When the Wi-Fi menu icon is dimmed on the menu bar of a Mac, it generally means that the Wi-Fi is turned on but the Mac is not connected to any wireless network. This state indicates that the Mac's wireless adapter is detected and active, but it is not currently associated with a Wi-Fi network, so no connection has been established yet.
More specifically:
- The Wi-Fi hardware is recognized and turned on.
- The Mac is not connected to a Wi-Fi network, which could be because no network has been chosen or because the Mac cannot connect.
- It is different from Wi-Fi being fully off (which usually shows a different icon or a slash through it).
- Sometimes it can also indicate issues like network settings corruption, driver conflicts, or problems after a system update if the Wi-Fi icon stays dimmed with no available networks.
In summary, a dimmed Wi-Fi menu means Wi-Fi is active but disconnected from any networks.
