Replace PRAM battery in in Intel core2 duo iMac?

Question

Replace PRAM battery in in Intel core2 duo iMac?

I have just installed the iStat widget in my Intel Core2 Duo 2.16 Ghz iMac. I was a little surprised to see a battery level reading on it (of 45%). I wonder if it is measuring the remaining life of the PRAM battery. Remembering how badly my Powermac and my wife's G5 iMac behaved when their back-up batteries needed replacing, I want to avoid the same situation on my Intel iMac. However I can find nothing on Apple support for replacing the PRAM/back-up battery on an Intel iMac, so I am wondering if there is a replaceable battery or not. Anyone know?

Thanks

Wilson

Powermac G5 dual 2.3, Intel Core 2 Duo 20" iMac & 2.16 GHz Black Macbook, Mac OS X (10.4.9)

Posted on Mar 16, 2008 9:54 AM

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Answer 1

Mar 16, 2008 10:20 AM in response to WilsonLaidlaw

From iSlayer Help:

Battery

The Battery section shows detailed stat about your notebook’s battery, including cycles, battery health and a nice icon showing if you’re plugged into mains power. For more information on battery health and cycles, please read our iStat’s battery section document.

The battery section also shows the power left in your Apple bluetooth keyboard and/or mouse.

Please note: If you don’t have a battery or bluetooth keyboard or mouse, then the battery section won’t be displayed.

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Answer 2

Mar 16, 2008 10:23 AM in response to WilsonLaidlaw

From iSlayer Battery Section:

This section shows various information about your Mac’s battery. This section is only visible if you actually have a battery and won’t appear on desktops.
Percentage

The current battery charge as a percentage. This is also shown as a bar at the bottom of the section.
Time

Time left using the battery, time until charged, or “Charged” if the battery is fully charged.
Source

“AC” if the Mac is connected to mains power, or “Battery” if the battery is being used.
Status

This shows if the battery is charged, charging or draining.
Battery Health

This is a comparison between your current battery capacity and capacity of it when it was new. For example, if your battery lasted 5 hours when it was new, a figure of 50% suggests you should get 2.5 hours out of your battery now.
Cycles

The amount of battery “cycles” the battery has had. One cycle is defined as a complete discharge and charge of the battery, but partial discharge and charges also count. So, two half discharge and charges are the same as one complete discharge.

For some tips on how to get the most out of your laptop’s battery, please visit this Apple support page.

Message was edited by: lakewoodlawnman

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Answer 3

Mar 16, 2008 10:42 AM in response to lakewoodlawnman

Many thanks for that information. The iStat widget is showing the battery level in my bluetooth Mighty Mouse - now that I look closer I can see that what I thought was a cylindrical battery icon is actually a mouse.

However, I would still like to know whether an Intel iMac has a PRAM battery or not. If my Imac starts to behave badly at some time in the future, it would therefore be one thing that would be worth checking.

Wilson

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Answer 4

Mar 16, 2008 11:04 AM in response to WilsonLaidlaw

It will void your warranty, but you could replace it and it's very easy. The battery sits in the "Jay Leno" area facing you, to the lower-right of the Apple logo IIRC.

To do this you have to remove the front panel. Then you will have to peel back the aluminum sheeting from the "Jay Leno" area only to expose the lower half of the logic board. You will see the battery once you do this and can replace it as you would a normal CMOS battery on any PC.

This is a brief summary of the steps involved so don't use this information alone to do the job, and, again, it will void your warranty.

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Answer 5

Mar 16, 2008 12:13 PM in response to Euripides

Many thanks for the information. Having seen how elaborately these Macs are put together, when I stripped my dead G4 iBook for parts, I will just lean on my Applecare warranty on my iMac, rather than delve into its innards.

Wilson

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