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).

Similar Messages

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

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.

Hi, I need help my computer is not starting up at all, nothing happening when I press the button on/off. The battery charger is working as using it for another laptop. Not sure what to do. Anyone have any idea? many thanks

Hi, I need help my computer is not starting up at all, nothing happening when I press the button on/off. The battery charger is working as using it for another laptop. Not sure what to do. Anyone have any idea? many thanks

You could try a SMC reset:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3964
If no change, do what Allan advises.
Caio.

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

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?

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.

My Macbook pro retina battery is not working

Hello everybody,
I kinda need help, maybe somebody here can give me an advice. I kinda destroyed my Macbook pro retina with coffé My father spilled the coffé on the table and the coffé went exactly inside the laptop. It didnt work but after complete and careful cleaning it works. (except the battery) Battery is not working at all, but interesting is, that I still can see the percentage of charge of the batery.
In the authorised czech service they told me that they need to replace the whole battery (with the skelet of the laptop) so it is very expensive. But I believe that there is maybe some other way? Anybody can help me?
Thank you very much
Jakub

I forgot... The percentage of the charge of the battery is moving now it is 9% but before it was more... 10%,11% etc...

9800 new battery doesn't work

hello
I bought a new battery for my torch, cause the old one draines very quickly. so the new battery doesn't work, it has an X and the OS doesn't load. I've reinstaled 3 times the OS so it's not this problem. also I've charged the battery 1 day, with blackberry original charger.
I've tried every step I found on forums but with nou luck
any help please..
the battery it's new, it's the same as the original one, I don't know if it's original 100% but it's the same as the one I had before.

BrownSugar13 wrote:
I have been having the exact same problem. I replaced my battery and it still drains really quickly; 3 hours after a full charge and no use and the battery's drained.
I would also appreciate any advice.....
Hi and Welcome to the Community!
I recommend that you attempt to boot into Safe Mode:
KB17877 How to start a BlackBerry smartphone in Safe Mode
It may take you multiple attempts to get the ESC key sequence (press/release/hold) correct, so be patient. When successfully into Safe Mode, see what happens.
If the behavior ceases, then think carefully...what happened just before this behavior started? A new app? An update? A Theme? Something else? Think carefully as the smallest change could be causal...and attempt to undo whatever that was.
If the behavior continues in Safe Mode, then you should investigate more harsh remedies...WIPE, OS Reload, OS Update, BBSAK Wipe/Reload, "Bare Bones" diagnostic reload process, etc.
Good luck and let us know!
Occam's Razor nearly always applies when troubleshooting technology issues!
If anyone has been helpful to you, please show your appreciation by clicking the button inside of their post. Please click here and read, along with the threads to which it links, for helpful information to guide you as you proceed. I always recommend that you treat your BlackBerry like any other computing device, including using a regular backup schedule...click here for an article with instructions.
Join our BBM Channels
BSCF General Channel
PIN: C0001B7B4 Display/Scan Bar Code
Knowledge Base Updates
PIN: C0005A9AA Display/Scan Bar Code

Kernel panic after battery calibration

My aluminium macbook was working nice until I did a battery calibration. Now all the applications are crashing: Safari, itunes, skype... Safari always crashes when I right click on a link and after some minutes the all system just crashed: kernel panic. How can I fix this. Is it a software issue or a hardware one? Does the kernel panic has something to do with the kernel panic?
Thanks for your help

Kernal panics are usually caused by hardware.
User Tips: Kernel Panics
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1392

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.

Replaced macbook pro battery still wont work.

