firmware

Last week Apple issued a firmware update for its entire Thunderbolt-supporting Mac lineup, which was intended to address some stability problems when using Macs in Target Disk mode. While the update works as intended for the majority of systems, a few have encountered problems, either applying the update or not being able to recognize Thunderbolt drives after updating.

If you are unable to install the update, you should first make sure that your system is one of the Thunderbolt-based Macs for which the update is intended. While Apple's Software Update service should limit the update's availability only to … Read more

Apple has released a firmware update for the Thunderbolt controllers in its Mac systems, which should address problems with using Target Disk Mode to mount a Mac's internal drive on another system as an external drive. Target Disk Mode is commonly used for troubleshooting hard-drive function, or when migrating data to a new Mac.

The update is a 1.22MB download that can be obtained by running the Software Update service in OS X (in the Apple menu), or by downloading it from Apple's Support Downloads Web site and applying it manually.

Though small, the update contains firmware … Read more

First announced in October 2012, version 1.2.1 of the Canon EOS 5D Mark III firmware will allow users to output a clean HDMI feed. One of the key disadvantages up until now for the Mark III has been the extra information that is output alongside the Live View image when using HDMI out, which made the footage unusable for actual recording purposes.

The update allows users to record uncompressed (YCbCr 4:2:2, 8 bit) video to an external recorder or display it on an external monitor during filming. This puts the Mark III in line with several … Read more

Apple has released its third update for OS X Mountain Lion, bringing the latest version of the software to 10.8.3 after over three months of development. Along with a number of bug fixes for problems users have been experiencing in 10.8.2 and earlier, the new version adds a couple of new features.

The first is that Mac users can now redeem iTunes gift cards using an iSight camera. Now if you take a snapshot of the card in the Mac App Store you can have the system identify its number and redeem it instead of having … Read more

Passware Inc. is a forensics security company that develops investigation software kits to reveal passwords on seized computers. Last year it released a version of its kit that allows an investigator to reveal the passwords of Apple's FileVault encryption technology, along with those for similar technologies such as TrueCrypt, PGP Disk, and BitLocker. Recently the kit has gained more features and now has the ability to snoop through a system's hibernation file for Google and Facebook account passwords.

The Passware snooping technology works by accessing a system's memory either through a port that has direct memory access (… Read more

9to5Mac is reporting an issue involving Apple's AirPort utility and Time Capsule updates released last week. A number of Mac users who use IPv6-based tunneling to connect to their devices have found they can no longer do so after installing the latest firmware and updates to their AirPort and Time Capsule devices.

This problem mirrors similar past issues with firmware updates on Apple's router devices, and is likely from a small configuration bug in the firmware. Unfortunately the issue likely can only be fixed with a supplemental update. In the meantime, if you use IPv6 tunneling and are … Read more

Apple has released a set of EFI firmware updates to address a rare problem where some systems might unexpectedly shut down or stop functioning after the battery has been used extensively.

Apple's determines battery health in part by the number of charge cycles it has been through (one charge cycle being a sum of partial charges that equates to one full charge), and depending on the system claims that batteries should last between 300 and 1,000 charge cycles. However, a rare problem in some systems might result in a nonfunctional computer if the system detects that 1,000 … Read more

Along with its new lineup of cheaper, truncated Thunderbolt cables, Apple has issued a small firmware update for its mid-2012 MacBook Air notebooks. The update primarily addresses two problems, the first of which is a freeze that can happen when unplugging Thunderbolt devices on standby, while the second is an improper boot in Windows.

The update is a small 4.67MB download that should be available if you choose Software Update from the Apple menu, but can also be downloaded separately from the Apple support Web page.

When installed, the EFI ROM on the system will have the version string … Read more

Some Mac users are finding that some of the latest MacBook systems from Apple are sometimes showing drastic drops in graphics performance, which are particularly notable when playing graphically intensive applications like video games.

While at first launching the game will show the expected smooth performance, it may suddenly drop to a very low frame rate and be essentially unplayable. Usually when systems drop to low frame rates it suggests they are being overworked for some reason and are struggling to make the computations necessary for smooth gameplay, and as a result will usually be relatively hot as the graphics … Read more