M2 Battery stays at 100% - any experience?

Question

Level 1

4 points

M2 Battery stays at 100% - any experience?

Hello all,

I have a M2 MBP which is about 15 months old now. It is connected to my monitor and various other accessories via a CalDigit 3 Plus. I know this device also charges the Mac but it always stayed at 100% with Optimized battery charging set to ON.

I also have the OEM charger with MagSafe that I can also connect, I read somewhere that you can connect both safely and the Mac will choose the device automatically and charge accordingly.

So my question is for others with the same set-up I guess. What's the best way to connect and charge?

It suits my desk better to leave it plugged in all the time as I rarely leave the room with my Mac.

I just want to be sure that I'm not over stressing the battery as Apple really does not furnish us with more in depth information.

Thanks in advance...

MacBook Pro 16″, macOS 15.1

Posted on Nov 6, 2024 9:25 AM

Reply

Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

Grant Bennet-Alder

Level 10

141,745 points

Nov 6, 2024 9:38 AM in response to StagMediaMan

That blocky device that plugs into the wall is the POWER ADAPTER. I am not trying to be a jerk about terminology, what these boxes do and how they do it is essential for understanding how they all work together. The LEDs in the MagSafe end are controlled by commands from the computer.

The CHARGER is inside the MacBook Pro, and is completely under program control. Your Mac accepts some power when needs to run, and accepts more power when intends to charge its internal battery. A power source like the Power Adapter can not 'force itself' on your MacBook Pro. Only the algorithms inside your Mac can decide when is a good time to charge the battery.

Any external power supply that provides "USB Power Delivery" (including certain Docks and Displays) must negotiate over the USB cable using USB Power Delivery Protocol, and can not 'force itself' on your Mac. The Voltage and Current are delivered only after your Mac requests and the charger agrees to supply power under certain controlled conditions. The computer is in control of the entire process.

if you have battery health management active, and you are seeing your Mac charge to 100 percent, that says your recent usage patterns may have required a LOT of battery charge, so the algorithm is optimizing for high charge levels so that you don't get stuck with an empty battery.

You can't have it both ways. Only when your usage pattern returns to occasional sips of battery can the level be reduced to a lower level.

Reply

M2 Battery stays at 100% - any experience?

Similar questions