If you already own or intend to own a MacBook
at any point in the future, do yourself a favour and watch this entire video from start
to finish. I’m going to tell you exactly how to care
for the battery in your MacBook, how often you should charge it, what are some best practices,
and should you unplug it when you’re not using it. This video is based entirely off official
Apple documentation, respected sources, and my own personal experience over 10 years of
using MacBooks. I’ll try to reference sources throughout
the video where possible. Quick shout out to CleanMyMac for being a
supporter of the channel. CleanMyMac replaces dozens of optimization
tools for your Mac. It can be anything you want it to be: a macOS
cleaner, a performance monitor, or a malware remover to name a few. Check the link in the description and use
code CREATED10 for 10% off. I wanted to start off by mentioning that there
is a lot of information out there on this topic, and a lot of it is quite outdated. Battery technology and it’s supporting software
(for example macOS) has changed a lot over the last decade. Let’s start with discussing the battery
on your MacBook and the technology behind it. Traditionally, MacBooks use Lithium-ion (shortened
to Li-ion) batteries. Yes, some of the newer MacBooks use a lithium-polymer,
or li-poly battery, but for the purpose of this video the difference between them is
minimal. A lithium-ion battery consists of 1) the anode
and the cathode; 2) a separator between the two electrodes; and 3) an electrolyte that
fills the remaining space of the battery. The anode and cathode are capable of storing
lithium ions. Energy is stored and released as lithium ions
travel between these electrodes through the electrolyte. The way these batteries discharge is by lithium
ions moving from the anode to the cathode through the electrolyte, or vice versa to
charge. In an ideal world, a li-ion battery likes
to stay at 50% charge. This results in an even distribution of lithium
ions between the anode and cathode. Keeping a battery at 100% charge all the time
puts stress on the cathode. Think of it like a see saw. You want it to stay relatively balanced, and
not tip either side too much. Now, every time these lithium ions move back
and forth, the battery loses a very tiny percentage of it’s total capacity. There’s something called a charge cycle,
which helps explain this process. You complete one charge cycle when you’ve
used (or discharged) an amount that equals 100% of your battery’s capacity. A charge cycle can take several days to complete. For example, you might use 50% of your battery’s
capacity one day, then recharge it fully overnight. If you do the same thing the next day, you
will have discharged a total of 100%, or 1 full charge cycle. If you have one of the new M1 MacBooks, you
would know that the battery life on them is incredible. For me personally with about 6-8 hours of
use each day, I can get over 2 days of run time from a single charge, or 1 full charge
cycle every 2 to 3 days. It’s common knowledge that lithium ion batteries
are consumable products. That is, they will be consumed slowly with
day to day use and degrade over the years. MacBook lithium ion batteries are rated at
1000 charge cycles. According to Apple, at some point soon after
1000 cycles the battery will only charge to 80% of capacity. This doesn’t mean it will magically fail,
or burst into flames, just that instead of 16 hours on average for the M1 MacBooks, you’ll
get somewhere around 13 hours instead. If I continued to use my M1 MacBook Air like
I do now, or 1 full charge cycle every 2 days, I’d be looking at potentially 2000 days
until I reached that 1000 charge cycle rating. 2000 days is 5 and a half years of using my
MacBook for 6-8 hours every day. Now, there are other things that contribute
to battery longevity such as temperature and aging, but charge cycles are typically the
main factor. By the way, you can check how many charge
cycles your MacBook has by clicking on the Apple logo in the top left corner, clicking
about this Mac, system report, and selecting the power option. Now that we know some of the science behind
lithium ion batteries and that they are consumable products, what are some ways you can keep
your battery healthy? One of the biggest contributors to poor battery
health is heat. You want your battery to be in a relatively
cool environment wherever possible. This means you should avoid using your MacBook
in hot environments like outside in direct sunlight for extended periods of time (please,
don’t be like me). This includes keeping your MacBook in a hot
car, or letting your MacBook Pro render while sitting on your bed and not getting proper
ventilation, for example. Remember that liquid electrolyte inside the
battery? High temperatures will cause those electrolytes
to break down, causing accelerated degradation regardless of how many charge cycles the battery
is at. If you live in a naturally hot environment
like Australia or India, there’s not much you can do, but unless inside ambient temperatures
are insanely hot, like 35-40 degrees celsius, you’ll probably be fine. You can use a stand if you like to introduce
a bit of airflow around the base of the MacBook. I’ve linked my favourite one down in the
description. Also, don’t be afraid to do rendering or
similar activities that cause the CPU or GPU to heat up. As I’ve demonstrated previously, most of
the heat dissipates into the top centre half of the chassis, and doesn’t heat up the
battery too much. What about leaving your MacBook plugged into
the charger? Before I get into this, let’s talk about
the charger itself. I always recommend to use the official Apple
charger wherever possible. The main reason for this recommendation is
there are a lot of dodgy chargers out there that should be avoided. Often they are the same cheaply mass-produced
charger simply re-branded by random Chinese companies. That being said, there’s no harm in using
chargers or pass-through USB-C charging from things like docks or monitors, provided they
are from a good and trustworthy brand. Some examples include Dell, Logitech, CalDigit,
or Anker. If you’re really cautious about this, you
can look for brands and accessories on the official Apple store as a good starting point. I will leave the small USB-C dongle charging
hubs up for negotiation. For short periods of time and when using a
dongle from a high quality brand, I think it’s ok. If you’ve got a permanent desk setup however
