Apple Testing Software Update to Address 2013 MacBook Air Wi-Fi Issues

Last week, it was reported that a growing number of owners of Apple's new MacBook Air were experiencing Wi-Fi issues, with users reporting problems such as dropped connections that require a restart in order to reconnect. It was reported earlier this week that Apple has been replacing affected machines and collecting the defective units in order to examine them as part of the company's investigation into the issue.

As noted by AppleInsider, Apple is now sending out invitations to certain MacBook Air owners asking if they wish to participate in the company's AppleSeed customer software seeding program for the purposes of testing a new "MacBook Air WiFi Update 1.0". While Apple does not specify in its invitation exactly what problem the software update is designed to address, it presumably focuses on the connection issues being reported by users.

You have been selected to join our AppleSeed program. If you accept, we will provide you with a pre-release version of the MacBookAir WiFi Update 1.0 to install and use.

While trying out MacBookAir WiFi Update 1.0, we ask that you provide us with your feedback. Our program includes a bug reporting system for our participants. If you wish to be a seed volunteer and help Apple release high-quality software, follow the instructions below.

appleseed_macbook_air_wifi
Beyond the connection issues, Apple's OS X 10.8.4 public release and OS X Mavericks beta also appear to have a software issue that prevents machines supporting the new 802.11ac Wi-Fi standard from taking advantage of the faster speeds for file transfers. It is, however, unclear whether Apple will address this issue for current MacBook Air owners through this software update in testing or through a separate update such as the upcoming OS X 10.8.5 update.

Related Roundup: MacBook Air
Related Forum: MacBook Air

Popular Stories

iPhone SE 4 Vertical Camera Feature

iPhone SE 4 Production Will Reportedly Begin Ramping Up in October

Tuesday July 23, 2024 2:00 pm PDT by
Following nearly two years of rumors about a fourth-generation iPhone SE, The Information today reported that Apple suppliers are finally planning to begin ramping up mass production of the device in October of this year. If accurate, that timeframe would mean that the next iPhone SE would not be announced alongside the iPhone 16 series in September, as expected. Instead, the report...
iPhone 17 Plus Feature

iPhone 17 Lineup Specs Detail Display Upgrade and New High-End Model

Monday July 22, 2024 4:33 am PDT by
Key details about the overall specifications of the iPhone 17 lineup have been shared by the leaker known as "Ice Universe," clarifying several important aspects of next year's devices. Reports in recent months have converged in agreement that Apple will discontinue the "Plus" iPhone model in 2025 while introducing an all-new iPhone 17 "Slim" model as an even more high-end option sitting...
Generic iPhone 17 Feature With Full Width Dynamic Island

Kuo: Ultra-Thin iPhone 17 to Feature A19 Chip, Single Rear Camera, Semi-Titanium Frame, and More

Wednesday July 24, 2024 9:06 am PDT by
Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo today shared alleged specifications for a new ultra-thin iPhone 17 model rumored to launch next year. Kuo expects the device to be equipped with a 6.6-inch display with a current-size Dynamic Island, a standard A19 chip rather than an A19 Pro chip, a single rear camera, and an Apple-designed 5G chip. He also expects the device to have a...
iPhone 16 Pro Sizes Feature

iPhone 16 Series Is Less Than Two Months Away: Everything We Know

Thursday July 25, 2024 5:43 am PDT by
Apple typically releases its new iPhone series around mid-September, which means we are about two months out from the launch of the iPhone 16. Like the iPhone 15 series, this year's lineup is expected to stick with four models – iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max – although there are plenty of design differences and new features to take into account. To bring ...
icloud private relay outage

iCloud Private Relay Experiencing Outage

Thursday July 25, 2024 3:18 pm PDT by
Apple’s iCloud Private Relay service is down for some users, according to Apple’s System Status page. Apple says that the iCloud Private Relay service may be slow or unavailable. The outage started at 2:34 p.m. Eastern Time, but it does not appear to be affecting all iCloud users. Some impacted users are unable to browse the web without turning iCloud Private Relay off, while others are...

Top Rated Comments

smithrh Avatar
145 months ago
Here it comes...

What's coming?

Unbelievable. :(

What's unbelievable?

Really, these posts are useless. If you have a viewpoint, express it for goodness sake.
Score: 42 Votes (Like | Disagree)
3282868 Avatar
145 months ago
Use a cable.

Problem solved.

You're welcome.
I'm sorry, are you seriously suggesting not using WiFi, a major function in today's computing needs, and using a cable for a direct connection on a ~$1500+ iMac (which requires a USB - Ethernet adapter for the MacBook Air)? Let's just move all our systems next to our routers and connect them directly, cause "it just works". I thought I had seen it all on here.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
firestarter Avatar
145 months ago
Use a cable.

Maybe Apple should release a new version called the 'MacBook Tethered' if they're not able to make a reliable 'Air', then?
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
name99 Avatar
145 months ago
They offered me a similar option when I reported WiFi drops during 10.7. I got a call from them. I had filled out a bug report on the matter. They essentially wanted me to brick my machine for their own purposes. Since like most people I need my computer for work amongst other things, I declined. For the time being I wired it to my modem and discontinued use of WiFi. The guy was a little annoyed and I ended the conversation with "You have developers, engineers and iMacs of your own."

Personally I feel that inviting the end level consumer to take part in these tests only allows for more bugs to be reported to the end level consumer (Such as MacRumors.com patrons) and make Apple look bad. Truth of course is bugs happen. Hardware issues happen. Most people I don't think know that. But then again most people who read about it here probably do know that.

But then again Apple has....had quite a lot of bugs in the last 24 months. I'm still confused as to why no one at Apple is addressing why Spotlight constantly indexes hard drives. I've reinstalled several times throughout the year and each time it's still there.

From what I have been hearing this issue with the 2013 MacBook Airs might be hardware based. Which is disappointing since I was planning on buying one in the fall. Now I won't.

So you're both:
(a) pissed off that Apple won't fix hard-to-reproduce bugs. (I, for example, have multiple Macs and have no idea what you're talking about with this Spotlight re-indexing bug) AND
(b) pissed off when Apple actually DID try to fix these bugs by contacting you?

All right then...
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
johncrab Avatar
145 months ago
Mine works perfectly!
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
strausd Avatar
145 months ago
AppleSeed. Ha.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)