Power problems after SSD install

brendanxx wrote:

Re battery - should I simply go for an OWC one or would it matter if I waited until the battery starts playing up seriously? Would hanging on to the present one possibly damage my computer?

The main way batteries damage to a laptop is from swelling which warps and sometimes even damages the Top Case/Trackpad Assembly.

re uninstalling Avast - so many sites I've looked at say that macs DO get viruses, malware etc. Why do they say that? Not all are trying to sell me an antivirus. I respect your views though - can you give me that extra push and explain why it's not good for me to have an antivirus on my system? Does that apply also to anti malwares such as malwarebytes?

macOS has a lot of built-in security features to prevent malicious software from gaining a foothold. Usually the only way the malicious software gets installed is by a user giving macOS permission to allow the software to be installed. Whenever you are prompted for an admin password from macOS, make sure to stop and carefully think about the request. You should only be supplying your admin password to macOS when you are actively installing an app, or manually updating an app, or installing macOS updates.

If you are careful about the software you download and install, the websites you visit, the links you click on in the browser and within e-mails you greatly minimize the chances of having problems. Just because an app is available in the App Store does not necessarily mean it is a good app or even safe app. If you download apps outside of the App Store, then make sure to only download the app directly from the developer's official site.

macOS is very secure. The weak point of Mac security is the admin user of the system.

There is so much more I could say such as these types of apps can interfere with other apps, many of the apps are gathering and selling personal information about you, many are very poorly made causing system performance issues and also providing more vectors for malicious software to gain a foothold on the system, etc. It is so hard to condense everything down into a few words.

If you want or need to scan your system for malware, then MalwareBytes is the best app for the job on a Mac and is the only app regular contributors on these forums will recommend.

Hello brendanxx,

I understand that the display is no longer turning off when you close the lid after you installed an SSD. I am happy to help.

I see you've already performed an SMC and NVRAM which is great troubleshooting steps so far.

Since you're still experiencing the issue after performing the an SMC and NVRAM, then let's try Safe Mode. 

Use safe mode to isolate issues with your Mac

You may also want to try a test user account.

How to test an issue in another user account on your Mac

Let me know if that worked for you.

Thank you for using Apple Support Communities.

Take care!

First off uninstall Avast by following the developer's instructions unless it is required by your school or employer. Anti-virus and cleaning apps are not needed on a Mac as they usually cause more problems than they solve plus it impacts system performance. Also Avast in particular has been caught twice selling your personal information to advertisers:

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2020/01/avast-kills-off-jumpshot-the-subsidiary-that-sold-all-your-web-data/

https://wccftech.com/avast-is-selling-user-data/

My guess is your two issues are related. My guess is that your laptop isn't actually going to sleep because something is running and keeping it awake. You do have a couple of items installed that I am not familiar since I'm not a macOS software/app expert. See what happens after you uninstall Avast. If you still have problems, then boot into Safe Mode to see whether you still have the issue since Safe Mode does disable many drivers, startup & login items.

FYI, the sleep sensor is located somewhere along the left side or the left front edge of the laptop and is triggered by a magnet in the display assembly.

As for your battery I've never seen one with a cycle count that high! You've gotten your use out of that battery. An Apple battery is the best choice, but unfortunately your computer is considered "Vintage" so you will not be able to get a battery replacement from Apple. Your next best option is to get a battery from OWC. The quality of third party Lithium-ion Batteries is terrible and you may have issues even with a battery from OWC, but OWC is your best chance at getting a decent battery and they have great customer service and are well respected in the Apple community.

HWTech wrote:

As for your battery I've never seen one with a cycle count that high! You've gotten your use out of that battery. An Apple battery is the best choice, but unfortunately your computer is considered "Vintage" so you will not be able to get a battery replacement from Apple. Your next best option is to get a battery from OWC. The quality of third party Lithium-ion Batteries is terrible and you may have issues even with a battery from OWC, but OWC is your best chance at getting a decent battery and they have great customer service and are well respected in the Apple community.

It might be possible. A late 2011 is still on Apple's vintage products list. Certainly a short while back Apple only stated that vintage Macs were eligible for hardware service in Turkey and in California via AASPs. I know in California there's a law stating that any product with a written warranty with a wholesale price more than $100 is required to have repair parts available for at least 7 years from the last date of production. But Apple seems to have broadened it. It's kind of hard to read, but I think it's saying that basically it only means the United States gets this 7 year support. Canada, Europe, Latin America, and the Asia-Pacific region would seem to include every part of the world except for the United States, Antarctica (which of course has no Apple sales/repair), and Africa.

Vintage and obsolete products - Apple Support

Vintage products are those that have not been manufactured for more than 5 and less than 7 years ago. Mac, iPhone, iPad, iPod, and Apple TV vintage products continue to receive hardware service from Apple service providers, including Apple Retail Stores, subject to availability of inventory, or as required by law.

Obsolete products are those that were discontinued more than 7 years ago. Monster-branded Beats products are considered obsolete regardless of when they were purchased. Apple has discontinued all hardware service for obsolete products with no exceptions. Service providers cannot order parts for obsolete products. All Apple Retail Stores and the Canadian, European, Latin American, and Asia-Pacific operating regions follow the U.S. product list, but make no distinction between vintage and obsolete. When applied to Apple Retail Stores and these operating regions, products on the U.S. vintage list (all models) are considered obsolete.