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Is this normal for a battery to last?
- Thread starter upsguy27
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I think Apple has a warranty thing that says if you have <300 load cycles and the battery capacity is 80% or below, you get a new battery for free. So ask them. It's their store policy.
50 minutes on lightly used or full load?
If its on lightly used its terrible! My 1.5-year-old MacBook lasts 3.5+ hours at almost full brightness with wifi and BT on. I have 152 cycles and iStat reports the battery health to be 100% (
)On full load mine lives for about 1.5 hours.
its not normal. but i account it all to the fact that you have it plugged in all the time. you should have used it on batter a bit more. for some reason the batteries like to be used, not just plugged in.
apple wont do anything for you unless you really pitch a fit and keep calling. try and see what happens.
apple wont do anything for you unless you really pitch a fit and keep calling. try and see what happens.
50 minutes on lightly used or full load?
If its on lightly used its terrible! My 1.5-year-old MacBook lasts 3.5+ hours at almost full brightness with wifi and BT on. I have 152 cycles and iStat reports the battery health to be 100% (
On full load mine lives for about 1.5 hours.
Wow that's amazing! With half brightness, WiFi and BT on, and nothing running, it lasts 50 minutes after a full charge.
tMac85 said:
Really? How often should I leave it unplugged? Once a day?
batteries are usually warranted for only a year, at least through apple's service site. Now that doesn't mean people have not gotten new batteries from an Apple Store after the battery warranty expired. Go ahead and try.
at work i still see expanding batteries.
at work i still see expanding batteries.
Yes, not using your battery regularly kills your battery. I bought a new iBook battery a while ago, but because I kept the iBook plugged in all the time, the battery wasn't performing very well after 18 months, but still about 69 percent. The first battery I used extensively, and kept a good charge during 500 cycles, before going downhill.
Usually, the lower than 50 percent rule is for the first 12 months. Your standard warranty is only 12 months. But you could try to get it replaced. 34 percent is really low. It wouldn't be normal or right to get your battery replaced every 18 months because it goes to 34 percent of the capacity. You have to stress that it is really low, and that you would have accepted it if the capacity was 55-60 percent. And that you had never had problems like this before. Stuff like that. Not that it will always help, because your standard warranty is only 12 months, but you never know. When did it start going under 50 percent?
Usually, the lower than 50 percent rule is for the first 12 months. Your standard warranty is only 12 months. But you could try to get it replaced. 34 percent is really low. It wouldn't be normal or right to get your battery replaced every 18 months because it goes to 34 percent of the capacity. You have to stress that it is really low, and that you would have accepted it if the capacity was 55-60 percent. And that you had never had problems like this before. Stuff like that. Not that it will always help, because your standard warranty is only 12 months, but you never know. When did it start going under 50 percent?
you should probably use it once every 2 days, i try to drain my batteries as much as possible they last longer some how..
Yes, Apple is pretty clear on that:
"For proper maintenance of a lithium-based battery, its important to keep the electrons in it moving occasionally. Apple does not recommend leaving your portable plugged in all the time. An ideal use would be a commuter who uses her MacBook Pro on the train, then plugs it in at the office to charge. This keeps the battery juices flowing. If on the other hand, you use a desktop computer at work, and save a notebook for infrequent travel, Apple recommends charging and discharging its battery at least once per month."
I'm draining mine battery almost every day (once charged, I use MPB till fully discharged). Problem is, these batteries as such remain a weak point. My previous one swelled and began to bend -- no matter how regular I've drained it (nb: batteries are made by Sony, not by Apple). Luckily, Apple replaced the battery instantly: the next day I've already got the new one.
And yes, the warranty for the battery is now 2 years.
You've got very few load cycles for the age of your mac. Mine is 12 months old and got nearly 200. Besides that I think you should call apple. Even with your amount of load cycles it's not normal.
^yeah what they all said. goodluck KEEP pushing and keep Calling and apple will break down. get case numbers, for each time you call. thats the only record they have of how many times you called. it looks better!
goodluck KEEP pushing and keep Calling and apple will break down. get case numbers, for each time you call. thats the only record they have of how many times you called. it looks better!
