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.
How low in percentage do you let your battery get
- Thread starter MacChinoNyc
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I usually charge mine each night even though it's only down to between 50-70% depending on the day. I'm interested to hear some responses though. I'm not sure if it's better to let it drain all the way or keep topping it off.
When there is power available, you plug it in. Every time you empty the battery, one of about 1,000 charge cycles is gone. If you're on the road, you use it as long as you can. The MBA will turn itself off when power goes too low, and it will recover when you plug it into power.
----------
If you are in a place where you can "top it up", just leave it plugged in and avoid wasting battery charges for no good reason at all.
So you always have it plugged in? That kind of defeats the purpose of its great battery life no? 
I'm sure there are different charging patterns among mba users. Hoping to hear users experience here.
In the meantime .
*runs for the charger*
I'm sure there are different charging patterns among mba users. Hoping to hear users experience here.
In the meantime .
*runs for the charger*
I plug in when I get home from class. Otherwise, I just use it like a notebook, in front of the TV or what not. I do discharge it completely once a month though. It is important to exercise all of your battery no matter what (it is a lithium-ion battery and yes they do come pre-calibrated but its important to do it every month).
Mine is always plugged in, I have almost no use for the great battery life apart from when I travel on Long Haul flights-what a boon .
I just make sure to run it down to 20% like once in 10 days or so.
.I just make sure to run it down to 20% like once in 10 days or so.
So you always have it plugged in? That kind of defeats the purpose of its great battery life no?
I'm sure there are different charging patterns among mba users. Hoping to hear users experience here.
In the meantime .
*runs for the charger*
Your battery lasts a lot longer when its plugged in.
"Why should I stop the car engine when I park the car? That's why I bought a car with great mileage, so I don't have to stop the engine when it's not used. "
usually wait until about 80% or less before plugging it in. If you upgrade to a new computer frequently, there's little reason to worry about battery cycles because you won't get even close to the max.
if you use the battery down to say 80% then charge to 100% then down to 60% then back to 100%. you still wont use 1 cycle. it keeps track and only uses a cycle when the full amount has been used.
I used my 2012 mac air battery every day more then 50% of its charge and after 1 year its battery health was still 93%.
not worth stressing over just use and enjoy. get applecare. if it dies in 2 years get a new battery and move on.
I used my 2012 mac air battery every day more then 50% of its charge and after 1 year its battery health was still 93%.
not worth stressing over just use and enjoy. get applecare. if it dies in 2 years get a new battery and move on.
So you always have it plugged in? That kind of defeats the purpose of its great battery life no?
I'm sure there are different charging patterns among mba users. Hoping to hear users experience here.
It's really simple logic as gnasher pointed out. You will just use up the battery faster.
Then again, I do agree that one of the key selling points of this laptop is the battery life and there's definitely no point in getting all sensitive about it. Just use the computer. You are likely to upgrade to a refresh before the battery drops below an acceptable level anyway.
So for me, it depends on the day. Yesterday I just wanted the comfort of not carrying the charger around and I spent all day working with some skype calls and it fell to around 35%. BTW, I was really impressed, I started at 8:30AM, left at 9PM. The battery life is just crazy on this thing.
Sorry, bad wording.
The battery's capacity is down to 89%, after a bit more than a year's usage. Sometimes I run my battery down to 0%, other times I use it a little and charge it a little. People worry way too much about the deterioration of the battery.
I usually charge mine when it gets between 40 to 50%. Part of the reason I bought the new MacBook was for the great battery life. I like the freedom of not plugging in at the coffee shops, like you see almost everyone doing that has a PC laptop.
I live about 10 minutes from my job so I go home for lunch.
I charge my 11" 2013 MBA all night as I sleep. I pull it off the charger right as I go to work. I then use it for three hours until it's time for lunch. That gets the battery down to about 80-90% depending on my usage that day.
Then, I charge it during my hour lunch break which puts it back at 100%.
Then the next 5 hours of work gets the battery down to 50-60% depending on usage that day.
When I get home it gets plugged in until I need it so basically it never dies.
I charge my 11" 2013 MBA all night as I sleep. I pull it off the charger right as I go to work. I then use it for three hours until it's time for lunch. That gets the battery down to about 80-90% depending on my usage that day.
Then, I charge it during my hour lunch break which puts it back at 100%.
Then the next 5 hours of work gets the battery down to 50-60% depending on usage that day.
When I get home it gets plugged in until I need it so basically it never dies.
I only charge it when I fully drain the battery usually. I can run a few days without a charge on my MacBook Air 2013 model. Mavericks just made it better which at one point, I ran one charge for five days before needing to recharge.
This is why I bought a Macbook Air. Long battery life and very portable. I tried with a Windows PC and it would only last 2 to 4 hours and require constant charging.
This is why I bought a Macbook Air. Long battery life and very portable. I tried with a Windows PC and it would only last 2 to 4 hours and require constant charging.
Run on battery whenever you need to and plug it in whenever you can. You can plug or unplug any time you need to, regardless of the charged percentage, and you never need to completely drain your battery. Just make sure you don't run on AC power exclusively, as your battery needs to be used regularly to stay healthy.
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. 
Charge when I remember, or at 20%. Really, it's usually, "Hmmm, not charged the Air in a while, so I'll charge it now while the solar power is producing more than I am using". Actually thats when I normally charge most of the batteries in various devices lol
How about I rather drive the car since it gets great mileage?
Sure. Drive the car. But don't leave the engine running when you're parking it. Not plugging in your MacBook when you are near a charger is stupid.
----------
Except that you use up one of your thousand or so battery charges every day. Would be much better if you kept the charger at work and left the MBA plugged in while you are working.