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Helpful answers
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by Carolyn Samit,Jun 16, 2016 11:45 AM in response to David Weiss
Carolyn Samit
Jun 16, 2016 11:45 AM
in response to David Weiss
Level 10 (122,048 points)
Apple MusicBetter to not allow the battery discharge completely. Perhaps down to 25% then charge.
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Jun 16, 2016 12:12 PM in response to David Weissby Esquared,Is that a MacBook Pro with a removable battery or not? If the latter, do not calibrate:
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by Grant Bennet-Alder,Jun 16, 2016 12:13 PM in response to David Weiss
Grant Bennet-Alder
Jun 16, 2016 12:13 PM
in response to David Weiss
Level 9 (60,926 points)
DesktopsI've heard it's a good idea to completely drain a battery every once in a while, to improve its longevity and the accuracy of the battery's "life meter."
You heard WRONG.
Lithium batteries are not subject to the Nickel-Cadmium battery "memory effect". Deep discharge will shorten their life substantially, and provides no benefits whatsoever.
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Jun 16, 2016 12:27 PM in response to David Weissby Courcoul,That was awhile back, modern batteries (or rather, their charging circuits) do not need "calibration". What's more, older batteries may get damaged beyond usability if they are drained too much.
See here:
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Jun 16, 2016 1:22 PM in response to David Weissby David Weiss,Thanks everyone! I should have specified, this is for an older 2.2GHz model from '07 or '08, and I'm using a Newer Technology replacement battery. This is what Newer says on its website about "conditioning," or what they call "exercising":
- "Exercise" your primary and spare battery once a month. You will actually get a shorter lifetime out of a battery if you use it infrequently as a "backup" battery. To exercise your battery, run your computer on battery power until it shuts down or until you get a low battery warning. Then use your notebook as an acceptable method to charge/recharge your battery.
So I'll just follow their advice and drain to sleep every now and then, and then just plug-in and recharge from there.
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Jun 16, 2016 1:25 PM in response to David Weissby Esquared,Ah, yes. Those you have to calibrate (as in Step 2). And running it empty can take quite a while.
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Jun 16, 2016 2:42 PM in response to David Weissby Michael Black,You don't need to do that very often. The drain to sleep and recharge process does nothing other than calibrate the battery meter/indicator. Doing it a lot will just age your battery faster than is necessary. You "exercise" your battery by just regular use - every partial discharge/charge is "exercising" your battery - that is, Lithium cells do last longest with moderate regular use. They die most rapidly if left wholly idle for long periods, or subject to regular or frequent deep discharges.
Ideally though, since you don't want to drain the battery any more than necessary to calibrate the meter, you really should plug it in when it shuts down due to low battery. Leaving it sitting for a long period will further deplete the battery, beyond the point that the battery's own SMART circuitry is indicating the minimum safe charge state (which is why it shut it down in the first place as it is very bad to 100% deplete a lithium cell).
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Jun 16, 2016 2:46 PM in response to David Weissby jndupuis1,I agree with Michael Black!
Something to consider:
Just use both batteries under Normal Use conditions swapping out on a schedule such as every 90 or 180 days. You don't want your spare to have a long shelf life and expire, so just alternate the two. You will get max use out of both and extended use by swapping. Three or four times a year. It is a suggestion - you decide what's right for you.
Cheers!!