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I'm starting to wonder if....

antisomnic

antisomnic

macrumors 6502
Original poster
... MacBooks have something programmed into them that make them stop working after a given amount of time, forcing you to upgrade. For more context, I upgraded to my current 15" MacBook Air 2025 because my previous 2020 MacBook Pro suddenly and randomly stopped turning on. Tried different power adapters so on so forth, SMC reset. Nothing would make it turn on when connected to power. Now, my mother who has a 2018 MacBook Air is experiencing the same thing! Will not turn on and I tried all the same things for her.

Is there a common hardware problem in these models that causes this after years of use? It just seems really odd. Neither are worth getting fixed because it would cost more than their worth, and they are worth nothing on a trade in because they will not power up.
 
Still original battery? Might be the culprit. If predominantly connected to power adapter, do you use a surge protector?
 
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Sometimes yes, sometimes no on both computers. Now, I started out in the PC world and laptops that have dead batteries will still power on when connected to AC power. Do MacBooks not work that way?
 
I'm really sorry to hear about the two MacBooks with the same issue.

To address your suspicion, I think that's unfounded. I'm using a Mac mini every day from 2012; my father still uses an iMac from 2007. Plenty of people share that kind of story. eBay is full of working Mac notebooks from across the last decade-plus. (Et cetera.)
 
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I would have been skeptical of such claims until this past November, which was the three year anniversary of my purchase of my macbook pro.

Until that time, the battery was kept charged at a maximum of 80%, but after November, it was maximum charged to 100% all of the time.

Mind you - I NEVER unplug the macbook from my apple monitor, nor move the laptop etc. It is in exactly the same place since November 2022.

The battery health in November 2025 was 100%, now 5 months later it is down to 95%. It seems like apple has shut off the maximum charging ceiling of 80%, which is healthiest for the battery, and changed it to where it is always charged to 100%, damaging the battery's performance/health and decreasing the laptop's lifespan.

I've noticed that unlike the iphone, you cannot override the battery charge settings and pick a percentage from 60% to 100%.

Anyone else experiencing this?
 
I don't know about Macs, but it certainly seems true for iPhones. I always keep iPhones 2 to 3 years max and they always seem to start acting wonky when the newest model is close to being released. One phone had a 5 second lag before the screen became usable. That made answering phone calls a pain. A couple of other iPhones would not connect to WiFi or cell service unless I rebooted it, then they were fine for a few days.
 
I use a 2024 M3 MBA 15" that's never had any issues. Is yours still under warranty? If it's less than 1 year old, it should be. You should be able to get it fixed for free.
 
My iPhone 5, iPhone 8 Plus, and 2012 11" MacBook Air would all beg to differ.

The iPhone 5 is a bit long in the tooth to really use for much these days, but it still made for a good GPS speedo for my motorbike, as did my iPhone 8 Plus, which is still surprisingly usable, but the speakers are on the fritz, so isn't much good as a phone any more. I gave it to my wife to use for Find My Friends to see where I was when I was riding.

My brother is still using my 2012 MacBook Air for writing assignments on without distraction. That thing just keeps chugging along.
 
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Bungaree.Chubbins said:
My iPhone 5, iPhone 8 Plus, and 2012 11" MacBook Air would all beg to differ.

The iPhone 5 is a bit long in the tooth to really use for much these days, but it still made for a good GPS speedo for my motorbike, as did my iPhone 8 Plus, which is still surprisingly usable, but the speakers are on the fritz, so isn't much good as a phone any more. I gave it to my wife to use for Find My Friends to see where I was when I was riding.

My brother is still using my 2012 MacBook Air for writing assignments on without distraction. That thing just keeps chugging along.
Click to expand...
You and your family are getting more useable life out of your Apple devices than most of us.
 
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28Gauge said:
You and your family are getting more useable life out of your Apple devices than most of us.
Click to expand...
I’ve been impressed with the quality of Apple products for a long time now. Look after them a little, and they just keep going.

I’ve got a 2008 Mac mini I’ve set up at a friend’s place as a print server for him. It’s been running for years now!
 
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Nope, vendors don't have to go so blatant as to write a code that says "if date>mm/dd/yy then Don't Turn On."

The "system" simply say "for security reason (to scare you), you must upgrade..."

p.s. Some devices do require a working battery to function, don't ask me why.
 
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