M2 MacBook Air battery health 93% after 11 months

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Level 1

13 points

M2 MacBook Air battery health 93% after 11 months

What is acceptable rate of degradation, I use my MacBook Air M2 mostly as desktop, usually I notice power draw is from charger only and charging on hold. It hardly ever charges above 80%, and only when OS does it of its own accord. This algorithm seems to randomly do this - Apple should put a manual limit option to 80%, for me I don't use away from power for long durations, 80% is enough to run me 2+ days anyway.

Previous answers to this question have not addressed what is acceptable degradation - I tried to check for the battery cycles and how many full charges mine has gone through but I can't find this.

I really think this 7% degradation on battery that has hardly seen any use is quite high, I plan to keep my machine for a while as I am not a heavy user - web/email and occasional streaming video. this leaves only 13% before replacement required and likely degradation rate increases over time. probably will need replacing before 2nd yr? Can Apple replace under warranty? I have 2 weeks of first yr left...

Posted on Jul 12, 2023 10:06 AM

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Answer 1

AnnieL2

Community Specialist

Jul 13, 2023 12:20 PM in response to SdaoMike

Salutations SdaoMike,

There is no way to say whether the amount of your battery usage is normal. Battery and device usage is extremely personal and depends on many variables.

If there was a hardware issue with your battery though, there would be a message by the battery condition saying that it needed service. Based on your screenshot, the internal diagnostic is showing the battery as normal.

If you’d like, you can work with an authorized service tech to check the battery for you. That will be redundant since the onboard diagnostic has already provided an answer, but may offer some peace of mind for you. You can use this link to find an authorized service tech near you - Mac Repair & Service

Thanks.

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Answer 2

SdaoMike Author

Level 1

13 points

Jul 13, 2023 11:52 AM in response to karina184

Thanks for replying but this didn't address my concern.

Battery seemed OK showing 100% until recently, I don't see the same rate of degradation on my iphone, I have a 13 thats a >6months old and it still shows 100% capacity. I also have an 12Pro thats >30months old thats only now getting to 80% max charge.

Seems to me the drop has happened quite recently, hence my question on rate of degradation, especially since, as I said in my first post, I already have the battery optimisation switched on. You can see from the graph I am a light user (have a work PC).

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Answer 3

Mar 11, 2024 5:14 AM in response to SdaoMike

Rechargeable batteries can lose some initial charge quickly and the last for a long time at that level before losing capacity, some will hold initial capacity for a long time and then start to lose capacity, some will start slowly losing capacity from day one, and any other possible combinations. It is just the nature of rechargeable batteries. Also, the environment when using or not using your Mac as high temperatures and low temperatures will effect the aging of the batteries. There is no way to tell at the time of manufacture how an individual battery will perform.

FWIW, don't try to micromanage your battery and just use the Mac and enable the Optimize Battery option. If you reach a point in time where the working time on battery is not long enough to meet your needs, then start to worry or just get the battery replaced.

FWIW, I have one of the first M1 MacBook Airs that I bought in fall 2020. It dropped to 91% in the first 10 months and has been sitting at that capacity to this day in March 2024..

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Answer 4

karina184

Community Specialist

Jul 13, 2023 10:16 AM in response to SdaoMike

Hey SdaoMike,

We’ll be happy to help. With Lithium-ion batteries, it is normal for the capacity to diminish slightly with each complete charge cycle: Batteries - Why Lithium-ion? - Apple. It sounds like what you're experiencing is expected behavior. However, the information here can help make sure you're getting the most of your battery: Batteries - Maximizing Performance - Apple.

Take care!

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Answer 5

Mar 10, 2024 10:50 AM in response to SdaoMike

I am in the same boat and have not gotten a satisfactory response either. Mine went down to 91% in less than a year.

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M2 MacBook Air battery health 93% after 11 months

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