When Apple launched the macOS in 2001, it was a smashing hit amongst developers and tech enthusiasts alike. The reason: it offered the ideal professional environment for developers to get cracking while also offering several applications that couldn’t run on its Windows OS counterpart. Based on the UNIX distribution, the mac also had better stability and lesser bugs as compared to Windows OS. Although the latest versions of Windows OS have caught up to Mac, we consider Mac to be the better OS in terms of features and ease of workflow.
On the portable computers or laptops aisle, a MacBook is still the perfect option for any work-related purpose. It has got several reasons to back up this claim: firstly, there are only a bunch of MacBooks released per year, which means that developers have to optimize their applications for a maximum of four variants of largely similar specifications, as compared to the Windows OS arena where dozens upon dozens of laptops with largely varying specifications are released every year!
Secondly, Mac OS allows for excellent integration and support for iPhones. You can even begin a video call on your MacBook and end it on your iPhone! The better cross-platform compatibility between iOS and macOS has been a boon to all developers as it’s exponentially easy to create applications for the iOS platform on a device that runs the macOS. Lastly, just like iPad and iPhones, MacBooks receive support for several years, which implies that if you decide to purchase a Macbook today, it’ll serve you well until 2026 and maybe even beyond.
Features of a built-in microphone
With more and more new technologies being integrated into portable laptops, it’s easy to ignore the ol’ reliable built-in microphone. Being built into the laptop makes cable management easier as there are no cables to manage and no fear of being entangled in a mess of wires. Sure, an external microphone for mac might give better audio input, but it’s also expensive.
Not to mention inbuilt microphones have become more than capable of capturing audio over the years and are capable of holding their ground against external microphones. Stay in a quiet room and align the microphone properly to the source of the sound, and the MacBook Pro microphone has got you covered. The question now becomes.
Where’s the MacBook Pro Microphone located?
The answer: it varies with the model and year of manufacture. In the earlier versions of the Macbook Pro, it was located at the top of the laptop’s screen – right next to the camera. The 13 inch MacBook Pro model released in 2017 had its microphone located on the bottom left corner, just above the ESC key, as it didn’t have any speaker grids.
On the other hand, most MacBook Pro models released after 2018 have their microphone located on the3 upper left corner of the keyboard. The latest models have microphones in yellow circles and speakers in red circles. To further complicate things, the latest versions of MacBooks have three built-in microphones: on the keyboard’s left side and around the speakers.
Troubleshooting the MacBook Pro Microphone-related issues
As with any other piece of hardware, the MacBook Pro isn’t infallible, and errors can rear their ugly head due to a number of reasons, including but not limited to: unsupported software, system freeze, or just some defect in the hardware. Worry not; we have compiled a list of microphone-related problems that might creep up when using your MacBook Pro.
Problem- The microphone doesn’t capture any audio when using Facetime
Solution-
- Head over to System Preferences.
- Click on Sound and then, the Input tab.
- You’ll notice a levels indicator that corresponds to the sound received by the microphone.
- Make sure that the in-built microphone shows up on the Audio tab.
Problem- The microphone picks up sound when tapping a finger on it or breathing over it; otherwise, it fails to detect any audio.
Solution- This problem occurs when the holes around the microphone are blocked. Although this may seem like a rudimentary fix, taking a thin needle and gently poking the holes around the microphone will eliminate this problem.
Problem- The microphone picks up audio, but none of the applications seem to accept any input from it.
Solution-
- Head to System Preferences.
- Click on Security and Privacy.
- Click on Privacy.
- Select Microphone from the sidebar.
- A list of applications that require the administrator’s permission to capture sound from the microphone will be visible.
- Click on the Padlock icon to make any changes to these permissions. You’ll require the admin password to make any changes.
- Enter it, and the setting will become available.
- Click on the checkmark to enable the application to use the microphone.
In case a particular application still doesn’t receive the input from the microphone, you’ll need external software like Audacity. Install it on your MacBook Pro and ensure that that the default recording device is set to your microphone.
If any of these aforementioned solutions do not work, try resetting the non-volatile ram (NVRAM) or parameter ram (PRAM). The procedure is slightly different depending on your model. On the latest MacBook Pro, take the following steps to reset NVRAM or PRAM:
- Turn off your MacBook Pro.
- Tap the power button.
- As the device boots up, press and hold the Cmd, P, R, and Option keys simultaneously. Do this before the grey screen appears on start-up.
- Keep holding them until the device boots up a second time.
- If your MacBook Pro is powered by a T2 security chip, keep holding all these keys until the Apple logo appears and disappears for the second time.
- Release them to rest the NVRAM.
Keep in mind that resetting the NVRAM removes several of your settings related to date, time, volume, keyboard, and mouse. Make sure that you create a copy of your settings elsewhere so that you can restore them after the laptop boots up.
