Advice on first battery calibration needed

When I got my new Powerbook yesterday I used it for 60-90 minutes to get the hang of using a mac. While I was doing this I had not yet attached the power wires, so I was just using the battery power. While doing this, I took some breaks, during which the computer went to sleep mode.
After doing all of this, I realized that I was supposed to start out by calibrating it, so I'm not sure what to do now.
Should I plug it in and charge it to maximum, or should I just let it drain the rest of the way before recharging it?

Welcome Jo,
To calibrate yuour battery, use it from whatever charge you hav currently. Then use it till it forces itself to shut down. Then connect to the power adapter and wait until the light on the connector turns from orange to green. Then you will have calibrated your battery.
-J.Martin

Similar Messages

KB article 1490 on battery calibration needs work

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1490 says:
"Disconnect the power adapter while the computer still on and start running the computer off battery power. You may use your computer during this time."
Does “running” mean something different than “use”? Does this instruction mean the computer should not be allowed to sleep?
[And fix the typo: "still on" should be "still is on".]

Assuming that, then -- do both terms mean the computer 1) can or 2) cannot be put to sleep?
The context here is the instructions are for "Apple Portables: Calibrating your computer's battery for best performance". The instruction in question is #3 for
PowerBook G4 (15-inch Double-Layer SD), MacBook (all models), MacBook Pro (all models), MacBook Pro (17-inch) (all models) and MacBook Air
The battery calibration for the PowerBook G4 (15-inch Double-Layer SD) and any model of MacBook or MacBook Pro has been updated because of a new battery released with this computer. With these computers, follow these steps to calibrate your battery:
1. Plug in the power adapter and fully charge your PowerBook's battery until the light ring or LED on the power adapter plug changes to green and the onscreen meter in the menu bar indicates that the battery is fully charged.
2. Allow the battery to rest in the fully charged state for at least two hours. You may use your computer during this time as long as the adapter is plugged in.
3. Disconnect the power adapter while the computer still on and start running the computer off battery power. You may use your computer during this time. When your battery gets low, the low battery warning dialog appears on the screen.
4. At this point, save your work. Continue to use your computer; when the battery gets very low, the computer will automatically go to sleep.
5. Turn off the computer or allow it to sleep for five hours or more.
6. Connect the power adapter and leave it connected until the battery is fully charged again.
Does the calibration process require, in step 3, that the computer be kept awake? It seems likely, given step 4, that step 3 allows the computer to be in either the wake state or sleep state.
My interest is in clarifying whether the calibration process requires that battery draw-down be relatively quick (as when the computer is awake) or does speed not matter (i.e., the computer can be either awake or asleep).

Battery Calibration and Charge Capacity?

I am currently using a PB G4 15" (high res DL SD) and I've had it for about a month. I just read about calibrating the battery and went ahead and did it. Have I done any damage to the battery or shortened it's effectiveness by waiting a month to calibrate rather than when it was first out of the box?
Also, i also just read about checking the battery charge capacity using the system profiler. My charge capacity prior to calibration was 2731 and after calibration it's 2930. However, it sounds like it should be in the 4400's based on the posts I've read. What do these numbers mean and do I have a faulty battery since it's so low?
Thanks for your help.