I would go with a proper docking station or monitor, or just use the official Apple charger. Next, Apple has become very good at keeping
MacBook batteries healthy via the use of software. macOS has had several huge updates recently,
a major one being the way it interacts with the battery. This is why I always recommend keeping your
MacBook updated. The feature is called battery health management. In a nutshell, macOS tries to charge the battery
to 80% quickly, and the remaining 20% charges much slower, also known as a trickle charge. Once the battery reaches 100%, the charging
stops and your MacBook will run mainly from the power adapter, bypassing the battery. Furthermore, macOS will let the battery drain
slightly even when plugged in to the charger. This is to ensure the Mac is not at 100% capacity
constantly, which is not good for battery longevity. Every now and then it will top up the battery,
and if you tend to use your Macbook at certain times and lengths during the day, macOS will
recognise this and keep the battery charged accordingly. For example, if you tend to work at your desk
from 9am to 5pm with your charger plugged in, and then switch to your battery for a
few hours at night, macOS will keep your charge at around 80% during the day while plugged
into the charger, and will top up the battery a short while before you leave your desk. It will anticipate based on your usage pattern
when you are most likely to use the battery. You can actually see this particular setting
in the system preferences menu under battery. Just make sure that checkbox is ticked (it
is by default). So what about the common advice of “calibrating”
your battery by letting it drain to 0%, and then charging it fully? Well, that’s no longer accurate for modern
MacBooks. In fact, letting the battery drain to 0% is
not something you should ever do. Just like keeping the battery charged at 100%
at all times. Even then, although macOS might display the
battery as being 100% charged, the reality is that it’s likely only 90% or 95% charged. There is a buffer built in to prevent overcharging. Also, if you’re going to be storing your
MacBook for several weeks or months without using it, charge the battery to 50%. Let’s move on to the question you’re probably
here for, and that is should you leave your MacBook plugged into it’s charger? My personal opinion is… it depends. If you use your MacBook for long, continuous
periods of time, such as for work or school, it’s totally fine to keep it plugged into
your charger the entire time you’re using it. Like I said previously, macOS does a really
good job now of intelligently charging so as to minimize stress on the battery, even
while plugged in. Battery University also agrees with this viewpoint. Also, leaving it plugged in while you work
for long periods of time will also result in fewer battery cycles, potentially prolonging
the life of the battery. That being said, I’d still recommend against
leaving your MacBook plugged into it’s charger 24/7 and never actually draining the battery. At the end of the day, it’s a laptop. Use it like a laptop. Let the battery drain down to 15% or 10% every
now and then, even if you only use the MacBook at a desk. If you’re putting your MacBook to sleep
or shutting it down at the end of the day, simply unplug the charging cable each night. Don’t be afraid to drain the battery and
feel like you need to be attached to the powerpoint the entire time. Yes, it’s generally accepted that the best
way of prolonging battery health is to keep the charge between 20% and 80% and only charging
in bursts, but in practice this is very difficult to do if your existing routine doesn’t allow
for it. If you’re travelling to school and need
a full charge, or you’re working at a desk all day, just don’t worry about it. It won’t make a huge difference. Like I said before, if you’re using your
MacBook all day at a desk, just keep it plugged in. macOS will do the optimising for you. If you use your MacBook all day at school
on battery power and can’t charge it in bursts, that’s fine too. If you mainly use your laptop on battery power
for a few hours here and there, charge it for 15-20 minutes every now and then if you
have easy access to a charger. For example when you cook dinner or have a
shower. If you know you’ll be away from a charger
the next day, charge it to 100% the night before. This is how a lot of people including myself
use their laptops, and naturally the charge will stay mostly between 20% and 80% with
no extra effort on the user’s part. That being said, you’d be surprised at how
little the difference in battery health is between users who simply keep their MacBooks
plugged in the entire time, versus those who perfectly time every charge and percentage
drain. Is all that extra work over a few years worth
a few more percentage points of battery health? I don’t think so. I know there are apps out there such as Al
Dente that claim to limit the charge to 80% and what not, but I personally would prefer
to let macOS have control over my battery and not some random third party app. All it takes is 1 wrong setting or a botched
update from the developer, and you might be worse off. I am open to having my opinion on this changed
however. At the end of the day, a laptop is a tool. Use it as a tool. You don’t want to spend all day stressing
over when you should unplug the charger, or panicking if you see the battery at 100% for
too long. The vast majority of people upgrade their
laptops every 3-5 years, and I can confidently say that in 99% of cases, your battery will
last that entire time without issue. If you plan on keeping your MacBook longer
than that, sure, you can be slightly more cautious, but worst case scenario Apple offers
battery replacements for about $150 bucks. But, like I demonstrated in this video, your
battery will more than likely last 5-10 years before it degrades enough that a replacement
is necessary and by that point, it’s probably time for a new MacBook. Technology and software is at a point now
where we can mostly sit back and not worry about the things we used to worry about 5
or 10 years ago, and your MacBook’s battery is one of them. If you’re interested in a video on how to
maximise battery life to squeeze a few more hours out of each charge, let me know in the
comment section below. Apart from that, thanks for watching and I’ll
catch you in the next one.
