Powering a MacBook Pro via TB3 dock

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Powering a MacBook Pro via TB3 dock

I own a 2018 MacBook Pro 15" which is my daily driver, and have had no issues with it. I push it hard daily, and it is powered by my CalDigit TB3 dock, which has the external display and all peripherals. No complaints.

That was until a week ago, when the battery swelled.. a lot, and was forced to take it to the Apple store for repairs. (I have Apple Care, so was covered).

I talked to two different staff about my situation and they said the issue was directly related to me powering the device via my TB3 dock, and not letting the battery "run down" during normal operation. I find this surprising as I own different brands of laptops which have, to this day, never experienced this issue.

I require my laptop to be tethered to the TB3 dock for display, and peripherals 99% of the time - and there is no option 'not to charge" when TB3 is connected. What options do I have, and were the Apple guys pulling my leg?

MacBook Pro

Posted on Dec 28, 2019 8:57 AM

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Answer 1

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leroydouglas

Community+ 2024

Level 10

188,724 points

Dec 28, 2019 9:59 AM in response to nullcode

nullcode wrote:

I own a 2018 MacBook Pro 15" which is my daily driver, and have had no issues with it. I push it hard daily, and it is powered by my CalDigit TB3 dock, which has the external display and all peripherals. No complaints.

I talked to two different staff about my situation and they said the issue was directly related to me powering the device via my TB3 dock, and not letting the battery "run down" during normal operation.

I can not agree with that assessment. period.

Your battery will never overcharge, this is not an issue even if on the mains 24/7/365

About Mac notebook batteries - Apple Support

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204054

Determine battery cycle count for Mac notebooks - Apple Support

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201585

Batteries - Maximizing Performance - Apple

https://www.apple.com/batteries/maximizing-performance/ 

Battery technology is a complicated chemistry—not all batteries come out the same, an subsequent failure is a reality independent of quality control.

Even plugged into the mains, under a heavy load the computer will still borrow power from the battery if the demand is great enough.

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Answer 2

nullcode Author

Level 1

13 points

Dec 28, 2019 10:13 AM in response to leroydouglas

Thank you, this is what I was thinking / hoping too.

Since I use the laptop daily, I cannot be without when (and if) the battery fails again, so I purchased a secondary MacBook Pro 16" as a backup. I do hope this issue does not occur again. The two staff I talked too were the Apple Store techs evaluating my MacBook issue when I brought it in for repair. The over-the-phone, and Apple chat support have been quite professional and never pushed the idea I could be using my MacBook "wrong".

Thanks again!

I must add - the repair job they did on my laptop is top notch. Looks brand new. I did lose all my data in the process as they could not run the diagnostic software on Mojave, but that is alright and they did call to verify before wiping the system.

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Powering a MacBook Pro via TB3 dock

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