Battery Cycles

[kaicrawf]

Okay, so I know how battery cycles and all that work. What I want to know is:

• How many cycles your battery has
• How old your battery is
• How many mAh your MacBook shipped with
• How many mAh you have now

I was reading a thread on a different site about MacBook batteries and everyone was commenting with their battery info. Most of them were commenting saying they reached about 120 cycles per year. One guy said his Mac was 3 years old with just over 250 cycles (avg. 83 a year). I think the person with the most had about 400 after 2 years. In 'System Information' it says the age of my MacBook is 3 months old (when it arrived it said it was 1 months old, I've had it for 2 months) and I already have 98 cycles, am I using too many cycles?

I'm only asking because I realised that Apple say that their batteries are more or less useless at holding a charge after 1000 cycles and if I'm averaging about 100 every 2 months that gives me like 1.7 years until my MacBook is more or less a desktop... This to me seems very poor as all my previous Windows laptops I owned lasted about that long and I would expect a lot more from a machine over £1k. (I have been told the batteries in the newer MacBooks are glued in place and replacing the battery is a hard job and would cost lots of money, mistake me if I'm wrong).

Another thing, my MacBook shipped with 6300mAh capacity and after 2 months and 98 cycles it is down to 5500mAh? I have heard it fluctuates but I didn't think it would go far enough to take off 800mAh...

If I left my Mac plugged in for longer amounts of times, it would use less cycles. Is this bad for the battery? I leave my iPhone in overnight but I don't think I would with my laptop. I have heard people say that it wrecks your battery keeping it plugged in after you've reached 100% even if you're still using it, can I get a second opinion? (I personally thing that's a load of crap but I'm just so paranoid about my battery) I normally charge it to 100% and then leave it in for like another hour or so to let it "Trickle Charge".

I know I've only had my Mac for 2 months and I probably sound really annoying because I am new, I'm just paranoid about battery stuff. Mainly because of the fact I'm 17 and I've saved up for this for years, I'd hate to think for a second that it was a waste of money, yano? (I don't, I'm in love with it at the moment).

Any advice is appreciated, thank you

 

[Matheew944]

My ipad 4 has 2 years old and I did 90 cycles Battery Mah -11600
iphone 6 plus - 23 cycles, bought it 3 months ago Battery Mah -2900

 

[BrettApple]

For what it's worth.

2005 12" iBook G4:

Late 2013 bought in July 2014 13" MacBook Pro with Retina:


Funny how a decade old iBook has less cycles than my 6 month old rMBP.

Rest of the MacBooks I've had:
Mid 2007 MacBook Pro - battery was shot last year, sold.
Early 2008 MacBook - replaced w/OWC batt, sold
Late 2008 MacBook - replaced w/OWC batt, brother has it w/50 cycles
Late 2008 MacBook Pro - sold
Early 2009 MacBook - bought for cousin, still ~3 hours at 350+ cycles
Mid 2009 MacBook Pro - upstairs somewhere
Mid 2010 MacBook Pro - ex GF has it, 500+ cycles?
Mid 2010 MacBook Pro - sold, under 200 cycles

I'd also love to see the ones on my old iPods and phones. My Droid Incredible might have passed 1,000 over the last 5 years. It was nearly cycled daily the 2.5 years I used it as a main device. Still using it, but charges maybe weekly if that.

Anyway, the two I've got with me now are working great.

That iBook G4 will go for a full 3 hour class if asked to. But I finally got the courage to bring my new rMBP with me. So much lighter and brighter.

 

[Jkj12]

995 loadcycles. Still useful. Mostly get around 2 hours of surfing.

I have another Mac with a cheap chinese aftermarket battery. 8 cycles = 0% capacity.

 

[AppleFanatic10]

Before I replaced my battery last week, mine had 706 cycles. I've had my macbook since 2010. Age of Mac: 1559 days.

 

[theLimit]

My white unibody MacBook just turned 5 years old and is nearing 700 battery cycles. It still lasts about 3-4 hours and is rated for 7 hours, so I'm rather happy with how the battery has lasted. It could use a new battery, but I'm going to try and squeeze another year or two out of this one.

 

[robertsawicki]

Mid 2010 MBP. The previous owner put a new battery in it.

 

[GGJstudios]

In 'System Information' it says the age of my MacBook is 3 months old (when it arrived it said it was 1 months old, I've had it for 2 months) and I already have 98 cycles, am I using too many cycles?

The number of cycles that are appropriate for you depends on your work habits and environment. Some people have constant access to AC power, so they don't need to put as many cycles on their batteries. Others are not near AC power most of the time, so a larger number of cycles is appropriate for them. There is no "right" or "wrong" or "ideal" number of cycles for any given time period.

I'm only asking because I realised that Apple say that their batteries are more or less useless at holding a charge after 1000 cycles

That is not true. Apple says their batteries should hold up to 80% of their original capacity for up to 1000 cycles. That in no way suggests that you can't continue using a battery beyond 1000 cycles.

I have been told the batteries in the newer MacBooks are glued in place and replacing the battery is a hard job and would cost lots of money, mistake me if I'm wrong.

Yes, they are glued and replacement cost is £109 inc. VAT for MBAs and MBPs and £169 inc. VAT for retina MBPs.

Another thing, my MacBook shipped with 6300mAh capacity and after 2 months and 98 cycles it is down to 5500mAh? I have heard it fluctuates but I didn't think it would go far enough to take off 800mAh...

Your battery is fine. It is perfectly normal if your battery health (maximum capacity) is more or less than 100%, even when brand new, or if it fluctuates up or down over time. The gradual decline is not in a straight line downward, and it may decline more rapidly at some times and slower at others. For further details, read the CHECKING STATUS AND HEALTH section of the following link.

If I left my Mac plugged in for longer amounts of times, it would use less cycles. Is this bad for the battery? I leave my iPhone in overnight but I don't think I would with my laptop. I have heard people say that it wrecks your battery keeping it plugged in after you've reached 100% even if you're still using it,

When your battery is fully charged and left plugged in, it stops charging and runs on AC power. It will not overcharge, and it does not hurt the battery. It sounds like you need to forget everything you've heard about Apple notebook batteries and instead read the following information and link.

Run on battery whenever you need to and plug it in whenever you can. You can plug or unplug any time you need to, regardless of the charged percentage, and you never need to completely drain your battery.

​

The link below should answer most, if not all, of your battery/charging questions, including tips for maximizing battery performance. If you haven’t already done so, I highly recommend you take the time to read it.

Apple Notebook Battery FAQ​