through Safari without any addons for safari. I don't have flash installed either.

You're very lucky, if I can find that on the amazon.ca store I'd give it a try but I'm thinking it might just be loose and that I can't do much about it. These ports, imo should be engineered to fit snug with all cables. Not sure why yours is very tight but that's better than it being loose I think.

 

[Samuelsan2001]

Hmm, I'm viewing the stream through Safari without any addons for safari. I don't have flash installed either.

You're very lucky, if I can find that on the amazon.ca store I'd give it a try but I'm thinking it might just be loose and that I can't do much about it. These ports, imo should be engineered to fit snug with all cables. Not sure why yours is very tight but that's better than it being loose I think.

I've had a mini DP to hdmi cable for 6 years that was always a bit loose on two different MBP's it always worked fine though. There is no way that apple can do anything about how snug a third party cable fits they buy in the standard ports and the cables should be made to fit them.

 

[Fishrrman]

OP wrote:
"Mine just moves way too much"

Well then -- why not buy another cable?
They're cheap.

 

[jerryk]

Hmm, I'm viewing the stream through Safari without any addons for safari. I don't have flash installed either.

You're very lucky, if I can find that on the amazon.ca store I'd give it a try but I'm thinking it might just be loose and that I can't do much about it. These ports, imo should be engineered to fit snug with all cables. Not sure why yours is very tight but that's better than it being loose I think.

Fitting snug is good, but sometime I think I am going to pull the port out the MBP when I disconnect the cable.

 

[Mac2c]

I've had a mini DP to hdmi cable for 6 years that was always a bit loose on two different MBP's it always worked fine though. There is no way that apple can do anything about how snug a third party cable fits they buy in the standard ports and the cables should be made to fit them.

Even the standard USB connection moves a bit, now that I've tried it, but not as much as the miniDP. All USB cables are standard and the same size these days so this leads me to believe that Apple actually makes these ports loose does on purpose. If a miniDP wire like jerryk's fits really tight I think it's just that wire company has made them a bit larger than anyone else.

OP wrote:
"Mine just moves way too much"

Well then -- why not buy another cable?
They're cheap.

I've already tried a very expensive one which is supposedly the best "Accell" wires who have more certifications. I think it's a hit or miss with wires at this point, may experiment some more. Hopefully amazon takes returns on these.

Fitting snug is good, but sometime I think I am going to pull the port out the MBP when I disconnect the cable.

Haha, yeah that sounds really really tight, better be careful not to damage anything over the long term. Maybe join the loose cable club? By the way I'm streaming that video over wifi, could that be the reason of the heating issue? Rather than say using an ethernet port which provides clean data. My phones and iPads get hot too at times from watching videos over wifi.

 

[ZapNZs]

That movement looks similar to mine. For me when the wire is pushed forward it disconnects from my Dell monitor. The reason I've become critical of this is because, I noticed that MBP gets quite warm for just viewing a 720p video. I figure if the connection is not secure it's bound to be a possible cause for the problem or other problems.

Does your MBP get warm/hot when streaming 720p video? I'm watching sports when this happens.

This is what I got going on.

That appears to be a bit more play than with my 2014. Mine does not disconnect when pushing forward or moving side-to-side. The brand MDP I use is Blue Rigger IIRC and the ThunderBolt is AKiTiO. My USB ports also have a bit of play, but do not disconnect when moved.

edit--this is interesting!!! I just tried the same TB2 cable on my 2011 MBP-15 Uni with TB1 and a 2011 MBA with TB1, and then a late 2013 with TB2. Interestingly, the TB2 cable is also looser on the late 2013, but fits more snugly in both 2011s. I think you may be right about Apple making them looser. Perhaps this is done intentionally to slow wear or to prevent damage if used with an individual plug that is slightly larger than per design specification??? At least for me thus far (knock on wood), my usage of the two ports for both MDP and ThunderBolt2 has been delightfully reliable despite the less-than-perfectly-solid fitment...so reliable & consistent that I use TB2 exclusively now for my various secondary storage devices.

Is your model a version with the dGPU? If so, the combination of the 720p + the discrete graphics card's higher consumption of energy might explain some of the heat increase? Do you ever use the system in clamshell mode? - I've noticed slightly higher temps here too.

What temperatures are you seeing? I run my 2014 with two displays (+a TB2 hub, two USB hubs, 10+ secondary storage devices, and numerous other USB accessories) running one or two VMs with the CPU holding around 3.5 GHz and hitting about 200F (even up to 210F) temps with the fans near 6200 RPM continuously in 6-10 hours blocks most days of the week and have done so for over two years - so while it gets hot, it does hold up to the heat even if being pushed all the way to its outer thermal limits for sustained periods. FWIW, the aluminum stand I use seems to reduce the running temps slightly.

 

[Mac2c]

That appears to be a bit more play than with my 2014. Mine does not disconnect when pushing forward or moving side-to-side. The brand MDP I use is Blue Rigger IIRC and the ThunderBolt is AKiTiO. My USB ports also have a bit of play, but do not disconnect when moved.

