15" Air users did you opt for 35w dual charger or 70w single?

[thadoggfather]

I went with dual 35w but thats because I got an open box and that's what it came with.

I might have opted for faster charging 70w since not sure I'll use the dual ports often if at all, but on the 70w front a bit worried about battery degrading quicker possibly..

 

[axboi87]

I opted for the 35, but only because I have an array of fast chargers already, plus my docks at home and work are 90+watts and those two places in particular are where my laptop spends most of its time on a charger (and capped at 80% using the "Al Dente" app). The 35 makes a great couch-side charger and I have both a lightning and a USB-C hanging off of it, so it mostly charges my iPad and Phone (and it does those at full speed).

Now, if it were me, and the included charger was going to be my primary, I'd have opted for the 70w, but keep in mind there are some great (if not superior) after-market chargers like the Anker Prime series that are also great buys.

Also, I wouldn't worry too much about battery degradation, but if you are, use something like Al Dente to cap at 80%.

This thing still nets me about 8-10 good working hours using only ~40% battery (80->40) (low power mode, 50% brightness, 4 tabs in Chrome, 10 tabs in Edge + Zoom, Teams) + a smattering of Apple apps like messages, calendar, maps, photos, (and the rewind.ai app which is recording the screen and meeting audio the whole time!). I don't think it makes too much of a difference but I have a 16gb ram model.

 

[thadoggfather]

First I've heard of Al Dente app, thanks!

Home - AppHouseKitchen

It needs AlDente.

apphousekitchen.com

sounds intriguing, do I need the pro version or basic can cap to 80%? and good for battery health to stay docked there when plugged in or max 80%?

--

I think I can deal with the notch, but playing with TopNotch app also which is free and I like that one to hide notch from status bar

Also considering something like Bartender, but it's a $16 paid app, to manage status bar icons since its SO whack some icons just disappear behind the notch. how didd they not just make it continue on the other side of the notch? Lack of detail there is embarrassing and puzzling imo

 

[chrono1081]

Dual charger. The dual charger still charges very fast and I’d rather carry one plug that can charge multiple devices than one fast charge plug.

I usually use my dual charger to travel and it’ll also have my MagSafe duo plugged into it so everything gets charged and I dont’ have to connect extras to my computer to do it.

 

[svish]

Recently bought a 15" Air. Went with the 70W power adaptor.

 

[TurboJobo]

I have the 70W want to trade your 35W?

 

[DesmoPilot]

I'd take the stock one and buy a third party multi-port GaN charger anyway.

 

[arw]

sounds intriguing, do I need the pro version or basic can cap to 80%? and good for battery health to stay docked there when plugged in or max 80%?

- The Basic version of AlDente can limit charging while the MacBook and the app are running.
- "Stop charging when sleeping" and "Stop charging when powered off/app closed" require purchasing Pro.
- But "Stop charging when powered off" does not work on Apple Silicon Macs.
- The recommended capacity for storing Li-Io batteries is 40% to 50%. I have it set to 60% if I keep my MacBook in clamshell mode for several days.

 

[thadoggfather]

- The Basic version of AlDente can limit charging while the MacBook and the app are running.
- "Stop charging when sleeping" and "Stop charging when powered off/app closed" require purchasing Pro.
- But "Stop charging when powered off" does not work on Apple Silicon Macs.
- The recommended capacity for storing Li-Io batteries is 40% to 50%. I have it set to 60% if I keep my MacBook in clamshell mode for several days.

'Stop charging when sleeping,' keeping the lid open and screen turning off, and power plugged in -- it still stays docked at 80% on the basic version for me..

Is that different than 'when sleeping'?

 

[arw]

It is definitely a Pro feature.
Technically "display off / sleep" and "system sleep" are two different things but in recent versions of macOS' settings the line got blurred.
I can only assume you have either put the display to sleep manually and system sleep was not triggered or you have enabled the following to prevent system sleep even when the display turns off automatically:
Assuming Sonoma:
System Settings > Battery > Options > prevent automatic sleeping on power adapter when the display is off
Or, the Pro feature is temporarily unlocked during a trial period?

 

[thadoggfather]

It is definitely a Pro feature.
Technically "display off / sleep" and "system sleep" are two different things but in recent versions of macOS' settings the line got blurred.
I can only assume you have either put the display to sleep manually and system sleep was not triggered or you have enabled the following to prevent system sleep even when the display turned off automatically:
Assuming Sonoma:
System Settings > Battery > Options > prevent automatic sleeping on power adapter when the display is off
Or, the Pro feature is temporarily unlocked during the trial period?

I didn't think there was a trial period? odd

I am on Ventura too still 13.5.2

pretty sure the machine is off like asleep when this period runs up and not still running

 

[arw]

Sorry, can't explain it then. I concur, iirc "stop charging when sleeping" can't be toggled in the free version.
Perhaps check the battery again after an hour of sleep.

I will leave the respective setting for Ventura here anyway:
System Settings > Displays > Advanced > Energy > Prevent automatic sleeping when display is off

 

[thadoggfather]

Sorry, can't explain it then. I concur, iirc "stop charging when sleeping" can't be toggled in the free version.
Perhaps check the battery again after an hour of sleep.

I will leave the respective setting for Ventura here anyway:
System Settings > Displays > Advanced > Energy > Prevent automatic sleeping when display is off

not checked haha.

also it stays at 80% plugged in when in clamshell mode too iirc

 

[arw]

Just to make sure I understand correctly:
You did check the actual system battery percentage and not just the 80% charge limit (=target value) in AlDente's setting?

System Settings > Control Center > Battery > Show Percentage
or
Apple-Logo > System Information > Hardware > Power > State of Charge (%)

 

[thadoggfather]

Just to make sure I understand correctly:
You did check the actual system battery percentage and not just the 80% target value in AlDente?
The latter is the value you assign as target.

System Settings > Control Center > Battery > Show Percentage
or
Apple-Logo > System Information > Hardware > Power > State of Charge (%)

The first. Show percentage. Ya that one shows 80%

 

[arw]

The first. Show percentage. Ya that one shows 80%

Last thing to check: If enabled, Apple's own optimized charging feature that will also limit charging to 80% if its algorithm kicks in.

If battery charging is paused or on hold on your Mac - Apple Support

Use the battery status menu to resume charging if you need to have your Mac fully charged sooner.

support.apple.com

To test if AlDente actually works, you could then set a value lower than 80% and observe the behavior on your next charging cycle.

 

[thadoggfather]

Last thing to check: If enabled, Apple's own optimized charging feature that will also limit charging to 80% if its algorithm kicks in.

If battery charging is paused or on hold on your Mac - Apple Support

Use the battery status menu to resume charging if you need to have your Mac fully charged sooner.

support.apple.com

To test if AlDente actually works, you could then set a value lower than 80% and observe the behavior on your next charging cycle.

I turned off macOS native battery optimization and still docked to 80%

plus, I'd think it would periodically have topped up to 100% by now, since it doesn't always keep it at 80%, only periodically and runs it down periodically too with it enabled.

Good thought though!