MacBook Pro 13 mid 2010 "Service Battery" Issue

[miller3525]

I am new to Apple computing.Just bought my first a few weeks ago (mid 2010 MBP) and loving it. The MBP I bought had just had an new battery installed and it only has 14 cycles on it and it is showing that I need to have the battery serviced. It is still charging but is only holding a charge for about 3 to 4 hours. I have tried resetting that SMC and recalibrating the battery but to no avail. Any suggestions from experienced apple users?

Thanks

 

[treekram]

Did you install the battery or did it come with the computer? Do you know if it's Apple battery or not? Having a charge last 3-4 hours could indicate a battery issue ... or not. But the service battery message should not happen with a good battery that is new. There are exceptions - there were reported problems with the service battery message after the OS upgrade to Mavericks (perhaps other OS versions?). You also did the steps to try to remedy an erroneous service battery message. If it's an Apple battery, there's a one-year warranty for defective batteries. If it's not an Apple battery, then it's probably due to battery quality (or lack thereof).

 

[Willo34]

Agree at least it sounds like a bad battery, not original at least.
I happen to know that the only other make that really is Apple quality, apart from original obviously, are LMP batteries. So if your battery is not original or LMP it's prob. a bad quality and needs replacing.

 

[maflynn]

Any suggestions from experienced apple users?

Bring back the computer to where it was serviced. Clearly something is wrong with the battery and needs to be replaced.

 

[miller3525]

Thanks for all the feedback!
I checked and the battery was replaced by the person I bought it from with a non OEM battery. I sense from the posts that not having a genuine Apple battery may be the problem.

Thanks Willo34 for the information on LMP batteries I'll give them a look.

Thanks again all for the time and Great information!

 

[iMule]

My battery swelled on my 2010 13" MacBook Pro and I hadn't used it for 2 months. Busted the trackpad and everything. I never had a battery replaced.

 

[Fishrrman]

OP:

The battery is not difficult to change out yourself if you decide to go that route.

Go here to view the procedure:
https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Pro+13-Inch+Unibody+Mid+2010+Battery+Replacement/4300

BE SURE TO BUY AND USE THE RIGHT TOOLS!
You'll need:
- Phillips #00 driver
- Y1 Tri-wing driver
- plastic "spudger" tool

You can find these online, buy them from ifixit, or even hardware stores, Lowe's, Home Depot, etc.

 

[Jozone]

3-4 hours on a 2010 is pretty good IMHO, as long as the 'Service Battery' is the only issue, Id probably just continue to use it normally.

That said if I just purchased it, I would probably take issue with the seller giving me a non-OEM battery (and not disclosing it). Id either ask for a partial refund, or for them to replace it with a good OEM battery. Apple batteries are expensive ($129) -- so the seller definitely padded their profits using a non-oem.