Yes I noticed even my PC has some play with USB ports. However the Ethernet port, sound ports, video out ports, keyboard ports have very little to no play to them for a solid and secure connection. It strikes me odd why these ports are loose to be honest, it is disappointing.

edit--this is interesting!!! I just tried the same TB2 cable on my 2011 MBP-15 Uni with TB1 and a 2011 MBA with TB1, and then a late 2013 with TB2. Interestingly, the TB2 cable is also looser on the late 2013, but fits more snugly in both 2011s. I think you may be right about Apple making them looser. Perhaps this is done intentionally to slow wear or to prevent damage if used with an individual plug that is slightly larger than per design specification??? At least for me thus far (knock on wood), my usage of the two ports for both MDP and ThunderBolt2 has been delightfully reliable despite the less-than-perfectly-solid fitment...so reliable & consistent that I use TB2 exclusively now for my various secondary storage devices.

Glad it's reliable for you. I just tested the one that gave me problems and it didn't disconnect this time, strange, not sure what to make of that now. I literally could reproduce the disconnect when I moved it the minidp wire forward in relation to the macbook now it's not doing it

Is your model a version with the dGPU? If so, the combination of the 720p + the discrete graphics card's higher consumption of energy might explain some of the heat increase? Do you ever use the system in clamshell mode? - I've noticed slightly higher temps here too.

If you mean with a AMD Radeon, no, I have the standard Intel Iris Graphics. I do use it in clamshell mode vertically seated on a Book Arc. The interesting thing is, I've had it set in mirror display once so it's powering the macbook and the 1440p monitor (Dell U2515H) and it got hot, but when I put it in clamshell mode (one less screen to power) it got cooler. Now it's in clamshell mode and getting hot? I don't get it.

What temperatures are you seeing? I run my 2014 with two displays (+a TB2 hub, two USB hubs, 10+ secondary storage devices, and numerous other USB accessories) running one or two VMs with the CPU holding around 3.5 GHz and hitting about 200F (even up to 210F) temps with the fans near 6200 RPM continuously in 6-10 hours blocks most days of the week and have done so for over two years - so while it gets hot, it does hold up to the heat even if being pushed all the way to its outer thermal limits for sustained periods. FWIW, the aluminum stand I use seems to reduce the running temps slightly.

I didn't check the temperature but I can tell you that the fans started to kick in at times. Wow you're really making it work! I have the aluminum stand as well but decided to go with the vertical book arc because while in clamshell mode, the macbook is surrounded by air (360 degrees of exposure to air) which I think would help keep it cooler rather than say put it on something. I also have the macbook upside down on the book arc since the hot air is dissipated through the back which is facing upwards rather than downwards. Attached a pic. Not sure why clamshell would cause more heat.

 

[Patcell]

I have a mid-2014 15" Pro (750M dGPU). All of my thunderbolt cables (some Apple, some OWC) have a bit of play to them when plugged in to the computer. Especially noticeable when with the Apple-branded Thunderbolt-to-ethernet adapter. It always irked the hell out of me, but as mentioned by others, I have never had a lost signal due to port movement.

Speaking of heat... I regularly use my MacBook Pro in clamshell mode docked in a BookArc... Granted, I am running a 4K display (probably more taxing on the GPU), but my machine runs a good 10 degrees Celsius warmer (at idle) as compared to in notebook mode. The screen saver (Origami photos) alone is often enough to get the fans audible. I never thought to put it in the BookArc upside down though... It makes sense that it may assist with cooling because heat is dissipated from the hinge-area. I'll have to try it!

 

[killawat]

Are you having issues with your accell cable (other than the connector issue). You mentioned that it wasn't worth the price, is it working well for you though? Accell is the only cable tht worked for my sleep wake issues.

 

[ZapNZs]

If you mean with a AMD Radeon, no, I have the standard Intel Iris Graphics. I do use it in clamshell mode vertically seated on a Book Arc. The interesting thing is, I've had it set in mirror display once so it's powering the macbook and the 1440p monitor (Dell U2515H) and it got hot, but when I put it in clamshell mode (one less screen to power) it got cooler. Now it's in clamshell mode and getting hot? I don't get it.

I didn't check the temperature but I can tell you that the fans started to kick in at times. Wow you're really making it work! I have the aluminum stand as well but decided to go with the vertical book arc because while in clamshell mode, the macbook is surrounded by air (360 degrees of exposure to air) which I think would help keep it cooler rather than say put it on something. I also have the macbook upside down on the book arc since the hot air is dissipated through the back which is facing upwards rather than downwards. Attached a pic. Not sure why clamshell would cause more heat.

With the usage and the way you are using it, it sounds like something else could be contributing to the heat possibly? Have you observed Activity Monitor for any unusual or rogue processes? Alternatively, have you tried doing the same thing with different browsers to see if perhaps this is related to Safari not playing nice with a particular website?