battery issue!!!

[tsap]

The last two times I had my mac running on battery...it shut down for no reason (first time at around 45% of the battery left and today at 65%)!! I was looking at some battery exchange that Apple did or is doing for some specific serial number batteries, but mine was not in the category.

Is it time to change it?? I have it for about a year now (2.16, 128MB, and upgraded to 2GB). I didn't think I would have to change it so soon.

Also, I have been wondering for some time..I keep hearing people saying that when you have the pc or mac plugged in, you should take out the battery. is this a good idea?

 

[plinden]

How many charge cycles have you gone through? Install Coconut Battery and tell us the battery health.

You might be covered by http://www.apple.com/support/macbook_macbookpro/batteryupdate/

 

[tsap]

It's gone through 57 cycles and the battery's current capacity is at 87% (4834mAh).....

I am assuming that is good. why did it shut down then?
confused...

 

[klymr]

Mine has started doing the same thing, but at about 30%.

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/363421/

There seems to be a lot of batteries with problems all of a sudden. Weird.

 

[plinden]

It's gone through 57 cycles and the battery's current capacity is at 87% (4834mAh).....

I am assuming that is good. why did it shut down then?
confused...

Have you calibrated it recently? It may be actually be lower than 87% if it's shutting off at between 45% and 65%.

 

[tsap]

in order for the battery to be calibrated, it has to go all the way down and then turn it off. mine shut down at 59% and when I came back 5 hours later, after I plugged it into the power, it turned on without having to press the button.

I am getting confused. also, this morning I ran the coconut battery and saw that it was at 4834mAh (where it "maxes" out; 10 month-old mac) and now half a day later, it is at 4815mAh...lol...in this rate I'll need a battery in a couple of months.

heck...I think I need a battery right now!
Oh well...any more ideas are more than welcome!!!

thanks...

 

[flopticalcube]

Did you set sleep to "Never" when you calibrated? It may have simply gone to sleep and 5 hours of sleep is only a few % of battery usage.

 

[tsap]

Yes! i had it set at "Never". It turned off and when i turned it back on (after I plugged the power cable) it was at 62%! I have a feeling it wouldn't turn on without it being plugged to the power!
now the max capacity is at 4639mAh!!

new battery some time soon huh?

 

[schmons]

I also have a 2.16 MBP and I was having the same exact problem!!
My MBP would shut down with 50% battery left. I also got around 1 hour battery life per charge.

But there was just a battery firmware update that seemed to fix all of this. my battery life went from 1 hr to 2:30 after the update so I assume it might be fixed.

 

[tsap]

miracle!!!

lol...i just got this update (some firmware; 1.3 ver) that after i restarted the mac...the current max capacity is at 5467mAh (out of 5500!!)...so, if you dont hear from me again...it means that it runs fine.
I'll let it run on battery tomorrow (time to get some sleep!) and hope it'll be just fine!!

thanks for all the help!

 

[tsap]

back..........

I tried to run my mac on battery power...right at 87%...it shut down! it turned off the moment I went to open the system preferences!! the very moment i clicked on the icon...maybe coincidence. anyway...

When I pushed the button to turn it back on...it wouldn't load the OS...i tried 2-3 times but still wouldn't load. It would just turn off again without even loading Macintosh! Then....when I plugged it to the power...it works fine!!!

Could it be an OS problem? Would leopard save me (when is the new OS coming out anyway???), or is it just a battery matter?

Man, this is confusing! please help!

it's good I haven't done any traveling the past month and I always have the mac at home!

 

[Hockeypuck]

Like Plinden said, you guys are probably covered under this:
http://www.apple.com/support/macbook_macbookpro/batteryupdate/

Take it to a genius bar or a service provider. I replace tons of these for this problem.

 

[tsap]

already did that...i guess I am gonna have to take it to an AASP! if anyone has any more ideas...fill me in!

 

[Hockeypuck]

Yes, but below the information about the update:

Next Steps

To participate in this worldwide program, your MacBook or MacBook Pro battery must show the symptoms noted above. If it does, please make a reservation to bring your computer and battery to your local Apple Retail Store, or contact an Apple Authorized Service Provider (AASP), or call your local Apple Support Contact Center. The U.S. support number is 1-800-275-2273. If you are located outside the U.S., please see Apple's international contact list for your local Apple Technical Support phone number. An Apple technical support representative or an Apple Authorized Service Provider (AASP) will determine if the battery is eligible for replacement, free of charge. Customers are responsible for transportation costs to eligible AASPs and retail stores.

If a replacement battery is sent to you via airmail, it is important that you return the older battery to Apple so that it can be properly recycled.

This program extends repair coverage on the battery for up to two years from the date of purchase of the computer for Intel Core Duo-based MacBook and MacBook Pro computers. Apple will continue to evaluate the battery update program and will provide further extensions as needed. Apple also reserves the right to modify the program if other solutions that address the battery performance issues become available.

 

[tsap]

i read that...thanks! the good part in this is that the only AASP that we have in my country...is about 5 miles from house...haha!!

will give 'em a call tomorrow!
thanks...

 

[Hockeypuck]

Ah, sorry. From what you said it sounded like you missed the part about being able to get a replacement

Happy appleing!

 

[tsap]

i did check for the battery replacement...its serial number doesn't match the batch they are replacing! thanks though