Battery on refurbished MacBook Pro 13 Retina late 2013

[mloxy]

Hi,

I have just purchased refurbished MacBook Pro 13 retina late 2013, 4gb RAM, 128 SSD from the Apple store.
I was expecting a little more from the battery. It runs 5 hrs of Netflix on full brightness and very low volume. I don't think I can get 9 hrs from browsing the internet either but I have not tested it fully since I just bought it a week ago. Battery remaining time left (in the upper right corner) goes up and down sometimes I see 12hrs on 100% battery and some other time only 6hrs on 100% charged battery. Seems kind of weird to me.
I checked the battery cycles and it shows 11. I charged it myself maybe 4-5 times so it looks like it was not replaced by a new battery in the refurbishment process. I heard opinions that every refurbished MacBook has a brand new battery...
Does 5hrs for video streaming sound ok for you? Maybe it is ok, maybe my expectations were too high.
Let me know what you think.

Thanks

 

[GGJstudios]

The time remaining indicator is based on the then-current workload on your computer, which changes from moment to moment. It will never be entirely accurate. Also, Apple never states you will get 9 hours from your battery. They say "up to 9 hours". It will vary greatly between users, based on their configuration and workload.

The batteries in refurbished Macs are only replaced if they are found to be defective. It's normal for even a brand new Mac to have some cycles on the battery.

Your battery sounds quite normal. There are many factors that impact your battery life. See the BATTERY LIFE FROM A CHARGE section of the following link for details, including tips on how to maximize your battery life.

​

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

Apple Notebook Battery FAQ​

 

[Samuelsan2001]

100% brightness

Hi,

I have just purchased refurbished MacBook Pro 13 retina late 2013, 4gb RAM, 128 SSD from the Apple store.
I was expecting a little more from the battery. It runs 5 hrs of Netflix on full brightness and very low volume. I don't think I can get 9 hrs from browsing the internet either but I have not tested it fully since I just bought it a week ago. Battery remaining time left (in the upper right corner) goes up and down sometimes I see 12hrs on 100% battery and some other time only 6hrs on 100% charged battery. Seems kind of weird to me.
I checked the battery cycles and it shows 11. I charged it myself maybe 4-5 times so it looks like it was not replaced by a new battery in the refurbishment process. I heard opinions that every refurbished MacBook has a brand new battery...
Does 5hrs for video streaming sound ok for you? Maybe it is ok, maybe my expectations were too high.
Let me know what you think.

Thanks

Brightness is your issue this is the battery Hog, Apples conditions for battery life include being set at 50% brightness.

5 hours streaming HD video at 100% brightness is damn good, Audio level will have very little effect on battery life.

As to wether every refurb has a new battery who knows??? I will say that even brand new ones will have a few cycles on the battery where they have been tested and further testing in refurb will add a few more.

 

[capathy21]

Hi,

I have just purchased refurbished MacBook Pro 13 retina late 2013, 4gb RAM, 128 SSD from the Apple store.
I was expecting a little more from the battery. It runs 5 hrs of Netflix on full brightness and very low volume. I don't think I can get 9 hrs from browsing the internet either but I have not tested it fully since I just bought it a week ago. Battery remaining time left (in the upper right corner) goes up and down sometimes I see 12hrs on 100% battery and some other time only 6hrs on 100% charged battery. Seems kind of weird to me.
I checked the battery cycles and it shows 11. I charged it myself maybe 4-5 times so it looks like it was not replaced by a new battery in the refurbishment process. I heard opinions that every refurbished MacBook has a brand new battery...
Does 5hrs for video streaming sound ok for you? Maybe it is ok, maybe my expectations were too high.
Let me know what you think.

Thanks

I have this same model and what you are experiencing is completely normal. In fact, getting 5 hours streaming Netflix on full brightness is really good. In casual use such as browsing while listening to music and writing a paper, I can get around 6 hours or so. The 9 hour estimate is absolute best case scenario, and would be with half brightness and probably just light browsing in Safari.

I also find that watching any kind of video (especially streaming) absolutely destroys the battery life on the retina 13. With the MB Air, the battery handles video much better. This is obviously due to the retina display which sucks a lot more power.

Long story short, you battery is normal. Enjoy a great machine and don't worry about it.