How do you calibrate your macbook pro battery properly? Im confused at the part you drain it and it goes to "auto sleep"

Im confused, do i drain it until it goes to auto sleep or drain it until it shuts down? and i dont know the difference.


here is the guide i follow from official apple website:



CCalibrating a portable computer battery



Calibrating your battery ensures you get the longest possible running time from it. Calibrate your battery during the first week you own it, and then recalibrate it every two months. If you use your computer infrequently, it’s best to recalibrate it at least once a month.

Whenever you purchase new batteries, calibrate them as well.



To calibrate a portable computer battery:

  1. Plug in the MagSafe Power Adapter and fully charge the battery.When the battery is fully charged, the light on the MagSafe Power Adapter connector changes to green and the Battery icon in the menu bar indicates that the battery is charged.
  2. Allow the battery to rest in the fully charged state for two hours or longer.You can use your computer during this time as long as the power adapter is plugged in.
  3. With the computer still on, disconnect the power adapter and continue to use your computer.


4. When you see the low battery warning, save your work and close all applications. Keep your computer turned on until it goes to sleep. <--- THIS IS WHAT I DONT UNDERSTAND. I tried it and i let it drained to the point i got a message saying that i should plug it in or else it will go to sleep mode. So i didnt plug it in and i let it go down. When it was a 1% and i still used it the screen went black. So i assume that it was in sleep mode. However the little blinking white light near the edge of my macbook pro (the sleep indicator light) was also turned off!! So i dont know if this was the auto sleep that the guide was referring to, because it sure as **** did not look like it was sleeping, it looked like it shut down because of completely trained battery, and from experience, completely draining your battery to the point that it will shut down is dangerous. So what i did is i panicked and i plugged it on and here i am now. So what is the proper procedure in step 4? did i do it right?


5. After your computer goes to sleep, turn it off or allow it to sleep for five hours or longer.

6. Connect the power adapter and leave it connected until the battery is fully charged.You can use your computer during this time.


MacBook Pro, Mac OS X (10.7.3)

Posted on May 3, 2012 2:17 AM

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2 replies

May 3, 2012 3:40 AM in response to appleseeder

To add to sig's reply, "calibrating" does not calibrate Lithiu-Ion batteries, it calibrates the charge reporting circuitry. If you look at the effect of deep discharging Lithium-Ion batteries in the data from the independent test group, Battery University, you will see that doing so shortens the life of the battery significantly. It looks like an optimum balance between use and life is at a discharge level of 50%.

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How do you calibrate your macbook pro battery properly? Im confused at the part you drain it and it goes to "auto sleep"

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