I recently purchased the new 13" Macbook Pro on Tuesday. I have been using it a lot but I still feel that the battery is draining way too quickly. I've already calibrated the battery as well as charged twice more since first buying it. I downloaded Coconut Battery and my current battery capacity is 5326 out of 5450 (actually, since I've typed this it went down to 5297). I charged it a few hours ago and it's at 51% at the moment but going down pretty quickly. I may just be a paranoid Mac user since it's my first ever Mac and I've been pretty anal when it comes to Mac. Is it normal? Any suggestions?
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New Macbook Pro Battery
- Thread starter mrbeaverhousen
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If you calibrated it then don't worry about it. If it's going down quickly in 2 weeks, let Apple know.
What are you usually doing on your computer?
If it is usually nothing that is CPU intensive, check your Activity Monitor to see if there are any stray processes that might be eating up CPU cycles.
If it is usually nothing that is CPU intensive, check your Activity Monitor to see if there are any stray processes that might be eating up CPU cycles.
I don't think I've done anything too strenuous. I transferred my songs and pictures from an external hard drive last night. Just done some web surfing, setting up e-mails, ichat, playing music and downloaded a few things like skype and photoshop. What level should the current battery capacity be at the moment?
Did you do all of that while on battery? Having an external drive plugged in draws power, and transferring files takes even more. Music has an impact to especially if you are using the speakers in comparison to using headphones. And also using the airport constantly (downloading large files) can have an effect on battery too.
In addition, if the backlight is all the way up, you can lose as many as two hours off of your battery life. Give the battery a week or two before you call Apple.
How long does the battery last on a full charge doing what you listed below?
How long does the battery last on a full charge doing what you listed below?
I haven't really paid attention to how long it lasts, but everything that I did was a one time thing. I don't keep the external hard drive always connected to the mac, just that one time when I wanted to transfer my music and pictures and that was it. I just finished using photoshop which drained the battery even more so I'm currently charging. I'll see how long it last now. Thanks for helpful tips. How about external speakers? Do those take less or more energy from the battery?
The built-in speakers, in my experience, drain about 30 mins of battery off of my PowerBook, which can last for 4-5 hours if I turn off AirPort and simply type into a Pages file with the backlight down to one bump. If the externals have a USB connection, I would imagine that you would lose a similar amount of battery unless they have a separate power adaptor. If it plugs into the headphone jack and has a power adaptor, it might drain 10-15 mins of battery.
Regardless of what you do, I would only expect the battery to last for six hours instead of seven. Apple's battery estimates have been rather optimistic in the past.
Regardless of what you do, I would only expect the battery to last for six hours instead of seven. Apple's battery estimates have been rather optimistic in the past.
Me too..
I think that I may be having the same problem. Coconut battery is indicating that I have 97% of my original capacity. I have only completed 4 cycles making sure to fully charge and fully drain each time. It's losing capacity too quickly.
I think that I may be having the same problem. Coconut battery is indicating that I have 97% of my original capacity. I have only completed 4 cycles making sure to fully charge and fully drain each time. It's losing capacity too quickly.
I doubt it. System Profiler doesn't give a 100% accurate reading every time anyways. Your battery is most likely fine.
It depends how much you use it and how long you've had it. In the System Profiler, power section, how many cycles does it say you have? If it is over about 400-500, your battery will start to die. If it is below that, then you may wish to call Apple. If it is 400+, then you'll need to buy a new battery. They are sleep swappable, so having an old one with even a half hour's worth of life can be useful.