Battery problems

[ArcTangent]

Hi,

I just bought my mac 2 weeks ago and I was told the battery would last 6-7 hours. I thought that was a lot and was pretty happy. However, my battery lasts about an hour and a half. And I find myself having to recharge it a lot more than expected. My friends who have had their macs for a few years have batteries that last longer than mine. Any suggestions on what I should do? And any ideas on why this might be?

 

[T5BRICK]

Battery life depends on usage. Typically, the 6-7 hours rating is just for fairly light usage, i.e. surfing the internet and listening to music.

It's also possible that you've got a bad battery.

 

[sweetbrat]

What are you using your computer for when you're only getting an hour and a half of usage? Have you checked your battery health? You can install istat pro to see your battery health. http://islayer.com/apps/istatpro/ If it's declined rapidly over two weeks then it's possible you have a bad battery.

Also, are you actually keeping track of the time your computer is running before it dies, or are you looking at the estimated time remaining in the upper right corner of the screen (where the battery % is)? If you're going by the time remaining, that's a snapshot based on the last 30 seconds or so of usage. It fluctuates constantly depending on what you're doing at the time.

 

[ArcTangent]

I have only really been using my computer to surf the net. I don't have Office or anything like that yet and I don't listen to music very much (because I don't have much right now and am hoping to change that).

Should I try going to a mac store and explaining my situation?

The battery life time that shows up is not accurate. I've tried calibrating (using the mac site to help me do that) but it has not worked and the times showing up still seem pretty inaccurate.

 

[sweetbrat]

I have only really been using my computer to surf the net. I don't have Office or anything like that yet and I don't listen to music very much (because I don't have much right now and am hoping to change that).

Should I try going to a mac store and explaining my situation?

The battery life time that shows up is not accurate. I've tried calibrating (using the mac site to help me do that) but it has not worked and the times showing up still seem pretty inaccurate.

"Surfing the net" isn't a very good description. Are you doing things that run Flash? Even Flash ads showing up on a page will cut down on your battery life. If you're watching videos or playing Flash games, that will kill your battery life, too. You didn't explain, though...are you going by actual usage (meaning, you have the computer completely charged, then unplug it and it shuts off due to dead battery in an hour and a half) or are you going by the estimated time remaining? Even if you calibrate, that time remaining will only be semi-accurate. As I said, it's based on exactly what you're doing with the computer at the time. I can have 5 hours of estimated battery time remaining. If I load a game that uses Flash, it drops down to an hour, maybe hour and a half remaining. If I quit the Flash game, it goes back up again.

 

[ArcTangent]

I'll try the iStat. With that should I be able to tell how my battery is doing? And it would indicate that it might be faulty?

 

[GGJstudios]

Hi,

I just bought my mac 2 weeks ago and I was told the battery would last 6-7 hours. I thought that was a lot and was pretty happy. However, my battery lasts about an hour and a half. And I find myself having to recharge it a lot more than expected. My friends who have had their macs for a few years have batteries that last longer than mine. Any suggestions on what I should do? And any ideas on why this might be?

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.

This should answer most, if not all, of your battery/charging questions:

Apple Notebook Battery FAQ​

 

[ArcTangent]

"Surfing the net" isn't a very good description. Are you doing things that run Flash? Even Flash ads showing up on a page will cut down on your battery life. If you're watching videos or playing Flash games, that will kill your battery life, too. You didn't explain, though...are you going by actual usage (meaning, you have the computer completely charged, then unplug it and it shuts off due to dead battery in an hour and a half) or are you going by the estimated time remaining? Even if you calibrate, that time remaining will only be semi-accurate. As I said, it's based on exactly what you're doing with the computer at the time. I can have 5 hours of estimated battery time remaining. If I load a game that uses Flash, it drops down to an hour, maybe hour and a half remaining. If I quit the Flash game, it goes back up again.

Ah, I see. And sorry, I did not see your post until after I made my reply.

I'm going by actual usage. And by surfing the net I mean I am using email and facebook mostly. I am going through job training right now too so much of what I am doing is reading online documents (mostly google docs) and taking notes on Text/Edit. I guess I've used craigslist a few times, too. Other than that, I have not done much with my computer.

 

[sweetbrat]

I'll try the iStat. With that should I be able to tell how my battery is doing? And it would indicate that it might be faulty?

iStat will show your battery health. It looks at the charge it held at first compared to the charge it can hold now. Battery health fluctuates up and down, as well, so it's normal to see changes in it. But it might help show if something is significantly wrong.

 

[geoffreak]

You can also use the freeware coconutBattery to see your battery health. Would you mind letting us know what this application or iStat is reporting?