Hi Kevin --
Yeah, I'm not loving those numbers you posted either. I'd try performing the calibration procedure once or twice more to make sure that that battery capacity number doesn't change.
The other thing I would do if I were you is download Coconutbattery: http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/27425
It's a free app available at versiontracker and it will tell you your battery's original capacity as well as it's current capacity.
I agree with you that a capacity of 2930 mAh after only a month of use and 16 cycles suggests that your battery is defective and should be replaced at no cost to you under the terms of the warranty.
For a frame of reference, after 10 months of use and 166 load cycles, my battery's original capacity of 4400 mAh is now 4228 mAh. No way yours should be in the 2930 mAh range.
When you call AppleCare to arrange for a replacement, if in fact that's what you end up needing to do, the agent you speak with, in addition to making sure that you've properly calibrated your battery a few times (as mentioned earlier) may also ask that you reset your PB's Power Management Unit (PMU). While I'm skeptical that a PMU reset will alter the outcome, you can find instructions on how to reset the PMU here (just in case you need to): http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=14449
Good luck and please post back how everything turns out.
-- JDee
PS. You probably know this, but the calibration procedure has been changed slightly for your DL hi-res version of the PB. Here it is below, just to make sure:
PowerBook G4 (15-inch Double-Layer SD)
The battery calibration for the PowerBook G4 (15-inch Double-Layer SD) has been updated because of a new battery released with this computer. With these computers, follow these steps to calibrate your battery:
Plug in the power adapter and fully charge your PowerBook's battery until the light ring on the power adapter plug changes to green and the onscreen meter in the menu bar indicates that the battery is fully charged.
Allow the battery to rest in the fully charged state for at least two hours. You may use your computer during this time as long as the adapter is plugged in.
Disconnect the power adapter with the computer still on and start running the computer off battery power. You may use your computer during this time. When your battery gets low, you will see the low battery warning dialog on the screen.
Continue to keep your computer on until it goes to sleep. Save all your work and close all applications when the battery gets very low, before the computer goes to sleep.
Turn off the computer or allow it to sleep for five hours or more.
Connect the power adapter and leave it connected until the battery is fully charged again.
Tip: When the battery reaches "empty", the computer is forced into sleep mode. The battery actually keeps back a reserve beyond "empty", to maintain the computer in sleep for a period of time. Once the battery is truly exhausted, the computer is forced to shut down. At this point, with the safe sleep function introduced in the PowerBook G4 (15-inch Double-Layer SD) computers, the computer's memory contents have been saved to the hard drive. When power is restored, the computer returns itself to its pre-sleep state using the safe sleep image on the hard drive.
Message was edited by: JDee

Q on battery calibration after reading KBs

I have a late model unibody Macbook Pro 17" with the 1000 cycle battery; and I've read the Apple information regarding battery calibration, (along with http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1764220), as well as comments by Mac users,
The confusing part to me is that in the article I sited below, it states:
+Failure to do so for a long period of time can result in the microchip "fuel gauge" in the battery losing the ability to accurately determine the remaining charge, and it will report that there is more charge in the battery than is actually present. As a result, the computer will not initiate Safe Sleep at the proper time, and instead undergo a hard shut down, one of the main causes of hard drive directory damage. Once the battery is in the state resulting from a failure to calibrate, it is not possible to calibrate the battery, and it will need to be replaced.+
First of all, this sounds like if you fail to calibrate frequently enough, then if you do calibrate, you ruin the battery and it has to be replaced. Is that correct?
If it is correct, then it seems fantastically irresponsible to tell people that recalibration really isn't necessary if you use your battery regularly, because if the "fuel gauge" gets off, your screwed.
So, if I am using my UMBP in the on-the-train scenario Apple states as ideal (which sounds like the first hour of the day w/o the charger, then on the charger), calibrate or no, and every one month or every three?
Also, how can running the battery to 0% be bad for it, but calibration (running it to 0% every once in a while) not be bad for it?
And isn't it nerve wracking to calibrate and not really know if the battery will survive the calibration if you forgot to do it for a while? That is what the quote above implies.
Just as little confused is all.

If you don't use the battery now and then and re-calibrate every couple of months then you won't get the best performance and life span from it. It's unlikely a single re-calibration would render it dead but that's not impossible if it's not been looked after.
Re-calibration does not run the battery down to 0% simply below 5% - you're taking it from a state of maximum charge to minimum charge and back again - rather like a bungie rope.
It's not going to die if you forget and don't re-calibrate for three months, but if you never re-calibrate for years it's not the best use of the battery.

GS70 - Battery Calibration utility does not work (any longer)

Hi folks
Just got myself a brand new GS70 Stealth notebook. I got the pre-installed battery calibration utility to run OK once, but a few days laters it just quickly flashes 2 windows one after the other and is gone / crashed.
Of course it might be something I did (upgraded BIOS, drivers, installed some apps), but I still need to find out what, otherwise it might happen again even after I reset to factory settings.
I scanned all 33 threads of this forum found with the search "battery calibration", and found only one which describes something similar:
https://forum-en.msi.com/index.php?topic=165389.0;nowap
However the symptoms are not the same (I have Windows 8 and my other utilities KLM & SCM are working fine), and that thread is too old anyway. So a couple of questions to the community:
1) does anybody experience the same failed start issue, with GS70 or other?
2) can anybody advise on how to debug the battery calibration utility to try and find out where it crashed? (found no logfile)
(note: I also tried to upgrade .NET to 4.5.1 as it seems to be used, no change)
I will eventually contact MSI about this, but I thought that I would ask around first. Thanks for any help...

