battery problem?

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OK so about 10 months ago I contacted AppleCare because my macbook battery was acting up. It would tell me I had 30 minutes left, then just shut down automatically. No warning that it was about ready to die, and it didn't go to sleep mode, it just shut off. Plus the battery life was super crappy.

I told the AppleCare guy my battery cycle count (which I believe was under 300 at the time), and mentioned that I usually just left my laptop plugged in when I was at home. He told me I probably just overcharged it since it was plugged in a lot, and told me how to recalibrate it or whatever. The calibration didn't work, but I didn't bother calling back (I had strep throat for a while so I couldn't do it right away, got super busy, forgot about it, etc). I think it was around a month or two later when my battery started going back to normal, and warning me when it was about ready to die, and sleeping instead of just shutting off without warning.


BUT my battery still doesn't last long AT ALL. Last time I checked (which was in March) my battery lasted less than two hours at the 5th to brightest brightness setting. I haven't checked to see how long exactly it lasts in a while. I just know it sure doesn't seem to last long. Probably about an hour and a half.

Is it normal for the battery to do this when I've only had this macbook for a year and a half?

I recently found out that if your computer's battery life is that bad, and you had less than 300 cycle counts, you can get a free replacement battery.

Back when I called them about this problem I'm 99% sure I had under 300 cycle counts. Now it's at like 360 or something like that. Is there any chance I might be able to still get a replacement battery if I call AppleCare? Or am I just gonna have to pay to get another one?

Another thing- for about a year I pretty much had my screen at %100 brightness whenever I used it. Now I'm realizing that probably wasn't the best idea (duh) since I need this laptop to last me a while. Lately I've been using it at its dimmest setting. It kinda hurts my eyes, but I don't want my screen to crap out on me!


What brightness setting would be okay to have it at??? I just don't want my screen to crap out on me...



OH and I know it seems totally dumb to wait almost a year after I first started having this problem to call them about it. But I just kept saying "oohhh next month I'll mess with it" because you have to wait about 45 minutes to talk to someone at Apple Care...
 
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the brightness setting really shouldn't effect the life of the screen. I would use it where it is comfortable for you to use. Now the brighter you have it when on battery power the shorter the battery will last that could have been the problem with your battery.
 
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I wouldn't worry about damaging your screen at the expense of damaging your eyes.
 
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OK thanks for the input! I'm actually testing my battery right now to see how long it actually lasts.


So what do you think about the battery issue? Am I probably gonna just have to pay the $130 and buy a new one?
 
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If it's a year and a half old then it's not going to be like new, especially if you're approaching 400 cycles. You might find yourself getting a new one sometime soon, depending in mostly on how much battery power you need.

I got nearly 2 years and 460 cycles out of mine before it died, and I didn't do any of the recommended things to keep it healthy.
 
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MacBook Battery Problem

If you're over 300 cycles it's unlikely you would qualify for a free replacement battery (assuming your battery qualifies as per 'the' macbook battery problem), but you might be able to talk your way into one if you mention that you called prior to having 300 cycles. Either way I'd recommend you stop over to http://www.macbookbatteryproblem.com for an overview and links to diagnostics before you next contact them. Check out the 'blog' link too, for a couple of links to threads about getting a replacement battery out of Apple.

Best,
ww
 

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