Macbook Air Battery =(

[jack2wai2]

Hi all. MY MBA 2011 just celebrated its 1-year-old b'day. What I can say is that I always glad that I made the decision to buy this.

However, just gone through 109 cycles, the battery health dropped to 87%. Is it a normal thing to happen? It kind of bother me because my MBA is on the go laptop for me.

Any comment or help are much appreciated.

[simsaladimbamba]

Battery health fluctuates, my 2009 MBP now has over 400 cycles and I went from 99% to 93% to 87% and now 94% (or 91% today) battery health.

______________________________________________________
This should answer most, if not all, of your battery questions:
Apple Notebook Battery FAQ by GGJstudios
The F.A.Q. includes the following topics:

• BATTERY INFORMATION
• BATTERY LIFE FROM A CHARGE
• AC POWER
• CALIBRATION
• BATTERY LIFESPAN
• CHECKING STATUS AND HEALTH
• CHARGING
• WHAT IS A CYCLE?
• BATTERIES ARE NOT COVERED
• BULGING OR SWELLING BATTERY

______________________________________________________

[skinny*k]

Jack, any software that reports “battery health” is only making guesstimates, and they are meant to give you some rough idea of the state of your battery; don’t worry until the numbers are consistantly real low.

That said, LiPo batteries begin to break-down as soon as they are first charged-up, and can be expected to become unusable anytime after 3 to 5 years. The best that you can do to get maximum life and performance out of them use them properly, and take care of them as the manufacturers recommend.

If using your MBA away from a power source is critical to you, an external battery is something that you might give some thought to—it will also pay off when circumstances simply don’t allow a recharge, where a battery problem is not the cause.

[HarryWarden]

Is it possible to run a MBA off an external battery all the time, such as in the case of when the internal battery dies/needs replacing?

Also, that seems like a lot of cycles for one year. I had a MBP for 4 years and didn't even reach 270 cycles.

[AlanShutko]

Originally Posted by HarryWarden

Also, that seems like a lot of cycles for one year. I had a MBP for 4 years and didn't even reach 270 cycles.

Depends on how often you use your computer on batteries. I have a 2012 MBA from release and I've already got 164 cycles. (I am rarely plugged in at home. Right now, I'm sitting on the couch with no cord in sight.)

[jack2wai2]

Originally Posted by AlanShutko

Depends on how often you use your computer on batteries. I have a 2012 MBA from release and I've already got 164 cycles. (I am rarely plugged in at home. Right now, I'm sitting on the couch with no cord in sight.)

Alan, may I know current battery health?

[yangchewren]

Originally Posted by jack2wai2

Hi all. MY MBA 2011 just celebrated its 1-year-old b'day. What I can say is that I always glad that I made the decision to buy this.

However, just gone through 109 cycles, the battery health dropped to 87%. Is it a normal thing to happen? It kind of bother me because my MBA is on the go laptop for me.

Any comment or help are much appreciated.

It is normal. I would say that I have noticed that battery health on all unibody integrated battery macs (2009 MBP onwards) degrade much quicker across time. This is sharply contrasted to my older macs which registered 90%+ battery life after 200 charge cycles.

Back to the topic: I have a 2011 MBA at 117 battery cycles, 16 mths with 89% health.

[skinny*k]

Originally Posted by HarryWarden

Is it possible to run a MBA off an external battery all the time, such as in the case of when the internal battery dies/needs replacing?

Yes.

[xparaparafreakx]

Originally Posted by HarryWarden

Is it possible to run a MBA off an external battery all the time, such as in the case of when the internal battery dies/needs replacing?

Also, that seems like a lot of cycles for one year. I had a MBP for 4 years and didn't even reach 270 cycles.

Doesn't seem that much to me.

[AlanShutko]

Originally Posted by jack2wai2

alan, may i know current battery health?

91%.

[jack2wai2]

Originally Posted by skinny*k

Jack, any software that reports “battery health” is only making guesstimates, and they are meant to give you some rough idea of the state of your battery; don’t worry until the numbers are consistantly real low.

That said, LiPo batteries begin to break-down as soon as they are first charged-up, and can be expected to become unusable anytime after 3 to 5 years. The best that you can do to get maximum life and performance out of them use them properly, and take care of them as the manufacturers recommend.

If using your MBA away from a power source is critical to you, an external battery is something that you might give some thought to—it will also pay off when circumstances simply don’t allow a recharge, where a battery problem is not the cause.

My battery health went back to 89% d lol
Couldn't be happier. But, I wish seeing it at 90%

[oldtime]

Originally Posted by xparaparafreakx

Doesn't seem that much to me.

Above 80% is pretty awesome for a 5 year old battery with 1718 cycles. I guess they really do hold up better with regular exercise.