This is exactly why I use it. Im plugged in at my stand up desk often but at random times I take the laptop to another room because my wife and I both work from home.
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.
Charge limiter app AlDente - now works on M1 Macs
- Thread starter Leon1das
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Idk if these numbers mean anything to anyone, but without AlDente, about 1 month of usage from a new 2020 edition m1 13" macbook pro says 6 power cycles. Will report back in a month or so to report back how a month on AlDente compares.
Well battery cycles doesn't depend on if you use Apple's Optimize battery thingy or AlDente . Or even if you don't use neither of them. Since if you just left it at 100% the battery cycle won't go anywhere
Hi!
Since last update (Aldente free 1.11) I have started to have a small issue. The task manager (not sure if that's the proper name; you know, the one that shows when you press Command+Tab) shows the Aldente icon, so, if I'm not careful, I can close Aldente when closing all the apps (pressing Command+Tab and, without releasing Command, starting to press repeatedly Q).
Do you know how to prevent Aldente from closing accidentally when closing apps from Command+Tab?
Thank you very much, and sorry for my limited English, not my mother tongue.
Since last update (Aldente free 1.11) I have started to have a small issue. The task manager (not sure if that's the proper name; you know, the one that shows when you press Command+Tab) shows the Aldente icon, so, if I'm not careful, I can close Aldente when closing all the apps (pressing Command+Tab and, without releasing Command, starting to press repeatedly Q).
Do you know how to prevent Aldente from closing accidentally when closing apps from Command+Tab?
Thank you very much, and sorry for my limited English, not my mother tongue.
The latest version added new appearance options. You can customize those to your liking. One of them enables or disables the Dock icon. @Javi74
Yeah this is true. You need to remove the dock icon so the force quit won't show AlDente.
Thank you very much.
Just as an information to the Spanish language users, this option is translated as "Mostrar icono de muelle". Strange translation...
Internaut
macrumors 65816
Can you provide your usage pattern and how to let Mac optimise the charge?
Thanks
Hi. Tried to read all relevant posts on this thread, but there are a lot of them to go through!
I had a 2018 MBP that worked fantastically, until lockdown last year. From that point on, I mainly used it as a desktop replacement, since the 2012 iMac couldn't handle the MacOS version I needed. At some point during this time, my battery really took a hit, and subsequently went from 100 to 50% very noticeably quicker than it did - due I'm sure to having it plugged in almost constantly for nearly 2years.
Having upgraded recently to the 16in MBP M1 Max, I use the same Elgato thunderbolt dock with it, which also handles power but also allows me to connect my two 32in monitors, and ethernet connection to my fibre.
I still spend a lot of time in my home office with this setup, which I think is the best of both worlds since this machine is an absolute beast. However, I'm anxious not to repeat the same mistake with regards to the battery. I've seen that it sometimes stops at 80% by itself, but with it being new and the novelty of such a powerful machine, I occasionally disconnect it and use it in other areas of the house. Therefore, my charges will be a bit irregular.
So, based on the setup I have, should I use software like this? Are there any others? The Github page seems to suggest it supports Monterey and the M1 Max, but are others using this and is it working well?
Cheers
Ant
I had a 2018 MBP that worked fantastically, until lockdown last year. From that point on, I mainly used it as a desktop replacement, since the 2012 iMac couldn't handle the MacOS version I needed. At some point during this time, my battery really took a hit, and subsequently went from 100 to 50% very noticeably quicker than it did - due I'm sure to having it plugged in almost constantly for nearly 2years.
Having upgraded recently to the 16in MBP M1 Max, I use the same Elgato thunderbolt dock with it, which also handles power but also allows me to connect my two 32in monitors, and ethernet connection to my fibre.
I still spend a lot of time in my home office with this setup, which I think is the best of both worlds since this machine is an absolute beast. However, I'm anxious not to repeat the same mistake with regards to the battery. I've seen that it sometimes stops at 80% by itself, but with it being new and the novelty of such a powerful machine, I occasionally disconnect it and use it in other areas of the house. Therefore, my charges will be a bit irregular.
So, based on the setup I have, should I use software like this? Are there any others? The Github page seems to suggest it supports Monterey and the M1 Max, but are others using this and is it working well?
Cheers
Ant
Yes it is working on my M1 Pro MBP. So here's the thing. The 80% thing you saw was from Apple's Optimized Battery Charging. You can disable or enable that from the Power (i think that's what it's called) settings in system preferences. I don't use that since it's really slow to adapt especially if you're sometimes inconsistent with your charging..
Now AlDente on the other hand works nicely for me because it always set the limit of charging automatically. And if you have the pro it'll have a button to top up the battery before you go everywhere..
Now for the battery health. Yes 100% percentage Everytime will kill your battery overtime even without cycles being used. So if you want to just plug it in. It's best to set it to 50-80% max since on that range it won't damage the battery overtime. That's why other manufacturer that has a battery longevity settings. Allows us to set the max to 80% or 50% if you want to plug it in all the time. If you are using it on power 99% of the time just set it to 50% IMO..
But here's the catch, Li-on batteries don't need to be calibrated to work properly. But every month (if you plugged it in all the time) I recommend you to calibrate it. Tho we are calibrating the fuel gauge (the thing that knows how much percentage is in the battery) not the battery itself. Usually I just charge it to 100% , drain it to about 15% then charge it back to 100% after that I drain it again to 50% (my limit)
Does the free version let you set it to 50%? I am not sure whether or not I need anymore features than that but I don't know too much about AlDente. Mine is plugged in most of the time.
I don't know but I think yes. It doesn't have more features tho AFAIK like top up. Discharge etc. But yeah for a normal limit it is working AFAIK
Internaut
macrumors 65816
I bought the paid version but, thinking on, there is little (other than discharge without having to disconnect your Mac from the power supply?) that you can’t do with the free version, albeit with intervention from yourself?
I got the Pro version and so far so good. I have it set to 79% by default. Is there some advantage to 50 over 75? I thought 79 would be the better figure because I have the versatility of having battery on the go should I need it, but staying inside the threshold. Admittedly, the M1 Max battery is amazing so 50% wouldn't be the end of the world, but still...
I think there are more features than the free version provides
Well the best is 50% But if you need versatility of charging it faster when you need it. 80% is fine AFAIK.
I just do 50% since 99% of the time at home I'm plugging it in. When I know I'm gonna go out I just top it up to 100%
Internaut
macrumors 65816
Since Apple uses ~80% with the built-in optimized battery charging I would expect the difference between 50% and 80% to be negligible for battery longevity. I personally don’t see the need to obsess over trying to maximize battery longevity. If I have to replace a battery in a few years, it is a pretty inexpensive repair.
I ended up buying the Pro Lifetime version. I shut my computer off last night and it charged to 100%. I guess I will need to unplug when I want to shut it off.
Also, the Launch at Login toggle does not work. I shut the computer off twice and it reverted back to disabled. I am thinking maybe I should have went with the free version.
Also, the Launch at Login toggle does not work. I shut the computer off twice and it reverted back to disabled. I am thinking maybe I should have went with the free version.
Last edited:
Make sure the helper is installed - there is an option to reinstall it in the preferences. There is a toggle to disable charging when off. I think that’s off by default.