We discovered a graphics performance issue when feed ourSpeedmark 6.5benchmark test retinue on a MacBook Air with the 10.6.7 update establish . We had updated the OS from 10.6.4 to 10.6.7 using thecombo updater , a big download that does n’t require the late update ( 10.6.6 in this case ) to be installed . We find that the 11 - inch 1.4GHz Core 2 Duo MacBook Air ’s Call of Duty scores dropped from 37 frames per moment to 9.2 Federal Protective Service . Cinebench R11.5 ’s OpenGL sexual conquest also precipitate sharply from an 11 to 1.8 .
When the 10.6.4 update was reinstalled on the MacBook Air , the laptop computer maintained the 37 Federal Protective Service antecedently recorded on Call of Duty . With the 10.6.6 update installed , the MacBook Air ’s Call of Duty results remained at 37 fps . When the MacBook Air with 10.6.6 was updated to 10.6.7 , the slower results reappeared .
The 13 - inch 1.86GHz Core 2 Duo MacBook Air exhibited the same behavior , with Call of Duty physique rates slowing from 40.3 Federal Protective Service to 9.2 fps , and Cinebench ’s OpenGL grievance go down from 13.1 to 1.8 .
We also test the mid-2009 MacBook Air and the late exhaust 13 - inch MacBook Pro , and found that 3D art performance was not affected on those Macs .
We deal our findings with Apple , but we did not receive an official comment .
In perspective
How many masses are using MacBook Airs for 3D secret plan toy or for 3D cognitive content creation ? I ’d venture to guess that we ’re talking about a very small group . And thankfully , other app tests showed no performance debasement after installing 10.6.7 .
Still , we call up its worth knowing that if you own a mid-2010 MacBook Air , installing the 10.6.7 update may result in an undesirable decrease in the system ’s graphics carrying into action . We will continue to monitor this issue .
[ James Galbraith is Macworld ’s science laboratory director . ]
