I didn't charge my MacBook Pro long enough upon first usage! What can I do?

[DianneIsSnazzy]

I just bought a "13 MacBook Pro, and when I first used it I did charge it, but I had it on my knees and it kind of slipped and my knee knocked the plug out of it. So now my battery only lasts about three hours, maybe four, and I didn't think anything of it until my friend told me they're supposed to last up to 7. What can I do? Please help me =(

 

[mdfuller]

Try checking the health and/or calibrating the battery. You might just have a bad battery. How many things are you doing during this 4 hours? Wireless, using the optical drive, resource demanding apps, etc. can all affect battery life greatly:

Apple Portables: Calibrating your computer's battery for best performance

Apple - Downloads - Dashboard Widgets - iStat Pro

 

[newmacbrodude]

Not charging it fully the first time really would have no effect on it I believe, what were you doing those 4 hrs, if you're heavy lifting, that seems good.

 

[miles01110]

So now my battery only lasts about three hours, maybe four, and I didn't think anything of it until my friend told me they're supposed to last up to 7.

The "up to 7 hours" battery life stat is based on the computer basically doing nothing. Screen at half brightness, "web browsing and word processing" or whatever they say in the fine print. If you go to any website with any Flash on it (even if it's just an ad), it will consume a lot of power. Same thing if you pile on instant messengers, watching a movie, playing a game, or listening to music.

7 hours is an ideal to aspire to, 3-4 hours of "normal" usage is very "normal." I don't think you have a problem with your battery at all.

 

[alexsd123]

What is your screen brightness at, is it full?

What programs are you running at the time?

Click the apple at the top left of your screen, click about this mac then more info.

Find power under the list, click on it and see what your charge information is (it will contain mAH). It should be around 5400 or so, if it is considerably lower, try a battery calibration.

 

[joey1]

this is my info with the charger off and the battery in the red right now. does the mAh change when you are fully charged? my battery doesn't last long. although i can watch two movies in a row on my hard drive. never tried a dvd though but im sure it wont last as long.

Charge Information:
Charge remaining (mAh): 738
Fully charged: No
Charging: No
Full charge capacity (mAh): 3921
Health Information:
Cycle count: 392
Condition: Good
Battery Installed: Yes
Amperage (mA): -1171
Voltage (mV): 11057

 

[chas_m]

Watching movies on your hard drive is definitely easier on the battery than spinning the optical drive.

You don't say exactly WHAT MODEL MacBook Pro 13" you bought, you imply it was the latest model but is that correct? Not all MBPs have the newer battery.

And as stated elsewhere, your chance of getting 7 hours depends on what you're doing with it.

Take another reading of your battery with Coconut Battery and let us know if there are any discrepancies.

 

[6string]

this is my info with the charger off and the battery in the red right now. does the mAh change when you are fully charged? my battery doesn't last long. although i can watch two movies in a row on my hard drive. never tried a dvd though but im sure it wont last as long.

Charge Information:
Charge remaining (mAh): 738
Fully charged: No
Charging: No
Full charge capacity (mAh): 3921
Health Information:
Cycle count: 392
Condition: Good
Battery Installed: Yes
Amperage (mA): -1171
Voltage (mV): 11057

chas-m
just incase you didn't notice (which I think you did), the above quoted post wasn't from the OP.

 

[chas_m]

Oops, sorry. Thanks.

 

[alexsd123]

To chas_m, there is only one 13" MBP as of right now

To 6string, that was not the OPs post

To joey1, recalibrate your battery and see if it gets better. Also, what model notebook do you have?

If you don't know, it can be found under about this mac and under more info

Copy and paste the first 4 lines under Hardware Overview (where it directs you to when you click more info).

 

[DianneIsSnazzy]

I have the more expensive 15 hundred dollar one with more memory and the faster processor. Under model idenitfier it says "MacBook Pro 5,5" no idea if that's what you mean.

Alex it said 5,561 when I went there. Do you have the same MacBook Pro as I do?

 

[DianneIsSnazzy]

When I went to coconut battery it said my original capacity was 5,450, and that my current batter capacity is 5,561. Wow. How did THAT happen?

 

[6string]

To 6string, that was not the OPs post

Thanks alexsd.... you may notice that is just what I said

 

[joey1]

To chas_m, there is only one 13" MBP as of right now

To 6string, that was not the OPs post

To joey1, recalibrate your battery and see if it gets better. Also, what model notebook do you have?

If you don't know, it can be found under about this mac and under more info

Copy and paste the first 4 lines under Hardware Overview (where it directs you to when you click more info).

sorry, i have the 13" macbook bought in jan 09 with 250gb hd.

Hardware Overview:

Model Name: MacBook
Model Identifier: MacBook5,1
Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed: 2.4 GHz
Number Of Processors: 1
Total Number Of Cores: 2
L2 Cache: 3 MB
Memory: 2 GB
Bus Speed: 1.07 GHz
Boot ROM Version: MB51.007D.B03
SMC Version (system): 1.32f8