Throwing my MacBook Pro Out The Window - What should I get to replace it?

Hi All,

I LOVE Zwift. But here I am once again missing a ride because of MacBook bluetooth issues. I’m done with my MacBook. What should I get to replace it? For those of you running Zwift on an iPad, do you have the same pairing issues?

3…2…1…go!

I use a $20 ANT+ dongle with a Mac. Have you tried that already?

For a Zwift specific piece of hardware I’d go for a basic mid-tower PC with fast single core CPU performance and Nvidia GPU.

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Never had an issue with bluetooth pairing Stages and 4iiii power meters and Wahoo HRM with an iPod, 2 x iPads and an Macbook M1.

It’s possible the Macbook isn’t the problem here.

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I haven’t tried the ANT+ dongle so I’ll take a look. Thanks for the tip!

I would ordinarily agree that the MacBook isn’t the problem but in the Zwift bug documentation it specifically addresses a BLE module issue with documentation on how to reset it. There are times it has been a quick fix and others when I’ve had to reset it multiple times to get it to work. But don’t you worry, I promise that I won’t actually throw my MacBook out the window. I have neighbors :slight_smile:

Get one with an extension cable so you can put it close to the transmitters. I use this one. No driver needed.

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What year-model is your MacBook? Some models of MacBook Airs a few years ago had connectivity issues due to the locations of the Bluetooth and Wi-Fi antennas in the lid.

An alternative is to consider an AppleTV. I went that route so I didn’t have to move my docked MacBook around all the time.

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That’s not limited to MacBook Airs. MacBook Pros had this issue as well. The antennae placement of the two resulted in interference and in some instances connectivity issues when simultaneously using Bluetooth and wifi.

I had a MacBook Pro where the only time this really became apparent was when Zwifting. I could listen to music over wireless bluetooth earbuds and use a wireless mouse while surfing the net over wifi w/out issues. But if I were using Zwift, the issues were obvious.

Solution was a Garmin ANT+ dongle w/extension cable, disabling the laptop Bluetooth while Zwifting, and streaming music from my iPhone.