MBP battery help, please

[Justin-]

Reading over this had me thinking, so I checked my own battery stats and I got my 15" back in September 2007 and I have the following in mine:

Battery Information:

  Model Information:
  Serial Number:	SMP-ASMB012-370b-dea
  Manufacturer:	SMP
  Device name:	ASMB012
  Pack Lot Code:	0002
  PCB Lot Code:	0000
  Firmware Version:	0102
  Hardware Revision:	0500
  Cell Revision:	0200
  Charge Information:
  Charge remaining (mAh):	4876
  Fully charged:	Yes
  Charging:	No
  Full charge capacity (mAh):	4939
  Health Information:
  Cycle count:	69
  Condition:	Good
  Battery Installed:	Yes
  Amperage (mA):	0
  Voltage (mV):	12520

Is this good for a battery less than a year old?

[Cara Veteran]

Reading over this had me thinking, so I checked my own battery stats and I got my 15" back in September 2007 and I have the following in mine:

Battery Information:

  Model Information:
  Serial Number:	SMP-ASMB012-370b-dea
  Manufacturer:	SMP
  Device name:	ASMB012
  Pack Lot Code:	0002
  PCB Lot Code:	0000
  Firmware Version:	0102
  Hardware Revision:	0500
  Cell Revision:	0200
  Charge Information:
  Charge remaining (mAh):	4876
  Fully charged:	Yes
  Charging:	No
  Full charge capacity (mAh):	4939
  Health Information:
  Cycle count:	69
  Condition:	Good
  Battery Installed:	Yes
  Amperage (mA):	0
  Voltage (mV):	12520

Is this good for a battery less than a year old?

I'd say it's a bit low for the cycle count, have you calibrated the battery regularly?

[Justin-]

I haven't since last year. :/ I've been meaning to, but don't you have to keep it powered on for 2 hours, then drain the battery completely and then wait 5 hours to turn it back on? I've just not found the time yet, but I'll try to do that within the next day or two and see if that helps bring the numbers back up.

[Cara Veteran]

I haven't since last year. :/ I've been meaning to, but don't you have to keep it powered on for 2 hours, then drain the battery completely and then wait 5 hours to turn it back on? I've just not found the time yet, but I'll try to do that within the next day or two and see if that helps bring the numbers back up.

I'd suggest it, it will help keep your battery from degrading worse. :)

For reference the instructions are below.

MacBook Pro (all models), and MacBook Pro (17-inch) (all models)

The battery calibration for the PowerBook G4 (15-inch Double-Layer SD) and any model of MacBook or MacBook Pro has been updated because of a new battery released with this computer. With these computers, follow these steps to calibrate your battery:

Plug in the power adapter and fully charge your PowerBook's battery until the light ring or LED on the power adapter plug changes to green and the onscreen meter in the menu bar indicates that the battery is fully charged.

Allow the battery to rest in the fully charged state for at least two hours. You may use your computer during this time as long as the adapter is plugged in.

Disconnect the power adapter with the computer still on and start running the computer off battery power. You may use your computer during this time. When your battery gets low, you will see the low battery warning dialog on the screen.

Continue to keep your computer on until it goes to sleep. Save all your work and close all applications when the battery gets very low, before the computer goes to sleep.

Turn off the computer or allow it to sleep for five hours or more.

Connect the power adapter and leave it connected until the battery is fully charged again.

[Justin-]

  Charge Information:
  Charge remaining (mAh):	4879
  Fully charged:	Yes
  Charging:	No
  Full charge capacity (mAh):	4905
  Health Information:
  Cycle count:	70
  Condition:	Good
  Battery Installed:	Yes
  Amperage (mA):	0
  Voltage (mV):	12544

I did that overnight, and the numbers didn't improve -- is this normal and something I shouldn't worry about it?

Also, is it normal for the charger light to just go off and stop working? If I unplug it and plug it back into the laptop, it comes back on usually. If I ever get the chance to go to an Apple store, I thought about taking it in and asking, but I'm over 2 hours away from one.

[Cara Veteran]

  Charge Information:
  Charge remaining (mAh):	4879
  Fully charged:	Yes
  Charging:	No
  Full charge capacity (mAh):	4905
  Health Information:
  Cycle count:	70
  Condition:	Good
  Battery Installed:	Yes
  Amperage (mA):	0
  Voltage (mV):	12544

I did that overnight, and the numbers didn't improve -- is this normal and something I shouldn't worry about it?

Also, is it normal for the charger light to just go off and stop working? If I unplug it and plug it back into the laptop, it comes back on usually. If I ever get the chance to go to an Apple store, I thought about taking it in and asking, but I'm over 2 hours away from one.

Your battery is still showing in the 'Good' range so Apple won't replace it, however keep your eye on it closely to make sure you don't keep suffering major drops in capacity. It does look a bit low as I said though. :)

[CPressland]

Also, is it normal for the charger light to just go off and stop working? If I unplug it and plug it back into the laptop, it comes back on usually. If I ever get the chance to go to an Apple store, I thought about taking it in and asking, but I'm over 2 hours away from one.

