MBP (Late 2012) Battery problems

[riptide747]

My MBP is only getting 4-5 hours of battery without having anything open and my maximum battery is degrading rapidly.

Should I try and get a replacement battery or is this normal? My friend who bought the exact same computer as me is getting up to 7 hours of battery per charge. I've reset the SMC and it didn't do anything.

 

[bobcan]

Hmmm.. Tough to say/ compare the two..

VERY Dependent upon what exactly you are Making It Do for those times to be relevant.. if you were doing 'exactly the same chores' with both computers, then the comparison would be valid..

I can have my 2011 MBP (which has 360+ cycles as of today) last for 5-6 hours while noodling around, or 2 1/2 hrs if making it WORK very hard.. Much like Fuel Economy in a vehicle, it is really HOW you Drive!!

 

[phillyfan9090]

Does anyone know if the 13 and 15 inch rMBPs get the same battery life?

 

[w00t951]

1. Check Activity Monitor for any processor intensive programs.
2. Check in Apple -> About -> More Info -> Graphics to see if you're using the Intel or NVIDIA graphics processor. While the NVIDIA processor is much more powerful, it also consumes more energy. Certain programs will trigger the NVIDIA graphics processor, shortening your battery life.

I'm willing to bet your problem lies in one of the above steps.

 

[riptide747]

1. Check Activity Monitor for any processor intensive programs.
2. Check in Apple -> About -> More Info -> Graphics to see if you're using the Intel or NVIDIA graphics processor. While the NVIDIA processor is much more powerful, it also consumes more energy. Certain programs will trigger the NVIDIA graphics processor, shortening your battery life.

I'm willing to bet your problem lies in one of the above steps.

I have an Intel HD 4000, no NVIDIA graphics.

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VERY Dependent upon what exactly you are Making It Do for those times to be relevant.. if you were doing 'exactly the same chores' with both computers, then the comparison would be valid..

I can have my 2011 MBP (which has 360+ cycles as of today) last for 5-6 hours while noodling around, or 2 1/2 hrs if making it WORK very hard.. Much like Fuel Economy in a vehicle, it is really HOW you Drive!!

Anything with intensive purposes (gaming, video editing) I stay plugged in, but on the internet or watching a movie I keep it unplugged.

 

[w00t951]

I have an Intel HD 4000, no NVIDIA graphics.

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Anything with intensive purposes (gaming, video editing) I stay plugged in, but on the internet or watching a movie I keep it unplugged.

Oh, so you've got a 13" MacBook? Alright then.

Intel and other x86 architecture processors differ significantly from ARM mobile processors in their video decoding process. Long story short, watching video, especially if playing through VLC, is a huge battery drain. I can only watch MKV's at 75% brightness for about 5 hours before my 2011 15" MacBook Pro drains to 0.

That being said, I get like 6 hours of heavy Internet usage + constant iTunes playback on my 2011 15" MacBook Pro.

I suppose you could figure out what part of your usage is making the battery drain so quickly. If it's not obvious, Activity Monitor is your friend.