SERIOUS problem with MacBook Pro M2 SSDs

The base 256GB hard drive models of the new 13-inch MacBook Pros equipped with Apple's M2 processor are suffering from a huge performance issue when comparing hard drive performance to their same previous model that comes equipped with the M1. MacBook Pros with M2 have a drop in SSD performance of up to 98% in read and 50% in write, not to mention the fact that now in demanding tasks the processor can exceed 100 degrees Celsius, which it will maintain more or less constantly as the fans to cool the processor take a long time to activate.

The heating problem can be solved to some extent by adjusting the operating curve of the fans so that they come into action earlier, although it seems that M2 processors work at a higher temperature than M1 processors. Even with the adjustment of the fans the computers will ultimately run hotter than the predecessors which in itself is not a bad thing, but it is worth highlighting, as the 13-inch MacBook Pros have active cooling. That makes me doubt how will be the performance of the M2 inside the new MacBook Air that are about to be released, since its cooling method is passive and if the new M2 processor operates with higher temperatures it will be practically mandatory to lower its performance to be able to cool it with the passive method used by the MacBook Air.

Now, the SSD problem is already more serious, as it is a physical problem that cannot be corrected simply by adjusting parameters within the operating system as is done in the case of the fans. Basically the base 256GB SSD versions now bring a single chip with the full capacity, in previous models equipped with the M1 processor the 256GB of SSD were spread over two chips. Let's say that each chip works as an independent unit in terms of its data transfer bus and by adding more chips these maximum transfer capacities are added which means that we have higher speeds when reading and writing data. To make it more understandable, although it is not exactly the same, it would be like having a raid of hard disks, but instead of being independent hard disks, they are chips.

Some youtubers on social networks want to minimize the problem by indicating that it is something that will not be noticeable with the daily use of the machine, but it should be noted that those MacBook Pro base model mostly are purchased in its 8GB RAM version which will inevitably end up falling short and the operating system will make use of the SSD to extend the RAM capacity. Having a SSD with worse performance is obvious the end result, the whole operating system will be affected by the bottleneck caused by the SSD. All this can be avoided to some extent by buying the version with 16GB of RAM, but it is ironic that the same MacBook Pro version with the M1 has better performance without the need to put more RAM simply by splitting the 256GB of SSD into two chips.

It is important to note that the technology press that received the new 13-inch MacBook Pro in advance for reviews ended up getting the version equipped with 1TB SSD and 16GB of RAM in a very convenient way. Obviously the larger the SSD the more storage chips it will have soldered on the motherboard and will make it impossible to have the performance drawback that models with 256GB SSD have.

All images courtesy of Created Tech's video on Youtube https://youtu.be/QmIcFWu0US0