But you have a MB not a MBP ?50 minutes on lightly used or full load?
If its on lightly used its terrible! My 1.5-year-old MacBook lasts 3.5+ hours at almost full brightness with wifi and BT on. I have 152 cycles and iStat reports the battery health to be 100% (
On full load mine lives for about 1.5 hours.
battery issues
I am in Shanghai I went in one store and they said 1 year on batteries. Where do they honor the 2 warranty for batteries?
I am in Shanghai I went in one store and they said 1 year on batteries. Where do they honor the 2 warranty for batteries?
They don't.
Under AppleCare they may replace it, but that doesn't mean the battery has a 2 year warranty.
Success
I did call Apple service and after a few procedures over through tech support, the battery was found to fall under the specific criteria for replacement.
For MacBook and MacBook Pro systems with Intel Core Duo processors, this program extends repair coverage on the battery for up to two years from the date of purchase of the computer.
Identifying an affected battery
Affected batteries will have one or more of the following symptoms:
* Battery is not recognized causing an X to appear in the battery icon in the Finder menu bar.
* Battery will not charge when computer is plugged into AC power.
* Battery exhibits low charge capacity/runtime when using a fully charged battery with a battery cycle count (as shown in System Profiler) of less than 300.
* Battery pack is visibly deformed.
My battery capacity was at 1990 at 204 cycles
Metalinx
I did call Apple service and after a few procedures over through tech support, the battery was found to fall under the specific criteria for replacement.
For MacBook and MacBook Pro systems with Intel Core Duo processors, this program extends repair coverage on the battery for up to two years from the date of purchase of the computer.
Identifying an affected battery
Affected batteries will have one or more of the following symptoms:
* Battery is not recognized causing an X to appear in the battery icon in the Finder menu bar.
* Battery will not charge when computer is plugged into AC power.
* Battery exhibits low charge capacity/runtime when using a fully charged battery with a battery cycle count (as shown in System Profiler) of less than 300.
* Battery pack is visibly deformed.
My battery capacity was at 1990 at 204 cycles
Metalinx
sounds like there is something really wrong with that battery, ive had my macbook for nearly two years i charge its battery till full then unplug and drain it until it sleeps.
so far for a 2 year old battery i have only lost 154 out of the capacity of the battery (its an intel core 2 duo macbook)
Charge Information:
Charge remaining (mAh): 5051
Fully charged: Yes
Charging: No
Full charge capacity (mAh): 5205
thats from system profiler immediately after disconnecting the power cord.
so far for a 2 year old battery i have only lost 154 out of the capacity of the battery (its an intel core 2 duo macbook)
Charge Information:
Charge remaining (mAh): 5051
Fully charged: Yes
Charging: No
Full charge capacity (mAh): 5205
thats from system profiler immediately after disconnecting the power cord.
I've got pretty much the same problem but I still have some questions.
My MBP is probably just over the 12 month mark now, but as it is this is a replacement from apple for my first MBP that I got about 18 months ago. I have 138 cycles on it at 30% capacity according to istat, and with just internet, mail, and Word running I've only got 70 minutes of battery life. The number of cycles is low because I didn't really use the computer much at all over the summer, I was away for long periods of time.
When I got this replacement MBP, my apple care continued on as if I never had a problem, so I have a bit more than a year left on it. But I've never found out if I got the typical new computer warranty on this replacement. So do I have a shot at getting a new battery from them?
My MBP is probably just over the 12 month mark now, but as it is this is a replacement from apple for my first MBP that I got about 18 months ago. I have 138 cycles on it at 30% capacity according to istat, and with just internet, mail, and Word running I've only got 70 minutes of battery life. The number of cycles is low because I didn't really use the computer much at all over the summer, I was away for long periods of time.
When I got this replacement MBP, my apple care continued on as if I never had a problem, so I have a bit more than a year left on it. But I've never found out if I got the typical new computer warranty on this replacement. So do I have a shot at getting a new battery from them?