To sum the videos up
It depends
When an elderly relative smugly tells you, 'Remember to empty your battery regularly so it lasts longer'.
I'd rather just pay for a new battery in a few years than waste valuable time worrying.
That's cheaper for me, in the long run.
Time is better invested in making more money, rather than economising.
bless em wit the sauce!
My 2011 17" has been plugged in basically most of its life (percent of time on) but I used it as a normal laptop for 7 years.
Its still got 85% of its battery life, my 2018 will last a long long time. no worries about just using it as needed
His points are mostly true, but I have to disagree with a few points.
He said that there is little difference in battery longevity between users to cycle and users who just use it normally. Not exactly sure what source he got it from, but pretty sure your battery can last a lot longer if you properly cycle it. As shallower depth of cycles will allow you in total to use more mAh on the long run than a full depth of charge.
Also apples 1000 cycle count to 80 percent capacity. I can't exactly comment on it as my M1 is my first MacBook. But I would assume in the real world, given you use your MacBook everyday and your primary machine you would degrade to 80 percent a lot quicker. There are other factors related to degredation such as state of charge (what percentage you keep your battery at) and heat too, which I'm not sure if the figure accounts for. What I am trying to say is that that figure shouldn't be and excuse to not take care of your battery.
He also mentioned that if you keep your MacBook plugged in, you can get less cycles and hence put less strain on your battery. Logically this makes sense, well if I keep it plugged in all the time and Mac os switches to power source as the power so my battery isn't even being touched at all. However I found in reality with my own testing that the Mac doesn't actually "count" the proper cycle life of the battery. I say this because I do use an app called Aldente which limits charge for me as I keep it docked all the time. The Mac os also displays as using power adaptor as power source. I've been using it ever since I got it and 90 percent of the time I keep it docked because I'm just working from home. However my cycles still go up roughly one every 2 days which makes no sense since it isn't even feeding off the battery. So the only logical conclusion is that they calculate your cycle life based on your energy consumption to the designed battery capacity, NOT on the actual cycle life of the battery. So yes technically your battery is getting less cycles and is undergoing less strain, but it won't actually show haha. It will still go up regardless of whether you keep it plugged in or use the battery.
He advised against using 3rd party apps called Aldente, but I actually advocate for it as I use it myself. Correct me if I'm wrong From my understanding apple battery limit only temporarily limits your charge to 80% then will top it up too 100% which is still pretty bad for your battery. You should only ever charge to 100% when you absolutely need it. Which I'm sure most people don't need to (I'm getting 16 hours of screentime 50% brightness you do not need O use all of that in a single day. ). The app AlDente just sets a limit on a percentage, so that it never goes above. So I never have to watch the percentage or time when to unplug.
It's also extremely useful if you keep your Mac docked all the time (with monitor) he did mention a 50% charge to be a good storing percentage which is true. As 90 percent of the time my Mac is just at home I actually set my limit to 50 percent which is really good for longevity. A lot better than it sitting at 80%. To illustrate the difference, according to battery University, keeping your battery at 100 percent for a year at room temps for a year will degrade to 80 percent. Whereas if you kept it at 40 % for a year 96 percent will still be retained. That's a massive difference! And if you keep it docked like me what percentage you keep it at can greatly influence the lifespan. This is also why Imo you should take the 1000 life cycle as a grain of salt, as there are so many other factors which can be potentially more degrading than cycle count alone.
Thanks for my ted talk.
I remember when this person's videos were straight to the point about the m1 in the early days, then they decided (when?) that they could be a regular tech channel and now it's just videos like any other channel. Whatever gets the clicks and money I guess.
created labs is back
Will someone please link a video that contradicts all the information in this one? TIA.