2020 MacBook Air extremely slow and bogged down

[Mark200789]

My kid has a 10th gen Macbook Air we got new in fall 2020. Here’s the specs:
1.2GHz quad-core 10th-generation Intel Core i7 processor, Turbo Boost up to 3.8GHz
Intel Iris Plus Graphics
16GB 3733MHz LPDDR4X memory
256GB SSD storage

To me an i7 with 16bg of ram should still be top of the line, especially how little power boost my M2 Max Studio was over my 2014 iMac 5k. Yet she’s telling me she can’t have more than 3 browser tabs open without the machine slowing down and the fans turning up. It’s hard for me to spend any real time with it because she needs it for work as well as privacy reasons. I’m thinking maybe the heatsinks need their paste replaced? Maybe with some arctic silver? Anyone think this might help? Any other ideas I might be able to quickly get into the machine and try? I would hate to replace a 3.5 year old Mac. It would be the soonest I’ve ever replaced a Mac.

 

[Bigwaff]

256GB SSD storage

If possible, review Activity Monitor for memory pressure. High memory pressure can be a cause of slow performance. In addition, review how much storage space is free. Slow performance is a symptom of low avail storage space as the operating system may not be able to efficiently cache or use swap.

I have same MBA model w/ the i3. My family uses it a lot w/ separate login accounts and we haven't experienced any significant performance issues w/ 8GB memory and 256GB SSD.. but our SSD is only close to half capacity used.

 

[Analog Kid]

review how much storage space is free.

This was my first thought. Memory pressure could be a culprit, but that doesn't seem like it here-- I don't know what else she's using it for, but if she's using browser tabs as the argument then it's probably not RAM intensive.

Another common cause of slowdowns is wanting a new computer, so it might be worth independently verifying the claims. I'm not judging, I make the same argument to myself...

 

[Bigwaff]

I don't know what else she's using it for, but if she's using browser tabs as the argument then it's probably not RAM intensive.

Unfortunately we don't know what else could be running. I've witnessed many people simply close application windows using the red circle in the top left corner instead of actually quitting the application. For all we know, 20 applications could be launched and running in the background. OP is lacking a lot of details and specifics.

 

[HDFan]

especially how little power boost my M2 Max Studio was over my 2014 iMac 5k.

That is very strange, but possible depending on how you use it

review Activity Monitor for memory pressure.

and post a screen shoot here if you can.

how much storage space is free.

Make sure ~30% of storage is free.

 

[Altis]

My kid has a 10th gen Macbook Air we got new in fall 2020. Here’s the specs:
1.2GHz quad-core 10th-generation Intel Core i7 processor, Turbo Boost up to 3.8GHz
Intel Iris Plus Graphics
16GB 3733MHz LPDDR4X memory
256GB SSD storage

To me an i7 with 16bg of ram should still be top of the line, especially how little power boost my M2 Max Studio was over my 2014 iMac 5k. Yet she’s telling me she can’t have more than 3 browser tabs open without the machine slowing down and the fans turning up. It’s hard for me to spend any real time with it because she needs it for work as well as privacy reasons. I’m thinking maybe the heatsinks need their paste replaced? Maybe with some arctic silver? Anyone think this might help? Any other ideas I might be able to quickly get into the machine and try? I would hate to replace a 3.5 year old Mac. It would be the soonest I’ve ever replaced a Mac.

Is it a specific 3 tabs or can it be any?

I ask because I know some sites like Facebook marketplace cause this issue on two of my computers.

It shouldn't be out of memory that easily but thermal throttling could be happening if indeed the thermal paste is not making contact with the heat sink anymore.

 

[StoneJack]

My kid has a 10th gen Macbook Air we got new in fall 2020. Here’s the specs:
1.2GHz quad-core 10th-generation Intel Core i7 processor, Turbo Boost up to 3.8GHz
Intel Iris Plus Graphics
16GB 3733MHz LPDDR4X memory
256GB SSD storage

To me an i7 with 16bg of ram should still be top of the line, especially how little power boost my M2 Max Studio was over my 2014 iMac 5k. Yet she’s telling me she can’t have more than 3 browser tabs open without the machine slowing down and the fans turning up. It’s hard for me to spend any real time with it because she needs it for work as well as privacy reasons. I’m thinking maybe the heatsinks need their paste replaced? Maybe with some arctic silver? Anyone think this might help? Any other ideas I might be able to quickly get into the machine and try? I would hate to replace a 3.5 year old Mac. It would be the soonest I’ve ever replaced a Mac.

change battery

 

[arcite]

This is most likely a memory leak type issue, an old software issue (update system, update apps)….. the fan could be dirty/clogged! Easy to check that first.

 

[Darren.h]

your kidding around right? A M2 Max Studio does not seem to be much faster than your 2014 5k iMac ?

I am using a 2019 27 inch 5k i9 iMac right now. I wanna get an M3 Max Studio to replace my iMac . But just surprised you cant notice a major difference. Most Applications run on single core performance still. And The single core score in Geekbench for an M2 Max Chip is a HUGE leap in performance compared to any Intel Mac. Even the 2019 Mac Pro gets wasted by the M2 Max chip in single core.