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richard371

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Feb 1, 2008
3,598
1,789
I am really frustrated. My first air had serious battery problems where it took over 10 hours to charge. I tried the battery condition etc and pram resets and it didn't help. I took it to the genius bar and they also noticed when you plug it in it says it says 10 hours to charge. They agreed there was a problem and replaced the unit.

I got the second air home plugged it in and it was at about 80% After about 90 mins it charged fully. I took it off the ac power and used it until the batt ran completely down. I left it off and plugged it in about 11 pm. I woke up at 7am noticed the charge light was still amber and turned on the air and it was at 75%

I am a network engineer and a desktop support technician before that, I have dealt with many PCs and macs and have never seen anything like this. I like this computer but just dont feel good if i have to replace it for a third one.

I am going to give it through the weekend to see if the battery sorts out or if some sort of fix comes out but if not i am going to speak with a store manager and demand a full refund with no restock fee. i just got a macbook black last week and was going to return it but the air is so much more pleasent to use in the screen is awesome but the macbook has no problems.
 

ctt1wbw

macrumors 68000
Jan 17, 2008
1,730
2
Seaford VA
Maybe you got some units that were made on a Friday afternoon or something. I got my unit yesterday afternoon and it didn't take long at all for the battery to fully charge, maybe 20 minutes or so.
 

ahaxton

macrumors 6502a
Jan 17, 2008
552
0
When the adapter is still showing amber and still not showing up as completely charged, it worked for me, unplug adapter, shut down, plug adapter back in and turn mba back on. It might need a little kick start to display correctly.

I had at one point 8 hours to charge then all of a sudden 2 hours to charge.

Not a big deal.
 

drchipinski

macrumors 6502
Jul 12, 2007
320
1
I have no patience for these types of issues...I would return it, get ALL your money back and wait until these "issues" are fixed.
 

kyleen66

macrumors regular
Jan 29, 2008
101
0
That is not an excuse to develop or produce poor quality products. (I am not saying the AIR is poor quality, but too many issues are not acceptable)

Often, a lot of specific issues don't appear until the units are out being used by the general population rather than in the testing enviroments. First Gen of ANYTHING tends to have some issues that need tweaking.

My point is that that if you buy something that is cutting edge, you do have to be prepared for things that may need "fixing" with a "hack" and that it isn't necessarily "lame."
 

ahaxton

macrumors 6502a
Jan 17, 2008
552
0
To be honest I think the Air is darn good for first gen and at that a whole new kind of machine for Apple. The issues some people have talked about look very much so software related. That stuff can be tweaked by Apple.
 

ddd269

macrumors regular
Jun 5, 2007
138
0
Torrance, CA
I have no patience for these types of issues...I would return it, get ALL your money back and wait until these "issues" are fixed.

Like another member posted... It is the price you pay for being "cutting-edge". You also have to understand that, this is an isolated incident. So many MBAs out there and so few problems. I think the ratio of problem units versus no-problem units are very good. I for one, don't have any problems worth mentioning, which is much better than anything that you can buy, whether it's a computer, toaster or a cordless phone. How many things you buy now-a-days are "problem-free"?

Apple is one of the best quality-driven manufacturers out there and I have never been disappointed with their products (Going back to my first computer - Apple IIe - 1985)

Another point I would like to make... If you wait until "every thing" is fixed, you'll always drive last year's model. I guess for some people, that's ok.
 

SCMedic

macrumors regular
Feb 8, 2008
193
41
The squeaky wheel is always the loudest....


This applies to people complaining as well. You'll always hear the complaints more than the praise...
 

mattaz02

macrumors member
Feb 9, 2008
58
8
Phoenix, AZ
Ironic

I am on My second Macbook air also. i had the same exact problem as you. It took 10 hours to charge the battery. My new one seems to be ok now, but who knows. I still love the computer and It's my first mac. Apple support is awesome.
 

steve31

macrumors 6502a
Jul 20, 2007
940
72
Edmonton Canada
I had the same problems here.:( 10 hrs to charge. I have tried everything.:confused: So I gave up and returned my Macbook air and went back to the blk MB for my portable needs. I really loved the macbook air but I cant wait for another fix for this problem. Also the truth is I found the lack of a dvd drive and small hard drive did not meet my needs.:( I was to impulsive with this purchase! Its still a great notebook and I will miss the excellent led screen and backlit keyboard the most. So good luck to you I am positive apple will work this problem out in time.;):D
 
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