[SOLVED] Battery issues on 2006 macbook pro

[overclockingrocks]

Hey guys,

have a new to me macbook pro one of the late 2006 models with a 2.16Ghz core 2 duo 2GB DDR2 upgraded 500GB HD all that jazz currently running Snow leopard 10.6.6. My issue is that the battery will only charge to max 90% or that's what it was when I picked it up from the seller a few days ago. Since then highest I've seen it was 89% and now I've tried recalibrating and such and have seen it charge to 86% and stop and now just today 79% and stop. The magsafe light blinks and the icon alternates between showing the percentage and (not charging) showing. I'm thinking that it's time for this one to get a new battery. Just want to confirm this if it's the magsafe that means I'll be stuck probably taking it to a local mac reseller and getting new one but I'd hope it's the battery as batteries on ebay are $51 CDN to replace my A1175 battery i have. Any help would be appreciated and I have already tried resetting the SMC and PRAM as well just so those are both ruled out.

Thanks for the help in advance guys

 

[rwpritchett]

While plugged into AC, go to:

Finder->Applications->Utilities->System Profiler

On the window that pops up, in the left pane go to:

Hardware->Power

Look at the battery statistics under "Charge Information" and "Health Information".

Especially look into the battery cycle count and the rated condition. Apple claims the batteries are good for 1000 cycles, but my wife had to replace her 2007 Macbook battery when she was between 500-600 cycles.

 

[overclockingrocks]

cell count is at 2 and health lists as normal. thought it won't go over 79-80% and it glows orange when charging up from near zero and then when it reaches that threshold it alternates orange and green.

could SL possibly be reporting the wrong charge count or the battery health?


Update: downloaded coconut battery and it's showing 100% charge and that the battery holds a 100% charge as well so I'm about the whole thing now. do I rely on SL's battery meter or do I look at coconut battery and rely on that?

2nd update: apparently coconut battery is unreliable I downloaded battery health monitor and it shows that the battery is 98% of original capacity charged at 79% charging and only has 3 charge cycles on it. I'm now confused as to why it's not taking beyond the 79% charge that makes no sense with such a low cycle count. Unless my magsafe is busted but it charged it up to this point.

 

[wildwell]

I had a similar problem on a previous laptop a while back. The computer's actual power port went bad (2004 15" PowerBook G4); it was before the magasfe connection.

Have you tried somone else's a/c adpater yet?

 

[roagie]

I know this is a long shot, but also check the magsafe to make sure it has the correct wattage. Mac Book pro's take an 85W charger while a regular Macbook takes a 60W charger. A macbook charger will also give the same indicator lights as a macbook pro.
Visually the two are identical, so sometimes in multi-mac environments they do get mixed up. Also, a macbook charger will give you enough juice to run your macbook pro while plugged in but will not charge your battery during that time.

 

[overclockingrocks]

Well just thought I'd update everyone here. Took the computer to a local Mac shop. They ran some diagnostics turns out the battery's charging circuit on it not the laptop went bad so I just ordered a new battery off ebay. Had them check the magsafe and all and it was all good as new

 

[rwpritchett]

Good to know you figured it out. Hope you got a good deal on eBay. If I remember right my wife's macbook battery purchased at an Apple store was >$100.

 

[Saga Lout]

Now this thread seems solved, perhaps I could add a question about my 2006 G4 Powerbook 15". The battery seems to charge well and seems healthy in the hardware checks but sometimes the system fails to start unless I remove the battery, start up on main power and leave the battery out until the next restart, when everything works normally.

I wonder whether a replacement battery would help but don't wish to buy one just on the possibility. The present one can last an hour without mains support.

There is another issue with the machine in that the built-in Airport has failed so I use a PCMCIA card. Could that point to a failing motherboard issue which also explains the battery problem?

 

[overclockingrocks]

Good to know you figured it out. Hope you got a good deal on eBay. If I remember right my wife's macbook battery purchased at an Apple store was >$100.

yea it was $51 CDN +tax with free shipping

 

[wildwell]

Now this thread seems solved, perhaps I could add a question about my 2006 G4 Powerbook 15". The battery seems to charge well and seems healthy in the hardware checks but sometimes the system fails to start unless I remove the battery, start up on main power and leave the battery out until the next restart, when everything works normally.

I wonder whether a replacement battery would help but don't wish to buy one just on the possibility. The present one can last an hour without mains support.

There is another issue with the machine in that the built-in Airport has failed so I use a PCMCIA card. Could that point to a failing motherboard issue which also explains the battery problem?

Since you're down to just one hour of use, it sounds like getting a new battery isn't going to hurt anyway. Besides, this kind of problem almost always has to do with the battery. Did you see what the System Profiler has to say about the battery? (see rwpritchett's instructions above.)

That era of PowerPC PowerBooks ran pretty hot after breaking the GHz barrier. I've seen two >1Ghz G4s basically die of heat exhaustion; you may just be seeing the slow death of your hardware by heat.
Personally, I never got great reception on the Apple branded 802.11g cards. Your PCMCIA card probably provides greater range and speed anyway.

 

[Saga Lout]

Thanks for that, Wildwell - on that basis I'll sport £35 on a new battery. This one clearly has no overheating issues as it's been on for a week now and runs far cooler than a lot of Windows laptops that pass through here. Once it has a battery I'll sell it - too much trouble to get used to another OS at my age but it's in remarkable condition and will suit someone.

Thanks for your advice.