03-15-2007, 12:12 PM

I just purchased a new MacBook Pro to replace a Dell laptop (a very happy day).

I normally use the computer at my desk 95% of the time with the power cored plugged in.

My question is, should I be leaving the computer plugged in all of the time or should I be letting it run off of battery power from time to time? How will leaving the computer plugged in to A/C power all the time affect the battery life?

TIA

03-15-2007, 12:46 PM

once a week or so use the battery for a bit. jjust keep it on its toes.

leaving it plugged in all the time, wont hurt it, itll just lose a little capacity.

nothing u can do much about anyways.

just use it the way you want, and enjoy it. dont worry about the battery in these things

some people on here are too "ridiculous" about their battery. its a battery, get over it ya know

03-15-2007, 12:58 PM

"Ridiculous" or not, there are things you can do to maximize the life of your battery. In particular, maintaining your battery means that you'll get much better battery life on those occasions when you don't operate plugged-in.

As a general rule, you don't want to keep a full battery charging for too long. Hours is ok, days is probably bad. You basically want the battery to "exercise," and keeping it full gives all the little pixies and gremlins nowhere to stretch their legs.

As a general rule, you don't want to wipe the battery clean empty every time.

Calibrate your battery once a month or so.

I try to let mine run down to around 30-40% and then charge it back up to full each time.

Put your computer into Sleep mode if you're not going to use it for a day or two (or less) and you're not going to travel with it. If it will be jostled around quite a bit by traveling, or if you'll be leaving it "off" for more than a day or so, Shutdown is a better idea than Sleep in my experience.

03-15-2007, 09:51 PM

sure you can do all that stuff...

and it is a good general rule of thumb. but use the battery, and itll last for a good long time, thats all im tryin to say here

03-15-2007, 11:02 PM

Dubya dubya dubya dot apple dot com slash batteries.

03-15-2007, 11:06 PM

Thanks for all of the advice.

I'll check it all out.