rMBP Battery Life Rant/Opinion

[alt]

I feel like they shouldn't say "up to 10 hours" when OSX only shows an OPTIMAL 8. I'm not saying that the number matters but...Powering up the new lappy and seeing "8:00 Remaining", knowing that the number is always way higher than it really is, kinda saddens me.

That is all.

Oh, and I don't even get close to 8.

 

[stuaz]

I think thats why they chose to hide the option of showing battery time in the task bar as you would notice it more!

(And yes I know that the time changing is dependent on what you are doing, etc blah blah).

 

[jedolley]

Where do you get "up to 10 hours"?

 

[RussellJones]

because it states 'up' to 10 hours, this applies when brightness is at the lowest and no applications running, you might then just get 10 hours.

 

[wiznet]

I get 8, but it depends what I'm doing. Sometimes, I only get 5.

Don't trust the counter, as its estimates change frequently. And yes, Apple advertises 7 hours, not 10.

 

[jedolley]

because it states 'up' to 10 hours, this applies when brightness is at the lowest and no applications running, you might then just get 10 hours.

I get that, but there should be no expectation that it will give you 10 hours if Apple has stated 7hrs (that's just wireless web use). I drive a Ford F-150 and just because my fuel economy estimate is currently reading 30mpg, I have no expectation that I am going to get that since I know it's more like 15-18mpg.

 

[alt]

I get that, but there should be no expectation that it will give you 10 hours if Apple has stated 7hrs (that's just wireless web use). I drive a Ford F-150 and just because my fuel economy estimate is currently reading 30mpg, I have no expectation that I am going to get that since I know it's more like 15-18mpg.

Yeah, actually I was wrong. I could have swore when I was looking at the store it listed it as 10...must have been something else haha. I knew would be too much to expect anyway. But yeah, the store says 7 hours. So I am happy again.


Also, I think Spotify is a severe battery drainer. Anyone noticed?

 

[JDeezy808]

hmmm... ive updated to 10.8.2 but i still only get about 5-6 hours for battery levels. Check the max capacity and its only been a few cycles from MaxCap... does anyone else have a 768SSD, is this the culprit of my battery lifespan?

 

[RussellJones]

I get that, but there should be no expectation that it will give you 10 hours if Apple has stated 7hrs (that's just wireless web use). I drive a Ford F-150 and just because my fuel economy estimate is currently reading 30mpg, I have no expectation that I am going to get that since I know it's more like 15-18mpg.

I know this now, when i made this post I thought that apple had advertised 10 hours. I just know when manufacturers claim high battery life, they often dont live up to them in real. My old samsung notebook was meant to get 9hrs, i probably got 4hrs max. although i could get nine running nothing on min brightness

 

[Dark Void]

The rMBP is advertised at 7 hours.

In any case that's not the exact amount you will receive.

 

[Dangerous Theory]

I'm pretty sure the "up to 10 hours" was quite a few years ago when they changed how they performed battery tests to be more realistic. The RMBP is advertised as 7 hours.

 

[Ryan T.]

Also, I think Spotify is a severe battery drainer. Anyone noticed?

Of course it is. Any steaming media will be.

 

[biscuitsxluv]

Not trying to be captain obvious here, I read on here that after the update we should calibrate.. someone got close to 8 hours.

I will be doing that soon. My battery is at 17 percent right now.

 

[alt]

Of course it is. Any steaming media will be.

Yeah, I realize that but it seems to be worse than others...

 

[GGJstudios]

I feel like they shouldn't say "up to 10 hours" when OSX only shows an OPTIMAL 8. I'm not saying that the number matters but...Powering up the new lappy and seeing "8:00 Remaining", knowing that the number is always way higher than it really is, kinda saddens me.

From the BATTERY LIFE FROM A CHARGE section of the following link:

• Your "time remaining" indication is an ever-changing estimate, based on the current workload of your system. It will fluctuate up and down from minute to minute as your power demands change. It is not perfectly accurate, but only an estimate.

There are many factors that impact your battery life. See the BATTERY LIFE FROM A CHARGE section of the following link for details, including tips on how to maximize your battery life.

The link below should answer most, if not all, of your battery/charging questions. If you haven't already done so, I highly recommend you take the time to read it.

Apple Notebook Battery FAQ​

Not trying to be captain obvious here, I read on here that after the update we should calibrate.. someone got close to 8 hours.

The built-in batteries in the newer Mac unibody notebooks come pre-calibrated and do not require regular calibration like the removable batteries in older Apple notebooks.

 

[Woodcrest64]

I have been doing a lot of research into the whole Retina Macbook Battery issue since I got mine back in August.

I was typically getting between 3.5 to 4.5 hours on a full charge. With 10.8.2 and the EFI release for the rMBP I got somewhat of an improvement to about 5 hours. However I have since reset my SMC and so far I got 3 hours and 12 minutes of use with 50% battery still left.

I have been using VM Fusion with Windows 7 and been watching a few youtube videos. Both of which do eat at the battery. VM Fusion though is quite a battery drainer though.