13" MBP "service battery" message

[wordsinhaled]

i have a 13" mid-2012 MBP running mavericks, and today it started to give me the "service battery" message in the battery drop-down menu. before this message appeared i hadn't really noticed anything out of the ordinary with my MBP's charging tendencies (i did get a new power adapter recently, as my old one's cord frayed and it died on me). the warranty on my MBP is obviously expired so i don't really want to take it in to apple unless i have to... i checked my battery info in system information and it lists the following:

Charge Information:
Charge Remaining (mAh): 645
Fully Charged: No
Charging: Yes
Full Charge Capacity (mAh): 4383
Health Information:
Cycle Count: 907
Condition: Service Battery

i've read all different things about cycle counts and such but i still can't really understand what all this means. can i continue to use my mac with the battery as it is if it says "service battery" or will it die on me if i don't do anything about this? what is a "normal" or good charge capacity/charge remaining number, and how does mine compare?

 

[duervo]

i have a 13" mid-2012 MBP running mavericks, and today it started to give me the "service battery" message in the battery drop-down menu. before this message appeared i hadn't really noticed anything out of the ordinary with my MBP's charging tendencies (i did get a new power adapter recently, as my old one's cord frayed and it died on me). the warranty on my MBP is obviously expired so i don't really want to take it in to apple unless i have to... i checked my battery info in system information and it lists the following:



i've read all different things about cycle counts and such but i still can't really understand what all this means. can i continue to use my mac with the battery as it is if it says "service battery" or will it die on me if i don't do anything about this? what is a "normal" or good charge capacity/charge remaining number, and how does mine compare?

Your battery is toast and needs to be replaced.

It can only be charged up to ~13% of its original capacity ... That's not good.

Failure to replace it can eventually lead to the battery swelling and causing physical damage to the system.

 

[KUguardgrl13]

Your battery is toast and needs to be replaced.

It can only be charged up to ~13% of its original capacity ... That's not good.

Failure to replace it can eventually lead to the battery swelling and causing physical damage to the system.

Basically this. And I feel like this is a little soon for that to happen. I got the service battery warning in my mid-2009 just last year. It had 400 cycles maybe? I'd take it in to Apple and see if they'll give you a new battery. You should still be getting decent battery life.

 

[MarvinHC]

Sorry to jump on this thread but I have a similar question:

My 2012 13" CMBP also gives the 'service battery' question, has about 600 cyclces and 4500mAh capacity.

I have no more warranty/Apple Care.

Any chance Apple would replace that one free of charge? Anybody any experience with Apple's policy on such an issue?

I opened the case and it does not look bloated.

 

[maflynn]

My 2012 13" CMBP also gives the 'service battery' question, has about 600 cyclces and 4500mAh capacity.

I have no more warranty/Apple Care.

Any chance Apple would replace that one free of charge? Anybody any experience with Apple's policy on such an issue?

I opened the case and it does not look bloated.

No chance, Apple will not replace the battery on a 2 year old laptop.

 

[MarvinHC]

No chance, Apple will not replace the battery on a 2 year old laptop.

Thanks for the clear (but disappointing) answer.

 

[Samuelsan2001]

907 charge cycles

That battery has doen 907 charge cycles and apple claim it should be good for 1000. It may well be worth asking if apple will change it for you, if not then it is going to cost. To be honest though that is still a pretty good return on any laptop battery.

 

[funwithdesign]

Your battery is toast and needs to be replaced.

It can only be charged up to ~13% of its original capacity ... That's not good.

Failure to replace it can eventually lead to the battery swelling and causing physical damage to the system.

Sorry but this is not correct at all.

645 mAh is just the charge remaining, not the current capacity. The new capacity of your battery is about 5500-5800 mAh so yours at 4382 is certainly not 13%.

To the OP. Download the app, Coconut Battery. This will tell you what the actually battery health you have. Anything below about 80% triggers the service battery message. It could also go away. My 13 macbook pro hovered around 78% health for a long time and then it went to 80% and the message is gone.

You are fine. At some point you will need a new battery but it's not as bad as it sounds.

 

[Anitramane]

That battery has doen 907 charge cycles and apple claim it should be good for 1000. It may well be worth asking if apple will change it for you, if not then it is going to cost. To be honest though that is still a pretty good return on any laptop battery.

This. Apple says it’s good for 1 000.
Here’s a apple document covering it: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1519

 

[Altemose]

This. Apple says it’s good for 1 000.
Here’s a apple document covering it: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1519

Apple states that the battery should last 300 cycles and be at 80% provided the battery is in proper working order. Clearly OP's battery has reached the end of its service life soon and will need to be replaced. In my experience however, the Service Battery Warning will only be triggered when the battery reaches under 80% of its capacity. My 2012 MacBook Pro sometimes shows Service Battery then normal depending on how I have been treating it.

 

[maflynn]

This. Apple says it’s good for 1 000.
Here’s a apple document covering it: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1519

It states maximum, not guaranteed. 1,000 is what some people can receive not all. Clearly, after using it for 2 years, the OP cannot expect apple to consider this a defective component and replace it for free. I wish they would because my laptop is 2.5 years old and at some point in the future I'll be receiving the same message.