Testing confirms that Apple's acceleration patch improves the performance of the 2018 MacBook Pro models

Apple today released a major patch for the 2018 MacBook Pro, which was designed to solve a problem that caused excessive machine downtime during heavy-duty work.

The fix came in the form of an additional update to macOS High Sierra 10.13.6, which many new owners of MacBook Pro have now installed on their machines. Many MacBook Pro owners and media sites have tested the new patch, and the results seem to be largely positive – the limitation problem has been solved for most and the machines work better.

CNET for example, does before and after tests with a video coding test. Before the patch, the Core i9 machine tested on the site saw frequent fluctuations in internal temperature and clock frequency of the CPU, and after the update, the Core i9 MacBook Pro CPU stopped working. stable.

Original strangulation tests showing frequent fluctuations on the left, after a patch test on the right. Image via CNET

Macworld shared some preliminary test results from its 4K Adobe Premiere test and achieved similar results, with a clock speed equal to or greater than the base rather than the limitation. Macworld estimates that prior to the patch, the MacBook Pro 15-inch 2018 Core i9 was 11% faster than the Core i7 MacBook Pro clocked at 2.9 GHz of the year last. After the patch, "it's more like 20% faster".

Preliminary results of our 4K Premiere test:
2017 2.9GHz Core i7: 90 min
2018 Core i9 before patch: 80 min
2018 Core i9 after patch: 72 min
Also, very even clocks at or above the base instead of spiky strangling. pic.twitter.com/4CtgJ72pRt

– Macworld (@macworld) July 24, 2018

Dave Lee, who highlighted the problem of limitation in the first place, tweeted some results from post-patch tests and said that the performance was much better.

sooo much better pic.twitter.com/AKIeXYpKAH

– Dave Lee (@ Dave2Dtv) July 24, 2018

John Poole, the founder of Geekbench Labs, tested the Core i9 MacBook Pro 2018 after the patch and found that it was faster with a more stable processor frequency. It was slightly slower than the 2018 Core i7 MacBook Pro. Poole says that even though long-running multi-threaded tasks will see similar performance on Core i9 and Core i7 machines, simple, slightly threaded tasks should be faster on the i9.

After I applied the latest update from Apple, I re-launched the Geekbench build test on the i9. It's a bit faster, but the CPU frequency remains stable during construction (which is comforting).

Still technically slower than the i7, but close enough so that, practically, it does not matter. pic.twitter.com/hOogCt6ZB0

– John Poole (@jfpoole) July 24, 2018

MacRumors Aea reader shared pre-patch and post-patch Cinebench benchmarks made with the 15-inch MacBook Pro with the Core i9 chip showing the jump in the score following the update.

Several Reddit users with 2018 MacBook Pro models shared their benchmarking and test results after installing the additional update and found significant improvements. This image of the Reddit XNY user, for example, represents a before and after a 13-inch MacBook Pro 2018 with a Core i5 chip.

Another Reddit user (apple_) confirmed that following the update, his Core i9 machine was still working better.

I did all the original tests and I can confirm that I continually receive basic speed or above in the torture test with Prime 95. Even if getting between 2.9 – 3.9 when I was 4 tests. Also ran cinebench and OpenGL got 106 fps and the CPU test I had over 1000 for each run test. Thank you Apple for this quick solution and thank you all for these problems.

The problem of limitation was discovered a few days after the release of the MacBook Pro models, when YouTuber Dave Lee tested the top of the page. -line 2018 MacBook Pro 15-inch with 2.9 GHz i9-based Core chip using Adobe Premiere Pro and found that it was underperforming compared to a 2017 MacBook Pro because of what Lee has termed " unacceptable level of limitation.

Apple reached out to Lee and worked with him to replicate his workflow, arriving at the source of the bug. Apple discovered that there was a missing digital key in the MacBook Pro firmware that had an impact on the thermal management system, resulting in clock speeds under heavy thermal loads. This has been a problem that seems to have affected all models of MacBook Pro 2018.

The problem seems to have been solved successfully in the additional MacOS High Sierra update today, and Apple has apologized to customers who have experienced less than optimal performance on their new machines 2018.

Customers who have a MacBook Pro 2018 and have not installed the update should do so immediately to see the performance improvements themselves.