[VuONG]

hi guys,

i recently replaced my macbook pro's battery because the last battery did not hold a charge pass 2 hrs and the health was very poor and it was only 6 months old.

they replaced my battery with a brand new one.

Last week wednesday i was able to have 3.5 hrs on a full charge and today i noticed that when i ran on battery power the estimate it gave me was at 1:56 hrs off a full charge.

i check my battery health and it is at 99% at only 16 cycles
at this moment im at 50% with less then 45 minutes left

i reset the pram and ive re-calibrated the battery twice...

whats wrong with my new battery? did i do something wrong?

please help...
thank you

[VuONG]

ps. im also getting some weird readings...

on my icon for the battery it says 1:19 to full charge but in my istat program it says 2:25 to full charge?

.... sooo annoy...

[dankar]

Is your bluetooth on? This drains battery. Do you have any other devices connected to it? Running any processor intensive softwares?

When I'm surfing the net outdoor with a 3.5G device connected via USB and with my monitor brightness set three bars down from max. I can surf around 2 hours plus. But if connect to a wi-fi hotspot I can extend it further to 3 hours.

On average, I get around 3-4 hours. Watching a DVD movies on ear-phones not speaker, I can finish watching a 2 hours DVD with 38% left.

Hope this helps. Check your blue tooth...

[Simon]

The easy things to check first:
• have you downloaded all recent software updates, especially the battery updates?
• reset the SMC and the PRAM
• recalibrate the battery (don't trust any battery time readings before you've done this properly)

If that doesn't help, use System Profiler to find out how much your full charge capacity is and how may cycles you have used up. Apple specifies that their batteries should retain 80% of their original capacity (that's around 5500 mAh for a new MBP battery) for the first 300 cycles. If you are getting less than that have Apple or an AASP exchange the battery for free under warranty.

[VuONG]

i did everything you guys sugguested at this momonent i have
5544 mah out of
5600 mah

err at i cant even get 2 hrs out of my macbook pro

my battery update is at version 1.3
i reset my SMC and my PRAM
and ive recalibrated my battery

even if i didnt recalibrate how do you lose almost an hr worth of battery life within a couple days?

thanks for the quick replies

ps. i've had it unplugged for literally 2 mins and its dropped from 100% to 97%....
also i have the battery setting on better battery life

no bluetooth is on but airport is working and i have a wireless mouse plugged in. but this shouldnt matter these are the usual settings i have and before i would be able to get at less 3 hrs out of a full charged battery and thats with full brightness and music playing....

[Simon]

So everything looks fine actually.

My guess is you didn't "lose an hour of battery within a couple of days" but you simply had an inaccurate reading before.

I would say under regular use you can easily get 3 hours with a MBP battery (4 if you turn all radios off and lower brightness). But if you crank up the brightness, use WiFi, and run CPU-intensive stuff it's not hard to get below 2 hours.

[VuONG]

remember this battery is less then 2 months old and only as 16 cycles on it.

im only surfing the web. the other test i did i was watching a dvd. and i cant push out more then 1:40 mins, thats well under 3 hrs with reg. usage. even with lowered brightness i cant get 2 hrs.

last week i was using my laptop to play music and surf the web casually with the WIFI on and i was on it for at less 3.5 hrs and i still had 45 mins of juice left...

this seems odd to me.

[ghporter]

I don't think it's all the battery's fault. If this is the second battery you've had longevity issues with, then maybe it's your Mac. I'd take this to the Apple Store and have someone look into it-unless they like giving you new batteries all the time.

[VuONG]

if it is my mac's fault what could be causing the problem?

i just did a another proper battery calibration it seems that only after 17 cycles my battery health dropped to 88% and is now only charging at 4984 of an orginial 5600?

do you think it still could be my battery or can it still be my computer and if it is my computer what could be causing this?

thank you

[AKcrab]

Could you clarify how you are doing "proper battery calibration"?

[VuONG]

1. Plug in the power adapter and fully charge your laptop'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.
2. 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.
3. 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 dialogue on the screen.
4. 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.
5. Turn off the computer or allow it to sleep for five hours or more.
6. Connect the power adapter and leave it connected until the battery is fully charged again.

[Simon]

What's the load on your CPU? What your CPU temp? Are your fans running all the time? Are AP and BT both turned on? Do you have any other peripherals or Express cards attached?

17 cycles and 4948 is still within spec. If it keep falling like that you will be eligible for a replacement soon though.

