Has the wireless disconnect issue been solved yet?

Looking to purchase a MBP soon but I've heard of the dreaded wireless disconnection issue that's been plaguing that line since the introduction of Leopard and the latest Apple updates.

Have those issues been resolved yet?

I don't mind plugging in an Ethernet cable but when I work, it's wireless only. Which would pose a huge problem if the internet is cutting out every 30 seconds or so.

 

I have never experienced a disconnect since I got mine back in October. Even after a nasty fall everythings working fine and every WiFi connection I connected to I have never been disconnected from. So I'm going to say, yes it has been corrected a while ago.

 

Thanks for the quick reply.

Are you using a particular router or encryption system in order to avoid these issues?

I have a Linksys WRT54G at home and my work place employs a WPA2-encrypted network.

As much as I'm intrigued by the design of the MBP and OS X (I've always been a Windows guy before), I'd really hate to end up as a victim of this 200-post complaint thread that is readily growing by the day. [Last post = today]

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1352518&tstart=0

 

I've had no issues with wireless, other than the occasional (which happens many once a month, so no big deal considering I use WiFi daily for hours) .

 

Thanks for the feedback! Are you still using Tiger or have you upgraded to Leopard out of curiousity? (I was told the problem was predominantly in Leopard)

 

Oh! Well, I'm on Tiger . I don't have the cash to buy Leopard, unfortunately!

 

I've got a Linksys WRT54GS wireless router at home and I've got no problems with connectivity from it. Always a strong signal and stable connection, even when I'm down on the first floor of my townhouse (router is up in the 3rd floor computer room). The ONLY time I had connectivity issues was when I tried to go with an Airport Extreme Base Station. After a day and a half fiddling with that thing, I finally gave up and took it back to Best Buy

 

I still have a WRT54G downstairs. I guess I should ebay the thing since I replaced it but I never really liked it. It was supposed to filter web sites but it didn't work. I found a web site with 3rd party firmware but it doesn't support the v5 (the version I bought). So it's a dust collector until I find time to ebay it or put it out for a garage sale. I just replaced a netgear n router with a time capsule. The netgear worked (sort of) and was configurable via a web browser but I really like the way airport utility works so now I have at least 2 unused routers sitting in the basement looking for a home.

As for wireless disconnects, I'm not the person to ask because my Macbook is too new. But in the short time I've had it, I have never experienced any sort of outage, whether at home, at a hotspot or at a hotel.

I was pissed that MIA advertised what sounded like "free wifi" only to ask you for $9.95 one day use. False advertising!

 

I've done nothing in order to avoid the issue as this is the first time I'm hearing about it. At home I use a d-link with 802.11g with a WEP key on it, and I have no idea what my college or friends use for WiFi, but I never ran into trouble.

 

I don't know about the notebooks, but my iMac drops it's connections all the time.

It's not uncommon for it to spazz out like twice an hour.

I've got one of those black/blue Linksys routers that everyone seems to have.

 

I use a Linksys router too, and no probs with my MBP - on Leopard, before or after the update - dropping the wireless connection in my oddly constructed home. My Brother wireless printer on the other hand seems to be affected by the appliances around it and dropped the connection all the time, so I have it connected to my computer via an ad-hoc network, which works fine for me...

 

I used Tiger on my MBP and had no issues with my Linksys router. I had it from August till a few weeks ago and it worked perfectly. I also went to hotspots and my wife's parents place through wifi and had no issues.

 

Thanks for all the quick replies and reassurances

Ultimately, I decided against the MBP. I think the basic premise of wifi issues spooked me away as my workplace only offers wifi as a means of connecting to the Internet.

Sigh...I'd liken it to walking away from the smoking hot girl to go with the safer, slightly homelier one (Dell M1530)

 

Well you probably saved money, but FRAQ a Dell???

I have used wired when I first setup my macbook back in October. Since then I have been on nothing but wireless. At home its a Linksys N VPN router with open wireless since I have a large lot. For work I am an consultant so I go to all kinds of small companies and work on their IT enviroments, with all kinds of different WAP's. Never have I dropped once at home or on the road. I am on this thing 10 hours day during the week.

 

I have no problem with my wireless connection. I use wireless at school and wireless at home. My OS is leopard and the wireless connection is really fast.

 

Maybe too late for this reply but I've never had any issues with WiFi on my MBP. I use it wirelessly at work and home. I have a D-Link 2310 router at home and works great with macbooks.

I did find that my old macbook had better reception than my MBP probably due to the metallic casing on the pro but never had a dropped signal; is that what you're concerned about?

