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Yeah, I did read it, I just wasn't sure what to make of it because I always had my Vaio plugged in and now the battery lasts about 20 mins.
Now I see you guys are saying that it actually takes no power from the battery when it is plugged in, instead the power comes straight form the cable. I am going to leave mine plugged in all the time now when at home.
In cases of extreme system demands such as gaming, it can draw power from both the battery and AC power, but not usually. Also, it's not good to leave it plugged in all the time, as the FAQ states.
 
yeah let it charge down to 50% after two or three days, that is what people want to hear when they post about batteries.
Cheers for the guide though, good stuff.
 
Yeah, I did read it, I just wasn't sure what to make of it because I always had my Vaio plugged in and now the battery lasts about 20 mins.
My Vaio has a removable battery soI never had it in it.


Btw, I can't find the menu on my Air to see the cycles,anybody can direct me step by step?
 
Btw, I can't find the menu on my Air to see the cycles,anybody can direct me step by step?
Install iStat Pro or go to  > About This Mac > More Info (which opens System Profiler) > Hardware > Power to see your cycles. You can also launch System Profiler from your /Applications/Utilities folder, or Command-spacebar and type System Profiler.
 
As I said:

Thanks. I downloaded as you advised. I have it on Dashboard. Cycles are the same as Coconut.

I'm still curious why Coconut read my MBA as 121 months old, whereas, iStat provides no info. as to the age of my MBA. No big deal, I was just curious since it was brought to my attention.

It also says iStat for iPhone, but clearly, I downloaded for OSX.
 

Thanks. It explains it.

You could always enter your serial number into www.appleserialnumberinfo.com and see for yourself, how old the Mac actually is.

Great, now my MBA is worth $800 (lol). I better quit this thread. I have a 121 month old MBA worth $800. Good to know that my supposedly 2 months old MBA has until Jan 24th. 2012 to return or exchange for a value of $1225 + tax.
Screen Shot 2012-01-04 at 8.12.19 PM.png
 
how many cycles do you guys have on your air?

I've done 40 and its only about a month old if that !

i always charge my battery to full, then remove the power and drain it right down to 0 or until it turns off.

Draining your LithiumPolymer batteries is probably one the of quickest ways to kill them. Please stop doing this.

LiPo batteries like to have a charge in them. Charge whenever you can. Work on mains whenever you can. Once the battery is full your mac will stop charging it. LiPo have no memory effect so all you do by putting them through full cycles is to wear them out fast.
 
Install iStat Pro or go to  > About This Mac > More Info (which opens System Profiler) > Hardware > Power to see your cycles. You can also launch System Profiler from your /Applications/Utilities folder, or Command-spacebar and type System Profiler.
thanks. The system profiler isn't called that, therefore I didn't find it.
 
Soon five months of daily use (laptop travels with me).
 

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My 2011 MBA cycle

is 2 since buying this Monday.

I will use the machine more frequently once school starts a week from Tuesday.

but I quite like that I can save battery power just by turning a lot of things off (wifi, brightness etc. Bluetooth and the keyboard backlighting are always shut off).

----------

Draining your LithiumPolymer batteries is probably one the of quickest ways to kill them. Please stop doing this.

LiPo batteries like to have a charge in them. Charge whenever you can. Work on mains whenever you can. Once the battery is full your mac will stop charging it. LiPo have no memory effect so all you do by putting them through full cycles is to wear them out fast.

Thanks for posting this, I will definitely not power down to Zero again.
 
Boy, the battery capacity sure drops pretty quickly. Or is this normal? I've had my Air for 20 weeks, and have honestly rarely used it. My cycle count is currently at 9.

Yet capacity has dropped slightly already.
 

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Boy, the battery capacity sure drops pretty quickly. Or is this normal? I've had my Air for 20 weeks, and have honestly rarely used it. My cycle count is currently at 9.

Yet capacity has dropped slightly already.

For me it has been up & down a few percent, I've seen the health at 97% the first week but after another charge it was back at 100. And I've only had it for 3 weeks (refurb though).

It seems to fluctuate a lot, if you don't see it dropping further than 2-3% I wouldn't worry about it.
 
Thanks for posting this, I will definitely not power down to Zero again.
There's nothing wrong with draining your battery until your Mac powers off, if you need to. It will not harm your battery. The other poster is incorrect. Read the Battery FAQ link below for factual information about the specific battery technology used in Apple notebook batteries, rather than some generic assumptions that do not apply.
Boy, the battery capacity sure drops pretty quickly. Or is this normal?
Yes, it's normal. It is perfectly normal if your battery health (maximum capacity) is less than 100%. It will fluctuate both up and down over time. For further details, read the CHECKING STATUS AND HEALTH section of the following link.

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

There's nothing wrong with draining your battery until your Mac powers off, if you need to. It will not harm your battery. The other poster is incorrect. Read the Battery FAQ link below for factual information about the specific battery technology used in Apple notebook batteries, rather than some generic assumptions that do not apply.

Thanks for clarifying GGJstudios, I did have a problem with starting up the MBP I returned once that went to Zero battery drain, so reading that additional post made me think otherwise.

Additionally, I have decided to return the MBA for a couple of reasons, mainly I am not using it anywhere near as much as I thought I would, so it is not worth me losing $1800 for an item I do not use.
 
Doubt

Today I read on Lifehacker that it's not good keeping the notebook plugged in. Do you agree with that?

Don't leave it fully charged. Similarly, lithium-ion batteries don't need to be charged all the way to 100%. In fact, they'd prefer not to be—so the 40%-80% rule you heard is a good guideline. When possible, keep it in that range to prolong its life as long as you can. And, if you do charge it to 100%, don't leave it plugged in. This is something most of us do, but it's another thing that will degrade your battery's health. If you need to charge it overnight, use something like the Belkin Conserve Socket to stop it from charging after it's full.
Link http://lifehacker.com/5875162/how-often-should-i-charge-my-gadgets-battery-to-prolong-its-lifespan
 
Today I read on Lifehacker that it's not good keeping the notebook plugged in. Do you agree with that?
It's better if you get your information about Apple batteries from Apple, rather than LifeHacker. Read the Battery FAQ that's been posted in this thread. It will accurately answer your questions. The LifeHacker information is generic and is wrong when it comes to Apple batteries and charging technology. There is nothing wrong with charging your Apple battery to 100% or leaving it plugged in after it's fully charged. The technology Apple uses causes charging to stop once the battery is full, even if it's left plugged in. There is no need for another device. Also, it doesn't matter if you drain or charge it to/from any percentage. 10%... 30%.... 80%.... it doesn't matter. There is no memory on the batteries.

As I've said hundreds of times in these battery threads, run on battery whenever you need to, for as long as you need to. Plug into AC power whenever you can, even if your battery is partially or fully drained or charged. Just don't stay plugged in all the time, as the battery needs to be used periodically to stay healthy. Once again, this should answer most, if not all, of your battery questions:
 
I know this is a MacBook Air topic but I have over 1000 cycles on my MacBook Pro in around 22 months and I have no idea how, I didn't think I charged it that much!
 
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