Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Average Battery Life
- Thread starter insan56
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I get around 3.75 hours on my iBook. It really helps turning things like the airport off. Also turning down the processor.
tfaz1 said:
Lucky you! My Powerbook (purchased at the beginning of June 2004) only holds a 2 hour charge
My 1.42ghz 14" iBook G4 holds about 4.5 hours of battery life on a full charge. This is with BT off and the screen brightness minus 3 blocks of being full.
I think some people here are getting a little carried away with how long they think their battery lasts. Fist thing, NEVER trust what the computer says in terms of hours left; it changes rapidly depending on what you're doing. So the time you see on the batt menu is assuming that you're going to be doing that and only that task till the battery dies (which is unlikely). If it was right, then my PB 17" has a 6:30 battery [which it doesn't]. The only thing that is correct is the percentage left.
For those who claimed outrageous battery life, use a stop watch. There is no way a PB 15" [which has the worst batt of all] is going to get 3 1/2 batt [with full brightness and airport]. Not when apple claims "up to" 4 1/2 (with everything on minimum)
For those who claimed outrageous battery life, use a stop watch. There is no way a PB 15" [which has the worst batt of all] is going to get 3 1/2 batt [with full brightness and airport]. Not when apple claims "up to" 4 1/2 (with everything on minimum)
iBook G4 800MHz with full screen brightness, AirPort on and under medium-light use (word processing, browsing, music) I still get at least 4.5 hours of battery life. It's not the original battery though, the original was faulty and replaced under warrantee and is about one and a half years old.
Yeah, I suggest using a watch when you time things like this.
Also, mention what iBook (12" or 14") it is. Otherwise, all this talk is useless.
Another thing to think about is how people charge and use their iBooks/PBs. Some people still drain the battery completely before recharging, which is just a big no-no in the Lithium-Ion world that we live in today.
Also, mention what iBook (12" or 14") it is. Otherwise, all this talk is useless.
Another thing to think about is how people charge and use their iBooks/PBs. Some people still drain the battery completely before recharging, which is just a big no-no in the Lithium-Ion world that we live in today.
mad jew said:Yeah, apart from once every month or so, that's very good advice.
I was reading on this forum a while ago that, say you drained your battery 10% ten times a month that is considered a cycle as its 100%. As long as a cycle is reached each month i don't think you have to drain the battery every month.
DeSnousa said:
That's really interesting. I've heard similar stuff but Apple's battery site still asks for regular calibration.
insan56 said:
That's "claimed" battery life which is always very different from actual battery life. When mine was new, I probably got close to a little over five hours.
mad jew said:
Yeah, I think it's interesting, but I still say stick with the drain from full to empty once a month so that your battery management software knows what top and bottom are. Do so after every 20 uses on battery.
And don't bother trying to understand "complete charge cycles." It's all bullspit. Your battery will get 300-500 complete charge cycles. In other words.....they don't know. All I (and Mad Jew) can tell you is that you should do a full calibration once in a while, and do NOT drain the battery to empty before charging your battery (except once a month, or after 20 uses on battery power). These aren't Nickel-Cadmium batteries, and it's not 1991.