How does Coconutbattery work?

[onne2slick]

I'm a new macbook pro (laptop in general) user. I downloaded coconutbattery as someone recommended. I bought my new MBP 4 days ago.

Can somebody tell me how do I read this?
Current battery charge - 4751 mAh
Maximum battery charge - 5678 mAh

Current battery capacity - 5678 mAh why did this drop 3 digits within 4 days? is this bad?
Original battery capacity - 5770 mAh

Battery-loadcycles : 4
Age of your mac : 2months

How do I read this? What does current battery capacity mean
How do I read the battery load cycles? How much should I have. What does a cycle consist of?

Thanks!

 

[Ivan P]

The simplest way of explaining a cycle:

Disconnecting the power at 100%, letting the battery completely die, then recharging back to 100% = 1 cycle

Basically one cycle involves the battery discharging 100% of it's charge and regaining 100% if it's charge - for example: discharging completely from 50%, charging all the way to 100% and then discharging back to 50% is also one cycle.

As for current battery capacity, it refers to how much of a charge your battery can hold (it's also referred to as 'battery health'). Basically, your battery's capacity is 92 mAh less than what it was when the battery was first manufactured. Don't really stress about this one, the capacity can fluctuate based on things like outside temperature. Just make sure you cycle the battery often (a cycle being like what I explained above) and your battery will be fine. It seems at the moment you're doing at least 1 cycle per day, which seems perfect

 

[telecomm]

Ivan P has covered the basics while I was writing this, so I'll just add that I'd ignore the advice of the person who recommended you use this software, since it's really only useful if you need to diagnose a battery problem, or if you enjoy obsessing about your laptop battery.

 

[onne2slick]

The simplest way of explaining a cycle:

Disconnecting the power at 100%, letting the battery completely die, then recharging back to 100% = 1 cycle

Basically one cycle involves the battery discharging 100% of it's charge and regaining 100% if it's charge - for example: discharging completely from 50%, charging all the way to 100% and then discharging back to 50% is also one cycle.

As for current battery capacity, it refers to how much of a charge your battery can hold (it's also referred to as 'battery health'). Basically, your battery's capacity is 92 mAh less than what it was when the battery was first manufactured. Don't really stress about this one, the capacity can fluctuate based on things like outside temperature. Just make sure you cycle the battery often (a cycle being like what I explained above) and your battery will be fine. It seems at the moment you're doing at least 1 cycle per day, which seems perfect

Thank you! that helped!

How would you, or anyone, reccommend me charging my MBP?

My friend had told me to un-plug my charger (when it has reached 100%) when in use. He told me it was ok to use my MBP while charging, as long as it doesn't reach 100%. Is this true? If it is why ?

Here's a scenario i'm questioning: Late at night, i'm about to sleep. My MBP is at 10%. I need it the next morning for work. I sleep 8 hours. Is it safe to leave my MBP charging for 8 hours?

I really want to keep my battery health, and lasting long... but i'm not sure how.

 

[telecomm]

My friend had told me to un-plug my charger (when it has reached 100%) when in use. He told me it was ok to use my MBP while charging, as long as it doesn't reach 100%. Is this true?

No, again you're getting bad advice. It's best to avoid

1. Never using your battery (i.e., keeping it plugged in all the time)
2. Using your battery constantly (which will quickly increase the total number of charge cycles, and more quickly reduce the total capacity of your battery).

Keep your computer plugged in most of the time, and use the battery when you're away from a desk. A few cycles per week would be fine, and letting it drain completely about once a month to calibrate the charge meter is recommended.

 

[onne2slick]

No, again you're getting bad advice. It's best to avoid

1. Never using your battery (i.e., keeping it plugged in all the time)
2. Using your battery constantly (which will quickly increase the total number of charge cycles, and more quickly reduce the total capacity of your battery).

Keep your computer plugged in most of the time, and use the battery when you're away from a desk. A few cycles per week would be fine, and letting it drain completely about once a month to calibrate the charge meter is recommended.

That wasn't my advice..
But, my question is still unanswered. Is it a good idea to use my computer while charging (currently at 100%)?

 

[telecomm]

But, my question is still unanswered. Is it a good idea to use my computer while charging (currently at 100%)?

Yes, that's probably how you'll be working most of the time, I'd guess.

Otherwise you'd be using the battery, then charging it, then using it again, endlessly cycling the battery. (Which was covered in #2 above).

 

[onne2slick]

Yes, that's probably how you'll be working most of the time, I'd guess.

Otherwise you'd be using the battery, then charging it, then using it again, endlessly cycling the battery. (Which was covered in #2 above).

Okay, thanks!

 

[telecomm]

Okay, thanks!

Most people around here have suffered "new laptop anxiety," but don't worry, they're designed to be used without much fuss.

If you're using it unplugged, you'll get the most time on a single charge if you reduce the brightness of your display, and turn off bluetooth and/or airport if you don't need them. You get the "low battery" warning when the battery gets low, but you can still use it for a few minutes before it automatically goes to sleep, and if you've got the remaining time or remaining charge showing in the menubar, you'll know roughly how much time you've got left on a charge.

You "calibrate" a battery by fully draining it and then recharging it. All calibration means is that the remaining time/remaining charge meter in the menubar is accurate. If your battery isn't callibrated, you'll get a couple extra (or fewer) minutes than is shown in the menubar.