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using a MBP as a desktop 90% of the time?

Whackintosh

Whackintosh

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Mar 8, 2009
435
14
Montreal, Quebec
I've been going back and forth between getting an Imac or a mini and am starting to wonder if I should instead be looking at getting a solid MBP and just using that 90% of the time at my desk with external monitor, keyboard etc. Is that a crazy thing to be considering? The MBP would give me greater flexibility in my options, but I wonder if for one, would I be killing the battery by having the unit plagged in 24/7 for most of any given year? Would I constantly be needing to fiddle with it just to turn it on and off (opening and closing the lid etc)? Could a laptop withstand the same kinds of usage (in terms of daily hours) as a proper desktop can? Any thoughts or advice would be terrific!
 
I use my 17" MBP as a desktop nearly 100% of the time

I have it on a Rain mStand (awesome)

mstand.gif


I keep it open and connected to a 23" ACD (excellent)
I use the dual screen side by side and love it

ACD23.JPG



Woof, Woof - Dawg
pawprint.gif
 
I do it all the time, but with a MB, not the Pro. You could always leave the battery out until you know you will need it soon. That way you can force the charging cycle.

You never have to open the lid. Just make sure that your bluetooth keyboard is set to wake the laptop from sleep (done in system preferences)
 
Whackintosh said:
I've been going back and forth between getting an Imac or a mini and am starting to wonder if I should instead be looking at getting a solid MBP and just using that 90% of the time at my desk with external monitor, keyboard etc. Is that a crazy thing to be considering? The MBP would give me greater flexibility in my options, but I wonder if for one, would I be killing the battery by having the unit plagged in 24/7 for most of any given year? Would I constantly be needing to fiddle with it just to turn it on and off (opening and closing the lid etc)? Could a laptop withstand the same kinds of usage (in terms of daily hours) as a proper desktop can? Any thoughts or advice would be terrific!
Click to expand...

i use mine pretty much as a desktop all the time. yes you will have to take care of the battery. but that really just involves unplugging it once and a while so that it can be used. also apple recommends calibrating it every month to 2 months. and for that other 10% you can take it with you or use it in bed. its just nice to hav that flexibility if you want it. so i would say go for it.
 
mcavjame said:
I do it all the time, but with a MB, not the Pro. You could always leave the battery out until you know you will need it soon. That way you can force the charging cycle.

You never have to open the lid. Just make sure that your bluetooth keyboard is set to wake the laptop from sleep (done in system preferences)
Click to expand...

unfortunately you can not take the battery out as the system will not work at its full potential. the processor will go down to 1ghz if this is done.
 
Whackintosh said:
Would that mean that after a year of normal home use, my battery may be nearly killed and of diminished:apple: capacity?
Click to expand...

the way that i do it is let it charge up to 100% leave the ac adaptor in for two days. then let it run on battery power until it gets around 30%. plug it back in charge use the ac adaptor for two days ect ect....

using this method i got my iBook to last for 3 years until the battery went capooey on me
 
I use my MBP plugged in most of the time. I average a full charge/discharge cycle about every week to ten days. My previous PowerBook only saw a full cycle maybe twice a month. The only time I ever had a battery problem was with a faulty battery that was acknowledged by Apple and replaced.
 
ViciousShadow21 said:
the way that i do it is let it charge up to 100% leave the ac adaptor in for two days. then let it run on battery power until it gets around 30%. plug it back in charge use the ac adaptor for two days ect ect....

using this method i got my iBook to last for 3 years until the battery went capooey on me
Click to expand...

Except I think he wants the benefit of the big screen and the unit has to be plugged in to use the screen with the lid closed.
 
Running on your MBP batteries is not a big deal with the MagSafe connector, is it that hard to disconnect it once in a while?
The battery is replacebale anyway, I do prefer the flexibility of the portable over the desktops.
I have a MacBook and a MacBook Pro, I think I will never go back to a Desktop unless I have a portable also.
 
