Macbook Pro Charging when I first use it?

[Benk3350]

It's been a few years since I've bought a laptop. I can't remember if you're supposed to do anything charging-wise right out of the box to make sure the battery is strong.

When it arrives in the mail, can I just use it like normal and charge it however I want? Or do I have to charge it for a specific amount of hours before using it to make sure it's got the longest charge? I know that with some laptops if you didn't do it exactly how you were supposed to, it degraded the battery life, although this may have been an issue years ago and not an issue today. For example I remember I bought my nephew a Gameboy Advance SP ages ago, and he was supposed to charge it overnight but got too excited and played it after a 30 minute charge. It ruined the gameboy as it could then only hold a charge for like 2 hours max after that. This may be a silly question in case this kind of thing was resolved years ago but I just wanted to make sure. I've only recently started keeping up with electronics, I'm going off things I've known from years ago that might not be relevant today anymore lol

Are there any specific steps to take to make sure I don't harm the battery life right when I open it? I'm not talking about long term maintenance practices I'm talking about steps right out of the box. Thanks

 

[GGJstudios]

You can just turn it on and start using it. Apple recommends you charge it when you first use it (not before you start using it), only because Mac notebooks usually ship with a partially-charged battery. If you don't fully charge it when you first get it, nothing bad happens. There are no special charging/draining instructions, other than to run on battery power regularly. Apple batteries don't have a memory, so you don't have to go through the fully charge/fully drain procedures that were required with older battery technology.

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.

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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.

Apple Notebook Battery FAQ​