[VuONG]

cpu is idle at 45% with sarfari, and ichat cpu temp is at 75 degrees. My fans are not running all the time only when it gets hot. Only airport is turned on not bluetooth. and a wireless usb mouse is attached.

AP and a USB Mouse was attached before when i had regular battery life (3.5 hrs)

on my older battery even when i at 6 months it had a battery life of 3.5 hrs with 85% health

blah....

do you still think it may be my computer?

[Simon]

I'd take it in and have the technicians look at it.

[VuONG]

scheduled for sunday...

thanks for all the advice guys!

[ghporter]

For clarification, the MBP seems to either not be properly charging the battery, or (more likely) pulling a lot more current than it should for the usage you're putting it to or (a strong possibility) both. The battery is smart, but has to communicate with the computer's battery management system. If that system, or the Power Management Unit, or both, are hosed, then your batteries are doomed to an early death. The Genius should be able to do some tests to see if it's something that can be fixed with software or a command (as in resetting the PMU), or a hardware fix.

[VuONG]

well its the moment of truth. i have a new battery and its being charged right now and im going to calibrate it.

they tested my mac he said that it might be my dc connector or the power management unit.

but he gave me a neways new battery. and said that if the problem happens again that they are going to send it in.

heres the thing. awhile back i spilled soda onto my keyboard. i was wondering if this could of cause the problem? its been at less 3 months from that date since my first replacement of my battery. just wondering if that could be the cause of my problems. and if it is and i send it in for repairs will that cause me to void warranty or even worst will it cost me money to repair it?

[Simon]

Interesting you didn't mention spilling something into your MBP until now.

Apple will notice any damage due to liquids (corrosion). If they find any traces, the warranty and/or AC will be voided and you will be paying for the repairs yourself.

[VuONG]

well my computer was working fine for the past 3 months after the spill i didn't think that, that would effect or cause this problem.

how much do you think it would cost if i have to pay for the repairs?

[Simon]

A MLB costs around $600 IIRC.

[VuONG]

so you thin my logic board is going to have to be replaced? ...

ugh. thanks for all the info

[Simon]

Not necessarily. But if your new battery starts failing again, that would be one of things they might replace. Your AASP will be able to tell you more.

[VuONG]

yup, new battery is showing a charge time of only 1:50 hrs

it has to be something hardware related....

ps. what is a AASP?

[Chuckit]

Apple-Authorized Service Provider.

[VuONG]

psh. well how the fan is on alot and it feels like wear the ac connector meets the computer over the speaker it is really hot. Also if i take out the battery from the computer the fan stops spinning at a high rpm and returns back to normal.

could you guys help me to home in on the problem some more?

[ghporter]

Removing the battery automatically makes the computer switch to a lower processor speed, which also reduces the temperature of the processor. If you haven't already, find an app like "iStat Pro" and see what your actual temperatures are and post them. But I'll bet that they're kind of high, which is causing the fans to run. And the only way to get this problem really handled is to take the computer to an authorized shop and have it put on the bench.

[Simon]

There's not a whole lot more to home in on. Your MBP is busted. Take it in to an AASP and get a cost estimate for repair.

[VuONG]

CPU A: 77
GPU diode: 76
GPU heatstink: 71
HEAT stink A: 64
HET stink B: 50
MEM: 57

seems kinda high....

[VuONG]

Originally Posted by Simon 

There's not a whole lot more to home in on. Your MBP is busted. Take it in to an AASP and get a cost estimate for repair.

whats the point of posting this? i know my mac is broken. i just would like to know what is broken. this is suppose to be a technical forum, right? how technical is it to say that my mac is busted.

[Simon]

You gotta be kidding me. We can't disassemble your MBP here. The point is you should take it in so a technician can take a good look at it and determine what needs to be replaced and if you have to pay for it. If it's actually regular warranty repair why debate anything at all here? If not you can still discuss your options here once you know them. But just sitting around and playing the guessing game is not going to fix your MBP.

[ghporter]

Originally Posted by VuONG 

whats the point of posting this? i know my mac is broken. i just would like to know what is broken. this is suppose to be a technical forum, right? how technical is it to say that my mac is busted.

If the problem were a screw or a cover piece, sure, we could help you out. But it sounds like there's a problem with the logic board (that's the main board, or "motherboard") in your computer. Not only is it very tough to get at, it's not what you'd call "user serviceable." In fact, it's not really "serviceable" at all. If you take the computer to an authorized shop, they can determine whether it's something they can fix or whether they have to replace the logic board. That is the ONLY way to get your problem corrected.

[VuONG]

thanks for the clarity.