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MacBook Pro Users Express Concerns About Limited Battery Life

Johannesburg said:
Please give me a reason to buy this! I've been wanting to upgrade my 2011 MBP since the retina version. Now I'm almost considering a regular MB for the weight. Either way I'll probably have buyers remorse. What do?
Click to expand...

There isn't one.

Get a '15 before they sell out.
Good luck.
 
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I've been using my 13" for nearly two weeks now and trust me: these computers don't get nearly 10 hours of battery life (using Safari included). And while I quite like the touch bar, my "e" key has already begun respond intermittently with no contact from food or liquid. For the first time ever, I'm concerned about the longevity of an Apple computer.
 
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Everyone says these new MBPs are a disaster, though let's not forget 'thousands of users completely satisfied with 2016 MacBook Pro' doesn't exactly make for a good headline...

I'm really enjoying using mine, about 7 hours battery on 90% brightness, which I think is perfectly acceptable, no graphics issues, and although MagSafe was a brilliant invention, being able to charge on either side is a real plus I didn't expect.

I'm sure there are thousands who feel the same...
 
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coolbreeze said:
What is there to say vs. the millions of reviews you can find? I'll try:

I have a 5k iMac, iPhone 7+, Apple Watch and iPad Pro 12". Yes, a MBP would fit well in this ecosystem, but I'm not platform loyal. I buy quality hardware first, which this emojiPro just isn't.

The SP4 isn't perfect, but it's extremely portable, the pen is outstanding and Windows 10 is fine (don't believe the Apple purists). Yes it's different, but in all honesty, the SP4 does all I need it to do for a highly portable (i.e. laptop) machine. I'm not an armchair graphic designer, just a normal user/consumer. Dual front facing speakers, multi-angle kickstand, IRIS Hello unlocking and an excellent keyboard make it a solid choice for me.

I'm not saying it's better than a $2,700 MBP, but it does "just work." Good enough for me.

If anyone is remotely into graphical stuff, I don't see why in the world you wouldn't just buy a SP4/Surface Studio. Apple is stagnated here and they won't admit it. Life is pretty good on the Surface line, this is a fact. Again, not perfect (every single thing has downsides) but for my money it works well.
Click to expand...

I have owned and used a SP4 for many months. Most days I am still forced to use it I literally want to throw it against a wall. Here are my comments...

Bad tablet, mediocre laptop. The trackpad is awful compared to a Macbook, and the keyboard gets old really quick. I have had countless issues with battery life, crashes.

It has almost zero good tablet apps. In fact I haven't felt the need or desire to touch the screen in weeks now.

For me there is a night and day feeling when I go back to my MacBook Pro after using the Surface Pro.
 
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I have a 2016 MacBook Pro Touch 15inch w/ 2.9ghz option and upgraded GPU. I get 5:38 hours at 99%.

The below screen shot shows my battery status with all apps closed except 'activity monitor'.
https://s17.postimg.org/t2oiq8brz/Screen_Shot_2016_11_16_at_10_03_08_PM.png

I shared this screen shot with apple support and I was told this is within the norm when using the 2.9ghz model.

I still really like the computer.

Update:
simonmet said:
You really can't use the battery status estimate as an indicator of actual battery life, especially in the first few cycles. It's just an estimate after all and it isn't perfect. It'll adjust and go up or down during use even when the power draw remains fairly constant.

To get an actual figure you'll have to drain the battery under the conditions of Apple's Wi-Fi test.

To do this, charge the laptop to 100% (leave it charging for at least 10-15 minutes after it says 100%). Unplug and use it only for browsing with Safari on Wi-Fi with a brightness no greater than 75% (12 clicks up from off). Don't open, use or switch to any other apps (or have them running in the background) except perhaps Text Edit or some other known low-power apps. You won't be able to do this in one sitting so close the laptop and "stop the clock" when it's asleep. The minimal power drain when asleep isn't significant. Keep track of the times it's in use such as when you start, stop and when it finally powers off. It may help to have an ad blocker installed in Safari.

Doing this should give you a figure of around 10 hours as claimed but I'd suggest 9 hours is acceptable. Less than 7-8 would be unacceptable and 5-6 would indicate a problem in my opinion, be it software (drivers) or hardware.