 

Hmm, perhaps not. Dell has been rather sluggish in processing my M1530 order which is making me reconsider the whole thing.

My concern isn't with the quality of the signal but the constant drops that are rumored. (To a smaller extent, I also worry about the rumored loss of wifi connection after the MBP is woken up from the sleep state)

(The hospital, admittedly cheap in many areas, somehow saw fit to stick a wireless router in every corner of every floor)

Glad to hear this isn't a systemic problem. It certainly seems to affect a lot of people (judging by the Apple Discussion boards) but there seems to be just as many people with a completely error-free system.

 

From what I recall, those MBP fitted with Broadcomm-based Airport cards are the ones that had issues with dropped signals. I myself is using a Atheros-based card on my SR MBP. So far had no problems with it.

 

I am concerned about this issue as well. Anyone else recently purchase a MBP and care to comment on this?

I'm almost exclusively wifi based and unlike many users, I cannot alter the routers which I come in contact with.

 

Well, I purchased my MBP in Oct/Nov of last year and I've been online many times via wireless (that's all I use) and I've never had a dropped connection...ever.

Yes, I'm running Leopard and using a Linksys Router at home (one with the G-Speedbooster). Actually, this is the first time I've heard about this issue. A lot of my friends have MBP's and none of them have reported this issue.

I've connected to various sources outside of my Linksys router too (I.E. Wireless network at airport, McDonalds, Starbucks, etc).

Good Luck.

 

its definitely the router, not your mac. unfortunately that router just kind of... well... sucks worse than i thought it would. get linux on that thing: do a search for wrt54g.

it made my connection much more stable.

 

I have also experienced these problems and have some suggestions that are working well for the computers here.

The info's at:
http://bbaadd.com/blog/2008/06/technology-macintosh-wifi-disconnect.html

cheers.
- jim

 

I'm using my 1Tb Time Capsule as my router right now. On leopard. No disconnects what so ever..

 

A number of wifi problems were addressed in the 10.5.3 update. Unless you are experiencing new issues, this thread is no longer valid.

 

My thread! I'd like to say the issue is definitely dead for me. I purchased my MBP nearly 2 months ago and it has been absolutely flawless (even without the update)

My campus has a notoriously crappy network and even at home, I use the trouble-plagued Linksys WRT54G router.

Zero connection problems. If it's any relief at all to prospective buyers out there, don't let wifi disconnect issues influence your purchase decision!

 

I can also confirm that the wireless issues with Mac OS X 10.5 are resolved. At first, when I was running Mac OS X 10.5.1 I would notice that the connection would drop every few minutes at a random interval, and it did not matter which channel or security settings I was using. This improved with 10.5.2, and finally resolved with the AirPort update that came out thereafter. I am now running Mac OS X 10.5.3 without any issues.

My network setup consists of the following:

- Linksys WRT300N v1 Router with DD-WRT v24 firmware
--- WPA2 Personal Encryption, MAC address filtering, running on channel 9 in 802.11 'G' mode only
- 15" MacBook Pro (Late 2007) running Mac OS X 10.5.3 (Wi-Fi)
- 15" HP Pavilion dv6345ca Notebook running Windows Vista Home Premium (Wi-Fi)
- Dell OptiPlex GX110 Desktop PC running Windows XP SP3 (ethernet)
- Dell Dimension 3000 Desktop PC running Windows XP SP3 (ethernet)
- Dell Dimension 3100 Desktop PC running Windows Server 2003 (ethernet)

 

My "Connection timeout" using WPA2 issue was not solved by 10.5.3..

 

whenever my mbp goes to sleep i lose the connection and can only get it back by restarting my router.

 

Each Leopard update has lessened the issue of wireless disconnects for me, to the point where 10.5.3 seems to have fixed it completely. Even in previous releases, a disconnect was so random and infrequent, it wasn't a big deal. For those still having issues, even on 10.5.3, you may want to think about changing your router. Go to your local brick & mortar store so you could return it easily. If you're still having issues, then maybe it's time to call Apple and see if they can repair or replace your system.

I'm using a D-Link DGL-4300 router with WPA2 and no connectivity issues with my MBP, my Vista desktop PC with a Hawking USB wireless adapter, or my wife's HP DV6105 notebook.

 

Running Tomato on my WRT54G on 10.5.2, no problems (Penryn MBP purchased in April)

Upgraded from WRT54G to 1 TB Time Capsule on 10.5.3, no problems (same MBP).