Look, problems are to be expected with each major operating system revision and Apple typically fixes woes with subsequent software updates. This goes not only for desktop computers, but mobile devices as well. 9to5Mac has written about early iPhone 4S teething problems and today we cover issues arising from the Mac OS X Lion 10.7.2 update, pushed last week. Although the software squashed a number of known bugs, it has introduced new issues as well. Here are three common problems a lot of folks, myself included, have encountered following the 10.7.2 upgrade.
A thread on Apple’s Support Communities describes Bluetooth woes manifesting in unreliable connections with Apple’s wireless keyboard, mouse and trackpad. Said input devices sporadically lose connection even though the Mac’s battery indicator in Bluetooth preferences pane doesn’t indicate low power. Rebooting, trashing the preferences and re-pairing your mouse, keyboard or trackpad doesn’t seem to help as the connection keeps dropping out. For some, the solution is to turn the devices off by holding down the power button on each and then letting Lion boot. Following the no keyboard/mouse prompt, turn on your device and re-pair it with the computer. This doesn’t appear to be the ultimate solution, but it’s helping some mitigate the problems.
Wi-Fi connectivity problems problems are more widespread. In short, Lion completely drops your Wi-Fi connection after waking from sleep and is unable to re-establish it until after a reboot. Interestingly, it seems to plague the MacBook Air owners the most, which isn’t to say that other Mac people aren’t experiencing related glitches as well. One possible remedy includes deleting corresponding entries in the Keychain Access application found in Application > Utilities. Forum user Caledai offered an interesting explanation:
I have seen this behavior before on machines, and it only affected the machines where there was a significant delay between resuming from sleep and the authentication. This is because while your computer is asleep / locked – so is the keychain. If the wireless attempts to connect – while your machine is locked – its unable to access the keychain – and thus authenticate the wireless. Usually turning the wireless off / on after logging in will reconnect the wireless, providing the user details in the keychain are correct.
Other fixes you may try include turning off your Mac’s Wi-Fi, deleting the wireless connection, saving the settings, creating a new connection and turning your wireless back on. Also worth trying: Create a new location using the Network preferences pane and set up your wireless connection inside that. If none of the above helps, your last resort could be doing an SMC reset and/or zapping the PRAM.
Go past the break for issues related to Apple’s latest 27-inch Thunderbolt Display, which went on sale last month.
Before we delve deeper into this, make sure you have applied the latest system updates by choosing Software Update from the Apple menu. Also read this support document to learn about Thunderbolt limitations. Additionally, 2011 MacBook Air owners should install the EMI Firmware Update 2.1. Now, some people have noted their Thunderbolt Display goes blank on a whim. The computer works normally, it’s just that the control chips in the monitor and your machine randomly lose sync. Don’t worry, a cable pull resolves this: Just unplug the cable and plug it back in, which’ll cause the display to restart (yes, a computer of sorts is inside).
The new display is acting up a lot for some owners of 2011 MacBook Airs as well. According to this thread, issues range from the Air not reconfiguring the monitor layout after waking from sleep or rebooting, problems with USB peripherals and Ethernet devices attached to the monitor’s back, calibration glitches, the auto-brightness check box in the Display preferences disappearing and more. These are but a handful of the varied technical controversies surrounding Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and Thunderbolt Display the annoyed users are reporting on Apple’s forums. The majority of problems described in this article could be traced back to the latest Mac OS X Lion 10.7.2 update (but not necessarily), giving hope Apple will address those with the forthcoming 10.7.3 update.
Looking at the bigger picture, disgruntled users are flocking to the company’s Support Communities portal on a daily basis, reporting all kinds of other problems with Apple’s many products. Make sure to check in there for your daily fixture of Mac headache. Have you experienced any of the aforementioned issues? If so, we’d love to hear from you – especially if you can share handy workarounds. Add your voice to the chorus in the comments below.
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