MacBook Pro 15" 2.66Ghz, Battery Condition: Replace now, what it means?

Hi there,

I have a 3 year old MBP and I seem to recall that Apple would replace the battery if it was under 80% health and below approximately 300 cycles. Yours is obviously less than 300 and the fact its saying replace now, I'm guessing that your health is around 40%. Try heading to an Apple store and see if they'll replace your battery for free. I dont think it matters that its out of its warranty period - its looks very much like its a faulty item and they should replace without quibble especially if its only just over a year old.
Cheers.

[edit]
APologies, but I have assumed that you have tried calibrating the battery as described on Apples website here: http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1490
I didnt mention it above mainly because if its down to the stage of saying replace now, I'm not sure calibrating will do much.

Message was edited by: FumbleDuck

Hi,

No, the battery does not have a lifetime warranty but it should be expected to last a reasonable amount of time (2-3 years I would think).

The fact that your battery exhibits the following:
- "replace now" status (indicating approx 40-50% health)
- just over a year old
- 129 cycles
- only holds charge for 5-10 mins

indicates to me that your battery is faulty. However, if you wish to try the calibration, please follow the instructions at this URL: http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1490

However, I dont hold out much hope that you'll see a great improvement. So if the battery is still no good, take it to an Apple store and get it replaced.
Cheers.

Hi,

Take your Macbook Pro to the Apple Store, tell them the following:

Battery is only 13 months old,
It only has 129 cycles on it,
You have recalibrated but it made no difference,
The battery is failing to hold any charge,
Please may I have a new battery as this one is obviously faulty.

Hope this helps.

Cheers.

At the store they have a cute device (runs on an iPod) that does a full test on the battery. They take its results as gospel (from the info below, yours appears to be dead as doorknob). The store can also tell you exactly when your computer was purchased. But if it is out of warranty and you did not buy Applecare, expect to pay for a new battery. I had to replace the battery on my early 2008 twice, both times covered by Applecare (that is what Applecare is for).

BTW, I always buy Applecare on laptops. I never buy Applecare on anything else. So far both have always been the right decisions. Btw, Applecare on anything also covers associated accessory Apple branded items such a Time Capsule, Airport Extreme, extra displays and so forth. So really not that bad, unless all you have is the notebook.

Btw, Applecare on anything also covers associated accessory Apple branded items such a Time Capsule, Airport Extreme, extra displays and so forth.

BUT (and it's a big one): those items are only covered if they were purchased *at the same time* as the computer.

BUT (and it's a big one): those items are only covered if they were purchased at
the same time as the computer.

Actually not. They can be purchased separately, or at any time up to two years before the Mac was purchased.

i already call a phone to apple service at my country. It seems that i still pay
for the repairment. I hate this condition.

Yes. That is what Applecare is for. It extends the warranty beyond 12 months. Apple generally draws a line in the sand on that specific date. Beyond that date, even if just a day, it is on you.

In the case of a battery, chances are it exhibited poor performance some time ago. usually before it says "Replace Battery" it says "Check Battery." Apple will replace it then also. Your battery has probably been bad for months, you just didn't notice in time.

If you are a real heavy user of the machine, Applecare is always a good thing to have on a laptop. I am sorry you missed out.