Battery only charging to 69%-adapter is amber

Hi,
I have an Ibook G4 and having problems with a new battry I just purchased. The power cord is amber, but the charge indicator stays at 69 percent. It works fine when its plugged in but when I remove the power cord it turns off and will not turn on without the ac adapter. I tried to reset the PMU and nothing happened.

Can anyone help?

Thanks


Thanks!

Ibook G4, Mac OS X (10.4.7), 2003

Posted on Nov 13, 2007 2:56 PM

Reply
25 replies

Nov 14, 2007 3:14 PM in response to melissa1923

Welcome to Apple Discussions!

Resetting the PMU is the first thing to try, and evidently that did not help. It almost sounds like the battery may not be making good contact. You might try taking it out and inspecting it for bent pins or something like that and then reseating it.

You could also go to "About this Mac">"More Info">"Power" and see what it says about the battery and report back here.

Good luck!

Nov 14, 2007 6:08 PM in response to S.U.

When I choose "About this Mac>More info...there is not an option for me to choose "Power".

I did take the battery out to check for bent pins but it appears to be fine. It is still only showing 3 bars instead of 4 when resetting the battery.

My adapter, however, is a little bent, but I haven't had any problems with it working. I was thinking this might be the problem and if I get a new plug, it might fully charge the battery.

Any other suggestions?

Thanks!

Nov 14, 2007 6:51 PM in response to melissa1923

Now this is odd! When you click on "More Info", you should get a column called "Contents" on the left. In this column you should see a heading called "Hardware". If you click on the flippy triangle to the left of "Hardware", you should get a list of stuff, and "Power" should be on this list in alphabetical order--probably just above "Printers". If you click on that, you should get information on your System Power Settings. If "Power" is truly missing and not just hiding, please post back. If you do get to "Power", you should be able to see a heading called "Battery Information". If you do, what does it say? If you don't, please post back that you don't see it.

As to the power adaptor, it's possible that it could have a problem. However, the real problem seems to be that the computer will not run off of the battery alone. If the computer will run off of the power adaptor alone, then that would indicate that it is probably working well enough. When you say it is a little bent, do you mean the pin?

What is the history here? Was there any problem with the previous battery not charging? Or running off of the previous battery before it died?

One thing I am wondering--could the new battery not be the right one for this iBook? Did you get it from Apple or elsewhere? If elsewhere, what is it and where did you get it?

Do you happen to have access to an Apple Store or a friend with an iBook? If so, you could try another power adaptor and see if that helps. If a friend has an iBook with the same battery, you could try swapping batteries and see what happens. It is possible that you got a defective battery, and if you did, you should be able to exchange it for a new one. I am inclined to think the problem lies with the battery rather than with the power adaptor at this point, although it's possible there could be a problem with the DC In Board.

Please post back on whether "Power" is truly missing and a little more information on your new battery. Maybe also what happened to make you decide on a new battery.

Nov 15, 2007 6:18 AM in response to S.U.

I know it is odd! Under hardware it states: Memory, PCI/AGP Cards, ATA, SCSI, USB, FireWire, Airport Card, & Modems.

And actually, the pin is not bent but the "metal circle?" around it is on the power adapter is, but I haven't appeared to have any problems because of it.

I got this laptop from a friend so I don't know the full history of it. I was told I would need a battery for it. The previous battery states "12 inch iBook rechargable battery". It showed 3 bars on the battery but my computer never recognized the battery, so I'm assuming there was not a charge at all. I did not buy the current battery from an Apple store. I thought 130.00 was a little steep, and saved a few dollars and got this one on ebay. I'm thinking this might be part of the problem. I've got quite a few things in the past with ebay and paypal, and have not had any issues until now. I have contacted the seller (and getting nowhere) because I was under the impression that I was getting the same battery I previously had, but it appears to different. Similar, but different. It states "Model: LAPA 1008.....used for iBook G4-12 inch series.

I don't know of anyone who has an iBook but do have access to an Apple store. I think I might try a new power adapter to see if it helps.

Thanks!

Nov 15, 2007 2:32 PM in response to melissa1923

Yes it sounds like a visit to the genius bar is in order. If you have both batteries--the new one and the old one--take them in with you.

It sounds like the computer is not recognizing the battery at all, either one, and this would be a good thing to ask the genius. It's also puzzling that evidently the 69% charge shows up in the menu bar, but the battery doesn't show up at all in the System Profiler. The geniuses do have power adaptors you can use, so you don't actually have to buy one to see if the adaptor is the problem. But I don't really think it's the main problem--the main problem is that the computer doesn't see the battery. Now I'm beginning to wonder about the DC In Board.

Please report back what you find out--and good luck!

Nov 19, 2007 7:08 PM in response to melissa1923

So I went to the Genius bar and I'm not exactually sure where to go from here. At first I was told my original and current battery were both no good. The current battery is now reading at 66 percent and the my computer wasn't recognizing my original battery at all when I was there. Then I was told it was the DC in board and would cost about 280.00 to repair. Well I was at the Genius bar for maybe 4 minutes or so, so I'm not sure if I'm 100% sold this is the problem because now my adapter goes from green to amber (with the original battery in) and the battery icon goes from 100% charged to no battery at all. I'm not sure what to think. I'm open to any more ideas, suggests, opinions if it truely is the DC in board.

Thanks again for all the help!

Nov 19, 2007 7:23 PM in response to melissa1923

That sounds pretty steep for a DC In Board. I have heard of this repair costing around $100 elsewhere. Or you could even do it yourself for less. Check out this site:

http://www.ifixit.com/

You can at least see what is involved. If yo don't want to tackle it yourself, please post back for some recommendations.

But a bad DC In Board may well be the problem, since it it what connects the power adaptor to the battery and charges it. Maybe a few other forum members could comment on the likelihood of it being the DC In Board.

Good luck!

Dec 6, 2007 6:36 PM in response to melissa1923

So I ended up buying a new DC in Board from PowerMedic. Thanks for the all the suggestions. I have just installed it and my battery is showing at 59 percent. I just started to charge it about 5 minutes ago. I'm hoping if it will fully charge over night. The power adapter is amber so I'm hoping this will solve the problem. If there are any other tips that might be helpful, please let me know.

Thanks to everyone for all the help!

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Battery only charging to 69%-adapter is amber

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