Make sure you test with adequate Wi-Fi signal strength as well.
Click to expand...
 
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coolbreeze said:
What is there to say vs. the millions of reviews you can find? I'll try:

I have a 5k iMac, iPhone 7+, Apple Watch and iPad Pro 12". Yes, a MBP would fit well in this ecosystem, but I'm not platform loyal. I buy quality hardware first, which this emojiPro just isn't.

The SP4 isn't perfect, but it's extremely portable, the pen is outstanding and Windows 10 is fine (don't believe the Apple purists). Yes it's different, but in all honesty, the SP4 does all I need it to do for a highly portable (i.e. laptop) machine. I'm not an armchair graphic designer, just a normal user/consumer. Dual front facing speakers, multi-angle kickstand, IRIS Hello unlocking and an excellent keyboard make it a solid choice for me.

I'm not saying it's better than a $2,700 MBP, but it does "just work." Good enough for me.

If anyone is remotely into graphical stuff, I don't see why in the world you wouldn't just buy a SP4/Surface Studio. Apple is stagnated here and they won't admit it. Life is pretty good on the Surface line, this is a fact. Again, not perfect (every single thing has downsides) but for my money it works well.
Click to expand...
Did not having deep integration into the Apple eco system bother you at all on the surface? I would miss the hell out of iMessage and iCloud Photo Library. Not to mention all my iCloud Keychain stuff

I'm curious enough to possibly try a surface pro at some point, I'm just a bit hesitant. The battery life compared to iPad, touchscreen apps. App selection. Windows updates stalling the machine.

Maybe I'll give it a try when pro 5 comes. As it is now on my iPad Pro, I use Microsoft one note and love it infinitely more than Apple notes. If thats the kinda quality I could expect from Microsoft, I'll be happy as a mofo
 
If you use messages and an emoji is in view then it uses the GPU constantly which halfs the battery life. Apples 10 hours probably refer to using CPU graphics which nowadays is impossible to stick to.
 
I love all the expert opinions from those "glad" they didn't spend thousands of dollars on the new machine. None were ever going to. But if bashing the new one makes you feel better about your outdated equipment, MR seems to be the place to do this. I have the new machine. I think it's the best damn thing Apple has produced in years. Mine is exceeding expectations, especially battery life and the speed at which it charges.
 
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PhoneI said:
I have owned and used a SP4 for many months. Most days I am still forced to use it I literally want to throw it against a wall. Here are my comments...

Bad tablet, mediocre laptop. The trackpad is awful compared to a Macbook, and the keyboard gets old really quick. I have had countless issues with battery life, crashes.

It has almost zero good tablet apps. In fact I haven't felt the need or desire to touch the screen in weeks now.

For me there is a night and day feeling when I go back to my MacBook Pro after using the Surface Pro.
Click to expand...
Well that's not exactly a glowing endorsement lol surface pro seems like a great idea in theory that apparently sucks in execution. I'd love to be able to have my iPad and MacBook be in one compact device. Would save me lots of money too. But maybe we just aren't at that point yet. I don't know
 
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MartyF81 said:
how can this be a serious article when the complaints include a person running an external display on battery (why just why?!) and a bunch of folks using Chrome which is a known power gluten.

Seriously MR what has happened to you? Apple never said 10 hours of battery life "doing whatever you want hooking up all kinds of whatever to the device".
Click to expand...

External displays have their own power source.
 
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randyrando said:
I have a 2016 MacBook Pro Touch 15inch w/ 2.9ghz option and upgraded GPU. I get 5:38 hours at 99%.

The below screen shot shows my battery status with all apps closed except 'activity monitor'.
https://s17.postimg.org/t2oiq8brz/Screen_Shot_2016_11_16_at_10_03_08_PM.png

I shared this screen shot with apple support and I was told this is within the norm when using the 2.9ghz model.
Click to expand...

I looked at your screenshot you had many apps running. Closing a window is not quitting ha. Try quitting chrome and Dropbox.
 
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I have a rewards program at work and I have enough points to buy 2 laptops to sell on eBay
I was going to try and get the new Macbook Pro but with all of the issues I may be better off getting the previous model to sell.
Wonder what I could get for it :2.2Ghz i7, 256Gb hard drive,16Mb RAM 15 inch display?
 
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