Some Retina MacBook Pro users report rampant fan activity
updated 04:38 pm EST, Fri March 8, 2013
2011 and 2012 models affected, seemingly no SSD commonality
Reports have surfaced that some users who purchased a Retina MacBook Pro are experiencing mostly unexplained bursts of system cooling fans shifting to fast speed. A 27 page thread on the Apple support forums is collecting user data on the phenomenon, with no user fix apparent. Apple has yet to issue a formal response on the matter.
The original reporting user on the thread followed the standard troubleshooting steps, including running the Apple Hardware Test utility, none of which fixed nor provided any insight on the problem. A YouTube user believes the issue is related to the Sandisk solid state drive that Apple replaced the original Samsung model with. Some other users report that the problem also lies with Samsung-equipped units as well.
Not all users are manifesting the issue. MacNN spoke with an independent testing lab who tried to reproduce the issue with eight previous-model Retina MacBook Pro laptops, five with the Sandisk SSD, and three with the Samsung SSD. Seven of the refreshed models were also tested. None of the 15 laptops examined were able to reproduce the issue, given the steps that were provided on the support forums to test machines.
Apple has repaired or replaced customers' machines that have developed the problem in some cases. Apple is now aware of the problem, according to communications published on the support forum by affected users. The Retina MacBook Pro has been previously accused of having a poor cooling design.
