A few habits to maintain a good MacBook battery life: downloading not streaming, disconnecting from the network and Bluetooth when not in use, and reducing screen and keyboard brightness.
MacBook Battery Life
Apple has become a standard for innovative products and new technology. The MacBooks series sport a great overall performance. This includes an amazing battery life for all of the models that have been released up to date.
However, even when a product is good by itself, it is up to the user to make sure it stays in good condition. We have collected the best steps you can take to ensure the good health of your MacBooks battery.
MacBook Intel vs MacBook M1 Battery life:
The MacBook M1 series now belongs to an era of entirely new technology. The older models use Intel processors, and parts that differ from the newest MacBooks M1. Whether you are the owner of a MacBook prior to 2019 or one of the new 2020 MacBooks with the M1 chip; we have separated them so you understand better about the battery life of each.
MacBook 2019
The 2019 MacBooks sport a great battery life. The 13-inch MacBook Pro features a 58.2 Watt-Hour battery. This translates to about 11 hours of usage. This is one of the best time per usage results the battery test yielded.
These laptops also have a great cooling system. This ensures that the machine doesn’t overheat during continuous usage. The cooling system is a great feature in order to maintain long battery life.
Battery problems
There are some MacBooks pros that have been deemed as risky due to some battery issues. A small percentage present some overheating problems. If the laptop overheats, it may cause a fire. That is why the Apple Store has authorized the service providers to replace the affected batteries. They even have the option of mailing the computer for service.
MacBook M1
The newest MacBook with the M1 chip is being revered all over the net. The outstanding performance that exceeds Intels sped by 2.8x. The new laptop’s battery life is equally superb.
The Apple team proudly announced that the new MacBook’s battery was up to 11 hours of web browsing and playback. Some battery tests yielded epic results of above 14 hours. This all-day battery life comes in with amazing power from the M1 chip.
Battery Problem
Some users have reported low lasting battery for the new MacBooks. In 5 hours they say, the battery was down to 10%. These are unconfirmed reports, and so far there isn’t sufficient data to corroborate these allegations.
Experts theorize bad usage could lower the battery below expected and faster. That is why it is necessary to know how to treat your computer and what habits to endure in order to foster a healthy battery life
10 Steps to keep the MacBooks Battery in Good Health:
- Check your battery’s condition: The first thing is to determine if your battery is healthy at the moment. The simplest way to do this is to go to the Battery Menu and see if the condition is listed as “Normal” or “Replace Soon”. If it’s the latter, then take your MacBook for servicing. It will most likely be replaced.
- Cycle Count of your Battery: This will tell you how good your battery is performing at the moment. You can expect about 500 to 1,000 cycles before it loses 80% of the original capacity. To know its cycle count go to About this Mac. Click on More Information and in the left column select Power. Find Cycle Count in the Power menu.
- Use a good battery monitoring utility: There are a few utilities that monitor your Mac’s battery’s health. They will provide information as to what is the maximum capacity of your device. It will also notify when battery draining software is running.
- Calibrate your battery: Apple does not recommend leaving your Mac plugged all the time. And they recommend draining your battery and recharging it at least once a month. This basically is calibrating your battery. In other words, fully charging your computer, fully draining it, and finally, fully charging it again. This is supposed to maximize its full charge potential.
- Dim the lights: When dimming both the screen and keyboard light, you reduce battery stress. Unless you need to use the brightness to its full potential, the best is to have it on low or completely turn off.
- Stop sharing services: Only turn on this feature when necessary. From the System Preferences open Sharing settings. You can check if something unnecessary is turned on. The best energy-saving option is to have them all off by default and just manually opening them as needed.
- Block incoming connections: When you block incoming connections your apps won’t have to wake up constantly to run them. This background power usage is quite draining. Many major apps use like Messages, DropBox and FaceTime use these features. But, fear not, they can make an outbound connection just fine and won’t be rendered useless whatsoever.
- Disconnect from the network: Unless you’re using the Internet, it’s best to stay disconnected. Being online makes the Mac spend a large amount of energy. On top of the background processes, just being online makes the laptop work harder than needed.
- Turn Off Bluetooth: If you use a wireless keyboard and mouse, it’s best you start using a cable one. Keeping Bluetooth enabled spends quite a bit of battery. Make sure you have it turned off when not using it.
- Detach peripherals: Remember to take off SD cards or USB flash drives after using them. Don’t charge your other devices such as iPhones or iPads using the laptop’s ports. Anything attached to the computer will increase the drain exponentially. This even significantly lowers the battery’s health.
The Bottom Line
MacBooks have an amazing battery life, and overall a great performance. To maximize the years of life you can give your machine, remember to keep good habits. Doing actions to ensure a long healthy battery life can add years to your laptop, and a better user experience for you.