Okay, just found the answer by myself: The battery calibration utility depends on a service "Micro Star SCM" (MSIService.exe), which I had disabled.
Setting the service start mode to "manual" was enough to solve the problem, the utility starts again.
Hope this can help someone else.

IPhone 5s first battery charge

I have just gotten a brand new iPhone 5s and just ran out of battery: how long should I keep it plugged-in for the first battery charge?
iPhone 5s, iOS 7.1.2

Do whatever you like. Leave it until it's fully charged if you don't need to walk away from the charger with it, or leave it on charge for as long or as little as you like. The best way to look after the battery is to stop yourself inventing rules. Lithium batteries do better when they are exercised. The only thing which you are better avoiding is to do what most people think is good: run it down until it dies, then charge it to 100%, then run it down until it dies... This is not good for lithium batteries.
Charge it whenever a charger is to hand, regardless of the current state of charge, and don't worry about it.

Please help after updating my iphone 4 to ios 5.01 I cannot make phone calls or receive phone calls anymore. I am so annoyed first battery and now can't make calls!

Please help after updating my iphone 4 to ios 5.01 I cannot make phone calls or receive phone calls anymore, please help, I am so annoyed first battery and now can't make calls!

The same thing is happening with my wife's iPhone 4 and we can't figure it out. When placing a call, the screen freezes and she needs to restart the entire phone.
She upgraded to 5.01 this morning over the air while it was plugged in. Immediately afterwards, this problem started happening. We've tried restarting the phone several times and plugged in to iTunes but there's nothing she can do do to fix it.
Any help is greatly appreciated!

IPod battery help needed pleeeeeease!

Hi
I did the battery test yesterday on my 30GB video as recommended. I let it play an album continually with no backlight what so ever and no equalizer. I don''t have the exact time that it took to run out but the last I checked was after 13 3/4hrs and it was still going but was deep in the red. It had add 2 accidental stoppages during this 4 about 2 mins. However I was pretty pleased with the results. I don't expect that they would have been much different with the backlight as this should have turned off after a few secs.
However I am getting pretty annoyed with the fact that just skipping about 4 songs begins to run down the battery. I haven't done a test of how long the battery will last with skipping a few songs and having the backlight, however, I have noticed significantly less than 14hrs if I do this. Is this meant to happen? And is anybody else thinking like that why didn't apple make a battery that would withstand peoples normal usage? Also does anybody know if the battery packs are any good and if they damage the internal battery?
Pippa

Apple used the best battery technology that was
available and for the price. I have yet to just sit
and listen to my IPOD for 13 hours straight, 6 hours
maybe but not what the battery is rated at in terms
of hours. How the songs are encoded also affect how
long the battery lasts. No two batteries are going to
give exactly the same results.
A lithium-ion battery provides 300-500
discharge/charge cycles. The battery prefers a
partial rather than a full discharge. Frequent full
discharges should be avoided when possible. Instead,
charge the battery more often. There is no concern of
memory when applying unscheduled charges.
Although lithium-ion is memory-free in terms of
performance deterioration, batteries with fuel gauges
exhibit what engineers refer to as "digital memory".
Here is the reason: Short discharges with subsequent
recharges do not provide the periodic calibration
needed to synchronize the fuel gauge with the
battery's state-of-charge. A deliberate full
discharge and recharge every 30 charges corrects this
problem. Letting the battery run down to the cut-off
point in the IPOD will do this. If ignored, the fuel
gauge will become increasingly less accurate.
Simple Guidelines:
Avoid frequent full discharges because this puts
additional strain on the battery. Several partial
discharges with frequent recharges are better for
lithium-ion than one deep one. Recharging a partially
charged lithium-ion does not cause harm because there
is no memory. (In this respect, lithium-ion differs
from nickel-based batteries.)
I am sure you have already read this but here is for
those who have not:
IPODs Battery Indicator -
ttp://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=61475
IPOD Batttery Questions -
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=62018
Hi
Thanks for your help. One question when you listen to it like you mentioned do you change songs frequently or just let it play?