Hi all,
I’ve been a long time reader but I haven’t been able to fix my issue and its been nearly 18 months, so I need your advice as to what to do.
One day I was using my laptop (Macbook Pro Unibody Mid 2009 model) and realised that my battery was losing battery but it was plugged into the AC. Eventually my battery died so I assumed my charger had short-circuited. I used a new charger, and although it turn on my fear worsened when I realised that even with a new charger that it still said no battery available. Also the sidelights, which indicate the status of my battery, will no longer flash at all and the light on my magsafe is always green. So up to this point, my charger stopped working, and what looked like my battery had stopped working. I tried everything to resettling my PRAM and SMU to removing the battery and holding down the power button then restoring the battery. Nothing. I then had no choice but to order a new battery, which cost me £70. To increase my problem, a new battery didn’t work. I don’t remember resetting any settings once I placed the new battery in. I am now selling the battery if anyone wants it when I realised it wasn’t the problem. So then I thought, maybe the magsafe connector is the problem. But like I said previously, my computer still works when plugged in to the AC so therefore it isn’t the charger or the battery as both had been replaced, and it can’t be the logic board as my computer has been working for the last 18 months. I then did an Apple hardware Test and it came back with the code for no battery detected, even with my new battery placed inside. So this must mean that the connection between my battery and my logic board is somehow damaged. Am I right? Does anyone have any insight into how I can fix this or any place in the UK, which can fix logic boards and wont just tell me to replace it? I have a perfectly working mac when it runs off AC, and although it runs on half its CPU usage because it can’t detect a battery I have since gotten round that. I need help, and I have no idea what to do. If anyone helps me get my mac up and running I will buy you a beer or cold beverage if I’m ever in your part of the world/country.
Regards,

See this discussion - https://discussions.apple.com/thread/4135250?tstart=30 - a good number of notebook users saw a degradation in battery life after upgrading to Mountain Lion.
Clinton

Hi there, i have a ipod nano general 7, just used one year. Now can't charge battery. When charging, the icon shows full power, but disconnect it. It becomes dark, no power. Why, the battery doesn't work ?

I've a ipod nano general 7, I've just used it one year. Now, I can't charge the battery. When charging, the icon shows full power. But when I disconnect, the ipod becomes dark, no power is keeped. Why, the battery doesn't work ? the life of my ipod's battery is too short ?

Howdy tamsg,
Welcome to Apple Support Communities.
The article linked below provides a lot of great troubleshooting tips that can help you resolve the issue with your iPod nano charging or displaying a blank black screen.
iPod nano (7th generation): Hardware troubleshooting - Apple Support
So long,
-Jason

Best Battery Health not working in Windows 7 after Windows 8 installation

Hello everybody, I'm having an annoying problem with my G475.
It came with Windows 7 installed, and the option "Best Battery Health" was working fine.
Then I upgraded to Windows 8 (fresh install) and installed the Energy Management drivers.
Since "Best Battery Health" wasn't working on Windows 8, I installed back Windows 7 (fresh install).
But now, the option "Best Battery Health" is not working anymore!
It stays checked in the software, but the battery keeps charging until 100 percent.
I did the "Battery Gauge Reset". It finished and the problem persisted.
I also tried to change settings in safe mode, didn't work.
Please help!

hi kauptman,
Welcome to the Lenovo Community.
Just want to verify, have you also installed the following in order:
1. Intel Chipset Driver
2. AMD Matrix Storage Manager Driver v1.2.1.210
2. Lenovo Energy Management v6.0.1.5
If the apps listed above are already installed, I recommend you:
1. Drain the battery (use the computer until it prompts you that the battery is low)
2. Change your power plan settings to Power Saver / High Performance and re-test if battery stops charging at 90% or 95%.
If the problem still persist, I recommend you restore the unit by using the Lenovo Recovery Disc. If the recovery partition is still intact, click here on how to create a facotory restore dics.
Hope this helps.
Did someone help you today? Press the star on the left to thank them with a Kudo!
If you find a post helpful and it answers your question, please mark it as an "Accepted Solution"! This will help the rest of the Community with similar issues identify the verified solution and benefit from it.
Follow @LenovoForums on Twitter!

After upgrading to ios 5.1 on my iphone 3gs, the battery percentage dosent work well, it dosent move. how can i fix the problem?

after upgrading to ios 5.1 on my iphone 3gs, the battery percentage dosent work well, it dosent move. how can i fix the problem?

Have you tried doing turning the battery level display off and then General -> "Reset all settings"? You won't loose any data and that should do the trick.

KB article 1490 on battery calibration needs work

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for