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MBPbattery - 19 cycles and 66% health???

D

dcains

macrumors regular
Original poster
Mar 27, 2007
192
0
Hi Group:

95% of the time my MBP sits on my desk, always plugged into the AC adapter, and it's ~13 months old. I haven't done the battery calibration routine in maybe 6 months, but iStat showed battery charge and health both at 100%. So, last night I watched a few DVD movies to start the calibration "drain" and then went to bed with Sirius radio on to kill the rest of the battery. After letting the battery recharge all day, iStat shows 19 cycles, 100% charge, but only 66% health! Leopard's system info also shows 19 cycles and 100% charge, but it says "check battery" under health.

Anyone know what's happened here? Was the battery likely at 100% health before the calibration, and/or did the calibration damage it? Is this a warranty issue? I've got Apple Care, but I want to make certain I describe properly to them what's going on (and hopefully that I didn't cause the damage).

My wife has a MB, which is about a month newer than this MBP, and I was going to calibrate the battery on that one, too, but now I'm afraid to. Thanks in advance for any assistance you guys may offer.

Dean
 
I think that Apple's guarantee on batteries is up to a year or like 300 cycles (could be wrong on that part). They might not cover it.
 
Thanks guys. I'll call Apple in the AM and see what they have to say. Looking at other threads just now, it seems their policy on batteries and warranty replacement has some "flexibility" in how it's implemented. Seems like with only 19 cycles, though, that I've got somewhat of a chance for a replacement.
 
i have around 30 cycles on my macbook pro, and am at 98% health, never calibrated...

definitely call applecare.
 
Hey, I am just wondering. When Apple does agree to replace a battery, do they just send you a new one, or do they make you send in your whole computer?

I am at 14 cycles, 91% health, does that give me a replacement?
 
I think my battery's health went down too after I calibrated it today. I already calibrated the battery twice this month.

I have 15 cycles and only 96% health. Is this normal and would i be eligible for a replacement? After the first calibration, its capacity was ~5300-54000 not its ~5100-5200. This is seriously concerning me. :confused:
 
I wouldn't be worried (or pissed) if mine was anywhere in 90% range, but I'm really unhappy at 66% and 19 cycles. Here are the specific details from the system profiler:

Charge Information:
Charge remaining (mAh): 3473
Fully charged: Yes
Charging: No
Full charge capacity (mAh): 3632
Health Information:
Cycle count: 19
Condition: Check battery
Battery Installed: Yes
Amperage (mA): 0
Voltage (mV): 12357

Obviously, it's not accepting anything near a full charge (5500 mAh), although the battery charge indicator says it's at 96% right now. Maybe somehow the calibration wasn't accurate, and the charging cycle is ending too soon? I'll ask Apple about that when I speak to them. I'm hoping it's that simple, because just before the calibration health was 100% and I had a 5500mAh charge. Seems odd that such a thing should happen the way it did.
 
Hmm...

dcains said:
I wouldn't be worried (or pissed) if mine was anywhere in 90% range, but I'm really unhappy at 66% and 19 cycles. Here are the specific details from the system profiler:
..........

Obviously, it's not accepting anything near a full charge (5500 mAh), although the battery charge indicator says it's at 96% right now. Maybe somehow the calibration wasn't accurate, and the charging cycle is ending too soon? I'll ask Apple about that when I speak to them. I'm hoping it's that simple, because just before the calibration health was 100% and I had a 5500mAh charge. Seems odd that such a thing should happen the way it did.
Click to expand...

I am not certain with the Apple Batt's, but as a USER of several Rechargeable Devices I am certain that you "should use the Battery somewhat to Help it's Health... even though Lith ION technology is better than ever!! If you really are only going to Cycle it 19 times in 13 months you may also not require a MBP I am guessing... ?? :confused:

Perhaps the Battery may "get some zip back" if you do a few Full Cycles and recalibrate it..?? On the otherhand, the Battery may well ONLY have a year Warranty I believe, even though the Low Cycle # they :apple: may not want to talk about it... :(

I frequently (once a month) completely drain mine (I have Main and Spare as well...) and my last battery (first Gen 1.83GHz MBP) had near 175 cycles and near 90% when I sold the machine... pretty decent I thought!!!

Please keep us informed on this... Hope it goes well!!!
 
I've had my computer for two weeks and I'm at 25 cycles, 99% health. Is 25 cycles a lot for two weeks? Is there a good way to reduce cycles or is it just because I use my MBP a lot?
 
Just like a Gas Tank/ Gauge...

orangeillini14 said:
I've had my computer for two weeks and I'm at 25 cycles, 99% health. Is 25 cycles a lot for two weeks? Is there a good way to reduce cycles or is it just because I use my MBP a lot?
Click to expand...

The Cycles only state "How many times you Fill/ Empty the Battery" so to speak... If you need and are using the MBP in a Portable Sense then that's what you will see... you may perhaps want to "Run it right down" before putting back on Charge sometimes though. You must often Recharge sometime thru the day to get to 25/ 14 days..??? Such is Life... Enjoy it!! :D
 
*update*

Well, maybe my MBP just needed a good night's sleep? Checked the battery just now, and it's back to normal:

Charge Information:
Charge remaining (mAh): 5479
Fully charged: Yes
Charging: No
Full charge capacity (mAh): 5479
Health Information:
Cycle count: 19
Condition: Good
Battery Installed: Yes
Amperage (mA): 12
Voltage (mV): 12596

iStat shows health at 99%, too. Not sure why, though. After the calibration yesterday I did restart the system, and that's when I first saw the bad results. Last night I shut the system down before bed, started it just now, and all is well. Guess I'll just leave it alone and not bother calling Apple.

Dean
 
bobcan said:
The Cycles only state "How many times you Fill/ Empty the Battery" so to speak... If you need and are using the MBP in a Portable Sense then that's what you will see... you may perhaps want to "Run it right down" before putting back on Charge sometimes though. You must often Recharge sometime thru the day to get to 25/ 14 days..??? Such is Life... Enjoy it!! :D
Click to expand...

Yeah, I've been waiting till it's at about 10% battery life until I plug it back in.
 
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