MBP 16 - Should I return it? (Battery)

[tomimar]

Hi! I bought my brand new MBP 16 by the beginning of December and I am so happy with it. The screen is gorgeous, the keyboard and the speakers are magnificence and I don't have any of the issues regarding coil whine, pop sounds (fixed in the last MacOS update), ghosting or yellowish screen. Is a wonderful machine overall.

The only issue I can see is the battery. I've been using coconutBattery and the Design Capacity now is only 95.3% with 10 cycles. It only once reached 100% and most of the time it moves between 89% and 95.5% (one day was 88.7%). Also, when Im with 100% of the battery charged and using safari with 75% of the brightness the Activity Monitor says I have around 7 hours of battery, which seems not ok not without having any other app running. I also had another issue: overnight it drains 3-4% battery when closed and even when I removed the bluetooth wake up and similar options (and did a SMC and PVRAM reset because at the beginning was 10% in one night).

Should I return it and try with a new one? I used it with bootcamp a little bit for light gaming (gwent and doom 2016) and I don't know if that might be the reason for having these troubles.

My specs:
i9 2.3
32gb ram
5500M 8gb
1TB

Thank you so much!

 

[jerryk]

Just use the computer and don't obsess over battery numbers since they fluctuate all the time.

Battery number are based on indirect measurements of current flows. They are effect by a number of factors including temperature. Read this (or google) about Coulomb Counting which is often used with Li Ion batteries to estimate State of Charge (SOC).

How accurate is the measuring of a battery state of charge? - Tawaki Battery - Charge your way

Discover the possible ways to measure the state of charge (SoC) of a battery

www.tawaki-battery.com

 

[obargy]

Yeah try not to think too much of it. I have the exact same configuration as yours and I also have fluctuating battery capacity. Now I have 10 cycles and the reading varies from 95% to 100%. The reading really depends on how you use it. Maybe you could try a complete calibration and see what it gives:

Battery Calibration - iFixit Support

All newly-installed smart batteries should be calibrated as soon as possible. This helps your system get an accurate reading on the battery’s state of charge. W

help.ifixit.com

 

[Dominus Mortem]

On the other hand... mine is always charged to above the rated capacity. I think I'd be bugged by that low battery number. It's like you have a bad cell or two. I'm on 8938 mAh and 7 cycles.

 

[jerryk]

On the other hand... mine is always charged to above the rated capacity. I think I'd be bugged by that low battery number. It's like you have a bad cell or two. I'm on 8938 mAh and 7 cycles.

You mean some app is currently reporting an estimate of 8938 mAh. It will likely bounce around.

 

[Nacho98]

OP's estimates just seem too low to be within rounding error IMO. A lot of people seem to be stuck in the 97-99% range on these new computers, which is also sort of annoying. But OP's values are just way too low. I'd put as many cycles as possible on it before the return period is up and see where that leaves you.

 

[Dominus Mortem]

You mean some app is currently reporting an estimate of 8938 mAh. It will likely bounce around.

It's been steady as a rock since around Nov. 25th, never more than a 10mAh swing either way. I've dealt with batteries of all kinds over the years and you do get a lemon once in a while.

 

[tomimar]

OP's estimates just seem too low to be within rounding error IMO. A lot of people seem to be stuck in the 97-99% range on these new computers, which is also sort of annoying. But OP's values are just way too low. I'd put as many cycles as possible on it before the return period is up and see where that leaves you.

I think Im kinda obsess with the battery yeah but the numbers seems a little low. I have time until January 8 so I will see and give it more cycles. Thank you for all your answers.

 

[vemac575]

I wouldn't think too hard about it, but if it bothers you, go get it replaced. The odds of you running in to ANY problems are little. Millions of people are happy with their machines. Don't let a place where a collective of people having problems post, deter you.

 

[itsamacthing]

in addition to the good comments above regarding NOT obsessing over your battery, it’s gonna be a year before these new macs are really stable - my 2017 is really stable today, was not in 2017. Just enjoy your machine and give Apple software time to catch up

 

[miroki]

I wouldnt keep it. Just way too low

 

[Howard2k]

So many complaints on this forum seem to be so absurd (“My MacBook looked at me funny”) but that amount of deviation is too much IMO. I would return it.

 

[soulreaver99]

You are going to return a laptop that's working great because of what a 3rd party battery app says instead of ACTUAL REAL WORLD usage? This is like spending thousands on a PC just to get the highest 3DMark score and never playing a single game on it.

 

[sat24]

You are going to return a laptop that's working great because of what a 3rd party battery app says instead of ACTUAL REAL WORLD usage? This is like spending thousands on a PC just to get the highest 3DMark score and never playing a single game on it.

My battery was reading 100% until the first 2 cycles and then it is down to 97.7%. It does suck, but I am doing a recalibration per that ifixit.com article so I can get an accurate measurement. But I see what you are saying. Worst case, if the battery falls below 80% I can get it exchanged under Applecare+ terms.

 

[Nacho98]

You are going to return a laptop that's working great because of what a 3rd party battery app says instead of ACTUAL REAL WORLD usage? This is like spending thousands on a PC just to get the highest 3DMark score and never playing a single game on it.

I'm pretty sure all Coconut does is pull data readily available and provided by Apple in System Report.

 

[khalitzy]

Here's mine, it never hit 100%, highest it's been was 99.7% and then it dropped to 96% for months and now 93-94%... how is yours now OP? this issue has had me obsessed too for the past months I've owned it :\.

 

[jeyf]

way back in time i bought the very first butterfly MBP.
the keyboard was very bad from the get go
the mac rumors forum said i must be doing something wrong with it
apple wanted $700 to replace the keyboard
there was a class action legal case that apple lost
i got my keyboard replaced free

you need to research some reset methods etc, they are well documented easy to do
maybe do the battery discharge thing
see if apple will exchange the battery


what if the battery starts a fire
i am VERY serious!