Powerbook battery not charging

Question

rb20044 Author

Level 1

0 points

Powerbook battery not charging

The battery on my powerbook won't charge up - despite resetting the Power Management Unit (...I never knew you could pick off the keyboard before). Any advice on next things to try?
Thanks

Powerbook 1Ghz 17inch, Mac OS X (10.5.6)

Posted on Jan 19, 2009 5:29 AM

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Answer 1

Allan Jones

Level 9

68,606 points

Jan 19, 2009 10:53 AM in response to rb20044

Welcome!

Find System Profiler in your Applicaitons . Utilities folder and run it. Select "Power" from the left-hand pane and post the info under "Battery Condition." That will help us determine the current state of your battery and whether is sounds salvageable.

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Answer 2

rb20044 Author

Level 1

0 points

Jan 20, 2009 7:10 AM in response to Allan Jones

Hi
The system profile says the battery is as follows. And it's been working fine until recently.

Charge Information:
Charge remaining (mAh): 0
Charging: No
Full charge capacity (mAh): 5893
Health Information:
Cycle count: 60
Battery Installed: Yes
Amperage (mA): 0
Voltage (mV): 15961

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Answer 3

Allan Jones

Level 9

68,606 points

Jan 20, 2009 7:30 AM in response to rb20044

This line:

Full charge capacity (mAh): 5893

and this one:

Cycle count: 60

indicate that the battery is healthy. However, the voltage, at 15961, seems high. However I can't compare to my PB17 right now because my daughter borrowed it.

Maybe someone who has their PB handy can compare their numbers.

If the battery is healthy and the a/c adaptor seems to be working, that leaves the internal power circuitry as a suspect.

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Answer 4

rb20044 Author

Level 1

0 points

Jan 21, 2009 10:15 AM in response to Allan Jones

Thanks Allan.
I suspect this may require some surgery...

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Answer 5

eww

Level 9

53,028 points

Jan 21, 2009 12:53 PM in response to Allan Jones

Allan: I've never had a 17" PB, so I'm not sure, but doesn't a full charge capacity of 5893 sound high too? What was the battery's original capacity in that model?

In my experience, a Powerbook battery that reports a higher-than-original full charge capacity is at death's door, or at least can't be relied upon for much of anything.

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Answer 6

rb20044 Author

Level 1

0 points

Jan 22, 2009 2:51 PM in response to eww

I can understand (I think) that this might mean my battery has its problems, but would this explain why my Powerbook would decide not to try and charge it?
It doesn't seem like a logical reason...to me, anyway. I'm always willing to be corrected by anyone who understands this stuff more than me!
thanks
Rob

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