Batteries charging limit not working

No one here can say why Apple does what they do. We are user just like you.

My MacBook Air charges to 80% and holds unless I run it without being plugged in. If I do that often enough then it starts to second guess my patterns and charges to 100%.

The best general guidance for getting the most from your battery:

• Plug in when using the computer near available power.

• Use on battery when ac is unavailable.

• Don’t subject the computer and battery to extreme temperatures.

• Let the OS and charging circuits manage the charging.

• Try not to allow the battery to discharge deeply regularly before plugging in. Yes, it may happen from time to time, just don't make it a habit.

• Don't obsess over battery life and/or health.  

Here is Apple's guidance on the subject.

Batteries - Maximizing Performance - Apple Support

About battery health management in Mac laptops - Apple Support 

advracer67 wrote:

Why doesn't Mac have a battery charge limit setting like IOS? I have had my Mac for months and it still charges to 100%.

Is this a way of selling more batteries?

My last Mac I had to replace the battery twice. I do not want to have to do that again.

It can take months yes. I would not confuse that with your speculative question.

Typically the Battery Health Management is turned on by default

You do not have to micro-manage battery charging, let the built in software work for you. It learns as it goes.

Use your mac as you see fit.

The rule of thumb—if you are near the mains leave it plugged in, if you need the portability then run on the battery only—this is how you help optimize your battery charging and extend the working life of your battery by reducing the cycle count.

ref: About battery health management in Mac laptops

ref: If you see Service Recommended on your MacBook Air or MacBook Pro - Apple Support

advracer67 wrote:

Why doesn't Mac have a battery charge limit setting like IOS? I have had my Mac for months and it still charges to 100%. Is this a way of selling more batteries? My last Mac I had to replace the battery twice. I do not want to have to do that again.

I don't think Apple needs to try to raise its gross revenue by selling more batteries!

To highlight what D.I. Johnson alluded to, the battery health management tries to manage your battery's charging patterns to maximize the battery lifetime. For a battery that is always connected to a charger, one way this can be accomplished is by limiting the charging to 70% or 80% for at least some of the time. Actually, a lot of research has been done on this and there are peer reviewed papers published on it that you can read. It turns out that the optimal "below 100%" charge level to keep the type of batteries in Apple's laptop charged to might be closer to 60% than 80%. However people would likely complain that 60% is not an adequate charge level, if the laptop is to be used off the charger. So it appears that Apple settled at a slightly higher charge level. You can always override it and instruct it to "charge to full" if you anticipate a long period running on the battery.

However, if in your customary use your battery goes down to 50% or lower reasonably often, there may be no need to charge only to 80% because the battery spending time at a lower charge level, off the charger, is the type of "exercising" that helps it last longer. So for some users, charging to 100% may be fine.

I can't assure you that this is why Apple manages your battery the way it does, because Apple's algorithm is proprietary. But based on the papers I have read on this topic, it might be why you see this.

I agree with what the others said -- just connect to the charger when it is available and don't worry about whether it charges to 70%, 80% or 100%. Leave the battery health management active.

advracer67 wrote:

My last Mac I had to replace the battery twice. I do not want to have to do that again.

Thanks for the feedback. FYI  Apple "Services" Revenue: This category, which includes AppleCare (battery repairs), was $109.16 billion for the fiscal year. Even if batteries account for only 1% it is over a billion dollars.

?

Batteries are consumable item yes.

You have an expected cycle count of 1000 +/- ref: Determine battery cycle count for Mac laptops - Apple Support

Your alternative is buy a Desktop computer.

There are examples of Battery Health increasing over time with active BHM software...

ref: BHM notice ~1 yr the % Battery health has increased over time see col.2, battery cycle count col.5

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