I have a Powerbook I've used virtually exclusively on a stand as a desktop for five years. I've used battery power for no more than a maximum of just twenty hours since I've had it. The rest of the time the computer has been continually connected to the power socket. The battery indicator presently reads 98%.
 
Sir Cecil said:
I have a Powerbook I've used virtually exclusively on a stand as a desktop for five years. I've used battery power for no more than a maximum of just twenty hours since I've had it. The rest of the time the computer has been continually connected to the power socket. The battery indicator presently reads 98%.
Click to expand...

The real trick is to unplug and see how much time you get out of the battery.
 
Whackintosh said:
Would that mean that after a year of normal home use, my battery may be nearly killed and of diminished:apple: capacity?
Click to expand...

My nearly 5 year old PowerBook was used normally for a few years, then over the past two it has been sitting on my kitchen counter plugged in 24x7. In fact I'm posting from it right now. I take no special precautions and I don't do any monthly battery rituals.

It's currently at 93% health on the original battery. Take it for what it's worth... just a single data point. But even if you have a different experience, it's just a battery.
 
I've been using my MBP as a desktop since I got it last May. I'm pretty much in the same situation that you're contemplating.
As the others have said, the battery needs to be run down every once in a while (just like with any other notebook).
I don't know what you mean by having to constantly fiddle with it. However, it's only in rare situations that I've had to restart or turn my computer off completely.
Since I've only had this Mac for less than a year, I can't speak to its ability to last, but I'm sure there are others who can.

Best of luck with whatever you choose.
 
This is kind of the situation I'm facing.

I want to buy a ACD but I'm also in my 14 day return period so I'm considering options.

I have found that after buying a MBP 15" I am mostly using it at a desk, and for the future that will probably be the same 90% of the time. However, those times of taking out from the desk will happen, like now, Im using it in bed...but that's just lazyness!


So I am wondering if I should get the ACD, and I would want to have the book closed all the time when using it, or if I should return for an iMac.

Someone has said above, that you HAVE to have the charger from the ACD plugged into the MBP at all times to use it with the lid closed, this is true then?? - Makes a big difference, Im not sure there will be enough times that I need to disconnect the MBP to use its batteries :-S
 
you'll only regret it if you do end up exhanging it for an iMac - your mbp can do pretty much everything an iMac can do, with the added portability, so why change it?

sods law, you'll take it back then something will come up meaning you need a computer in some far away place - maybe unlikely but surely it's nice to have the option?
 
Keep it. I keep mine as a 'desktop' most of the time. However, every now and then when you feel like taking it outside or putting it on the couch while you watch the hockey game is priceless and cannot be done on an iMac :p
 
Manwithnoname said:
Someone has said above, that you HAVE to have the charger from the ACD plugged into the MBP at all times to use it with the lid closed, this is true then??
Click to expand...

If I understand correctly what you are asking, an external monitor will not run in clamshell (closed lid mode) on battery power but only when the magsafe is connected and plugged in.
 
Yeah you can use it as a desktop replacement. The only suggestion I have for you is to occasionally run the unit without the magsafe adapter to drain the battery down. That will keep it from completely dieing out after a couple of years.

I see that problem more often then not. People come in complaining that their battery won't hold a charge for long. I then ask them how long they have it and if they use it plugged in all the time. Normally I get two or three years and then a yes. :/
 
I haven't had a regular desktop in 2 years. I've had an HP NC6400, a Thinkpad T61p workstation laptop, and now the MBP.

I couldn't be happier. My whole digital life travels with me everywhere (though it's backed up in the office and at home too) and it makes things much more productive for me.

I use to split my time between a laptop and a workstation tower, and it was just too convoluted to keep documents and data straight, even with syncing apps.
 
mcavjame said:
I do it all the time, but with a MB, not the Pro. You could always leave the battery out until you know you will need it soon. That way you can force the charging cycle.
Click to expand...

no you can't. if you don't have a battery in, the cpu downclocks to 1 ghz
 
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