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User profile for user: RCSIII
RCSIII Author
User level: Level 1
12 points

Will higher wattage solve power problem? 2016 MBP 15"

Hello,

I have a 2016 MacBook Pro 15" with the original 87-watt USB-C power. Basic specs: 2.9 Ghz i7, 16 GB, AMD Radeon Pro 460 with 4 GB. The only problem I experience is that the battery slowly drains while playing games with an external display. Playing the same games without the external display does not drain the battery. I understand the the use of the external display prompts the computer to use the discrete graphics which is a bigger drain on the power which is why the battery drains.


What I want to know is if using a higher wattage AC adapter like Apple's new 140-watt USB-C power adapter will solve this problem. The external display is connected via HDMI with Apple's USB-C Digital AV Multiport Adapter. There is no power going to the display. The only external USB devices are a keyboard and a mouse.


Thanks


MacBook Pro with Touch Bar

Posted on Feb 15, 2022 9:49 AM

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User profile for user: HWTech
HWTech
User level: Level 9
60,284 points

Posted on Feb 15, 2022 5:44 PM

I would imagine most games would use the discrete GPU regardless if you have an external display connected.


Is the charger connected directly to the laptop? Connecting the charger to the USB-C multiport adapter won't allow the full power of the charger to reach the laptop.


Try connecting the charger to another USB-C port especially on the other side of the laptop. Also try rotating the connector of the charging cable 180 degrees upside down in case the USB-C port is half bad. It is amazing how many times I find damaged USB-C ports on these Macs, unfortunately it is very difficult to inspect the ports so even if they look clean, there could still be a physical issue with the contacts. I also find that the USB-C ports on the 2016-2017 models physically wear over time causing the cables not to fit tightly or the contacts may be oxidized which can somewhat limit the power transferred as well.


Try an SMC Reset.


Try unplugging the charger from the electrical outlet for a minute to reset the charger's internal circuitry.


Try running the Apple Diagnostics to see if any hardware issues are detected.


Using a larger charger may help, but there is no guarantee. It definitely won't hurt. You would end up with a spare charger which can be useful if carry the laptop around.

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User profile for user: HWTech
HWTech
User level: Level 9
60,284 points

Feb 15, 2022 5:44 PM in response to RCSIII

I would imagine most games would use the discrete GPU regardless if you have an external display connected.


Is the charger connected directly to the laptop? Connecting the charger to the USB-C multiport adapter won't allow the full power of the charger to reach the laptop.


Try connecting the charger to another USB-C port especially on the other side of the laptop. Also try rotating the connector of the charging cable 180 degrees upside down in case the USB-C port is half bad. It is amazing how many times I find damaged USB-C ports on these Macs, unfortunately it is very difficult to inspect the ports so even if they look clean, there could still be a physical issue with the contacts. I also find that the USB-C ports on the 2016-2017 models physically wear over time causing the cables not to fit tightly or the contacts may be oxidized which can somewhat limit the power transferred as well.


Try an SMC Reset.


Try unplugging the charger from the electrical outlet for a minute to reset the charger's internal circuitry.


Try running the Apple Diagnostics to see if any hardware issues are detected.


Using a larger charger may help, but there is no guarantee. It definitely won't hurt. You would end up with a spare charger which can be useful if carry the laptop around.

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User profile for user: RCSIII
RCSIII Author
User level: Level 1
12 points

Feb 18, 2022 7:36 PM in response to HWTech

I ended up doing three things at the same time so this isn't good troubleshooting form to isolate the problem. What I did:


  1. Unplugged the charger for a while.
  2. Did the SMC reset.
  3. Connected the power USB-C cable directly to the computer instead of through the Multiport Adapter. I liked having a single plug to connect like a mini-docking station. This is probably what solved the problem; it never occured to me that not all the power was getting through.


Since this, power has not been a problem. Thanks for all the tips.

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User profile for user: RCSIII
RCSIII Author
User level: Level 1
12 points

Feb 16, 2022 7:19 AM in response to HWTech

Excellent reply. Thank you very much for all the detailed information.


I don't know how to tell if the discrete graphics is being used or not other than performance. Using an external display with the lid closed I get decent FPS. Using only the laptop screen the FPS is painfully bad so I just always guessed it was using the on-board Intel graphics.


I should have added this isn't a new problem. It's been like this for a long while. The battery is probably losing some capacity which would explain why it seems worse lately.


I will try all the troubleshooting you listed. The SMC reset was on my to-do list when I could find time to shutdown.


Thanks again

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Will higher wattage solve power problem? 2016 MBP 15"

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