Happens to me all the time mate

[juless]

Currently calibrating my new battery (which was replaced for free, thank goodness) for its first time :) yay! Hope this doesn't happen again for me, I plan on calibrating it regularly and using the battery more frequently to keep it going. The Genius said that keeping it plugged in for extended periods of time shouldn't do anything to the battery, but I plan on keeping it unplugged during times where I'm not around for more than a few hours (sleep, work, etc).

Thanks for all your help!

[Cara Veteran]

Currently calibrating my new battery (which was replaced for free, thank goodness) for its first time :) yay! Hope this doesn't happen again for me, I plan on calibrating it regularly and using the battery more frequently to keep it going. The Genius said that keeping it plugged in for extended periods of time shouldn't do anything to the battery, but I plan on keeping it unplugged during times where I'm not around for more than a few hours (sleep, work, etc).

Thanks for all your help!

Truth be told I always have my MBP plugged in if I'm not truly mobile, no trouble ever. That being said, keep up on your calibrations and I think that battery will serve you well!

Glad everything was resolved for you!

[sk3]

Hm mine shows 90% with coconutbattery from a laptop bought last august... Is it bad? I don't know why got so low because before was like 95-98%. i don't use it for mobility THAT much...

Sorry to reply to an old post but this got me interested because battery life got me a little worried since...

[Guest]

Hm mine shows 90% with coconutbattery from a laptop bought last august... Is it bad? I don't know why got so low because before was like 95-98%. i don't use it for mobility THAT much...

Sorry to reply to an old post but this got me interested because battery life got me a little worried since...

Calibrate the battery.

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1490

There's some good tips in this thread. Is it advisable to leave my MacBook turned OFF over night, but plugged into the mains? The battery is already fully charged.

[Cara Veteran]

Calibrate the battery.

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1490

There's some good tips in this thread. Is it advisable to leave my MacBook turned OFF over night, but plugged into the mains? The battery is already fully charged.

Once your Battery reaches approximately 95-98% it will halt charging and switch to the power adapter to prevent overcharge, doesn't matter if the machine is on or off. :)

[sk3]

Well i haven't used the battery for about 2 months (maybe 2 or 3 times but not for long) and i checked coconutbattery today and the battery is 86%!

here are the info about the battery

Battery Information:

Model Information:

Serial Number: Sony-ASMB012-36dd-9de8

Manufacturer: Sony

Device name: ASMB012

Pack Lot Code: 0003

PCB Lot Code: 0000

Firmware Version: 102a

Hardware Revision: 0500

Cell Revision: 0303

Charge Information:

Charge remaining (mAh): 2011

Fully charged: No

Charging: No

Full charge capacity (mAh): 4775

Health Information:

Cycle count: 67

Condition: Good

Battery Installed: Yes

Amperage (mA): -2987

Voltage (mV): 10911

im going to imediatly calibrate my battery so i can check the values later. i hope it fixes...

ive made calibrations in the past but it didn't work either. maybe im doing something wrong... ill check that link and do like they say. i'll post info later :)

[sk3]

Here i am again... with not very good news...

Before calibration the battery was like 85%. and now is 80%. I don't get it. I didn't used it that much for the battery being is this state.

Battery Information:

Model Information:

Serial Number: Sony-ASMB012-36dd-9de8

Manufacturer: Sony

Device name: ASMB012

Pack Lot Code: 0003

PCB Lot Code: 0000

Firmware Version: 102a

Hardware Revision: 0500

Cell Revision: 0303

Charge Information:

Charge remaining (mAh): 4447

Fully charged: Yes

Charging: No

Full charge capacity (mAh): 4447

Health Information:

Cycle count: 68

Condition: Good

Battery Installed: Yes

Amperage (mA): 149

Voltage (mV): 12616

Something's not right here :/

EDIT: will another calibration get this right?

EDIT2: sorry for the fast edits but something funny happen.

After the last edit the power cord got out, and then i plugged in, but the battery changed:

Battery Information:

Model Information:

Serial Number: Sony-ASMB012-36dd-9de8

Manufacturer: Sony

Device name: ASMB012

Pack Lot Code: 0003

PCB Lot Code: 0000

Firmware Version: 102a

Hardware Revision: 0500

Cell Revision: 0303

Charge Information:

Charge remaining (mAh): 4798

Fully charged: Yes

Charging: No

Full charge capacity (mAh): 4800

Health Information:

Cycle count: 68

Condition: Good

Battery Installed: Yes

Amperage (mA): -462

Voltage (mV): 12357

Does HEAT affect the battery? the cpu got 100% while writing this (ioreg process don't know why - from a google search that's something about battery cycles or something)

Edited July 25, 2008 by sk3

[sk3]

Well as i was expecting... today i found that the condition of my battery was "Check Battery".

Looks like i'm out of luck. i'll try to contact the reseller on my country so i could get this replaced.