Any harm in using computer during battery calibration?

Hello,
I have a new 13" MBP running SL 10.6.2 and I am doing my battery calibration for the first time. I have completed the initial charging, the depletion, and over 5 hours of forced sleep. I am now about to begin the final charging of the battery (Step 6 of http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1490 ). The knowledge base article doesn't mention use/non-use during this step.
Can I use the computer during this final charging or should I wait until the charging is complete? I'd like to do what is best for the calibration cycle.
Thank you in advance for any help.

I am sorry, I just noticed I posted this in the wrong forum section.

Hi. im ipad and ipohe user. now i want to buy my first macbook. i need to know what is better for me: macbook pro 13´´ or macbook air 13´´?? or another??

hi. im ipad and ipohe user. now i want to buy my first macbook. i need to know what is better for me: macbook pro 13´´ or macbook air 13´´?? or another??
i will not move it frecuently from home because i always have with me the iphone and sometimes the ipad.
im looking apple store online because im trying to buy it refubrished (im from argentina and travel to NYC next month)...
please i hear you...!

Light weight basic needs, power miser - MacBook Air (glossy screens)
Semi-light weight basic needs, more storage, DVD drive, hot machine (no 3D gaming) - 13" MacBook Pro (glossy screens)
Bit heavier, pro needs, 3D gaming, cool machine, power hungry, - 15" MacBook Pro (anti-glare screen option, recommended)
Same as above, larger screen for HD video, cool machine, power hungry, 17" MacBook Pro (anti-glare screen option, recommended)

First Do we need to download a browser for internet search in i3???

First Do we need to download a browser for internet search in i3???

I don't know what i3 is (iOS3?) but all iPhones have Safari.
Matt

TS3274 My IPad is dead. Nothing will show on the screen. Screen not cracked and no water or liquid has been spilled on it. Is there a battery that needs to be replaced?

My IPad is dead. Nothing will show on the screen. Screen not cracked and no liquid spilled on it. Is there a battery that needs to be replaced?

Battery not charging:
1. Reset iPad; hold the Sleep/Wake and Home button down until you see the Apple Logo
2. Try another wall socket
3. Try another cable (make sure it's an original Apple cable)
4. Try another charger (make sure it's an original Apple charger)
5. Clean Lightning port with compress air or new paint brush

Messed up battery calibration

Hi,
I just received my MB Pro today and I messed up doing the initial battery calibration. I assumed the process as the same as my PowerBook G4 (charge battery to full, use computer until it sleeps, recharge again). I later looked up how to do it for the MB Pro and you have to leave it on full power for 2 hours, and then when it sleeps allow it to do so for 5 hours. Is it a big deal that I did the initial calibration wrong? Can I just do it over the correct way without worrying about it? Or is it even necessary at this point?
Thanks
Message was edited by: mrurmil

No worries. You can (and should) just repeat it following the proper steps. It's best to calibrate every 2 months or so.
Hope this helps...

Since updating to iso7 my battery is needing to be charged at least twice a day.ive always looked after my battery and only ever charge when less than 20% so why is this happening? Thankyou

Since updating to iso7 my battery is needing to be charged at least twice a day.ive always looked after my battery and only ever charge when less than 20% so why is this happening? Thankyou

It will take longer to charge the 5G's battery than either the 3G or 4G's battery.
Not Charge
- See:
iPod touch: Hardware troubleshooting
iPhone and iPod touch: Charging the battery
- Try another cable. The cable for 5G iPod (lightning connector) seems to be more prone to failure than the older cable.
- If a 5G iPod
Iphone 5 lightning port charging problem - SOLUTION!
- Try another charging source like a computer's USB port
- Inspect the dock connector on the iPod for bent or missing contacts, foreign material, corroded contacts, broken, missing or cracked plastic.
- Make an appointment at the Genius Bar of an Apple store.
Apple Retail Store - Genius Bar

Re XP expiry - Windows upgrade assistant refers me to you for Acrobat advice. What do I need to do?

re XP expiry - Windows upgrade assistant refers me to you for Acrobat advice. What do I need to do?

I don't know. What version of Acrobat do you have, what OS are you now running, and what does the message say?

Advice on first battery calibration needed

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for