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A video game drains my battery even when plugged in!

V

voltare

macrumors member
Original poster
May 26, 2008
85
0
Hey Guys. I've been playing Starcraft 2. I played first in Leopard but the performance was no good unless graphics were set to low. Even then, it was only just playable. So I switched to XP. Gameplay on medium graphics is great in XP. I've noticed that even though my Macbbok Pro is plugged in to the wall, it drains the battery. Last night I played so long that the computer shut down after the battery ran out of juice. Anyone know what's going on here?

Specs: Macbook Pro 2.4, 256MB 9600GT, 2GB of ram (I have 4GB coming in the mail.) Leopard fully updated. Windows XP fully updated. I am plugged into the wall, not a surge protector.

Anybody else having this issue? The weird thing is I've played plenty of other games with no problems.
 
Sure you haven't swapped adapter with a macbook or macbook pro 13 inch?

The adapter you should have is 85w (4.6A 18.5V), and the Macbook adapter is 60w (don't remember the specs, but should be around 3.3A 18.5V).

With a Macbook adapter you'll drain the battery on maximum loads.
 
When you're doing something intensive such as gaming, the MBP may use more power than what the MagSafe adapter can provide. The CPU is 35W, 9600M GT is 23W, 9400M is 12W (yes, it will draw power even though you used 9600M GT as it has North- and Southbridge in it), few watts for HD and RAM plus the logic board, screen.... Bright backlight seems to draw fairly a lot of power as it directly impacts the battery life when running on battery.
 
Wow. Cluthz, I think you hit the nail on the head. I visited a friend in March and she had a macbook. I think we switched! Output says: 16.5V 3.65A.

Can anyone with a macbook confirm that these are the output numbers on a macbook adapter?
 
If it's connected to a computer it might be that it's not getting enough power from the usb
 
Also, will it hurt her macbook to use the MBP adapter? She lives very far away and I can just pick up an adapter locally.
 
voltare said:
Also, will it hurt her macbook to use the MBP adapter? She lives very far away and I can just pick up an adapter locally.
Click to expand...
This does not pose a problem, according to Apple.

Apple Portables: Troubleshooting MagSafe adapters
2. the appropriate power adapter for your Apple portable computer. You can use a higher wattage power adapter, but you cannot use one with less wattage without potential operating issues.​
 
If your friend is close enough to get to, you might want to try and swap back!

I just bought a "2nd" Power Adapter to keep at work and they are not cheap. I think it was like $85 + Tax etc...
 
3000 miles :(

I've been checking out ebay. Most don't have actual pictures of the magsafes they are selling. Just a description that it is used and it will work. That sounded reasonable until I saw this one...

http://cgi.ebay.com/APPLE-MacBook-P...s_Chargers&hash=item3cb06cf3fe#ht_1065wt_1139

It says it is an original Apple part. Check out the extension cord part of the picture. Only 2 prongs! This would be a fake, right?

So I am just going to buy a new one local. I can get it for $79 with no tax.
 
That's normal. When running at maximum (even with the 85W adapter) the power adapter cannot supply enough power, the battery is used. I've played games for a day and seen my battery go down 10% plugged in.
 
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