Battery life for 13" and 15" Macbook Pro

[philosopherdog]

A bad test since the other MBP is around 3 years old.

He got over 12 hours at 50%. That's great battery life no matter how old or new the machine is. I'm seeing about 8-9 hours on mine mostly doing coding. It's a big bump from my old MBP retina which was doing 5-6 hours with a brand new battery. Obviously I don't have charts to back this up I'm getting way more battery power out of this new Mac.

 

[jun180]

I'm returning my 2016 15" with the 2.6ghz cpu, 16gb RAM and the 460 GPU, due to poor battery life.

Over the past 3 weeks been averaging 3~5 hours on light usage (safari with adguard, excel, word, mail, spotify, skype, facetime, imessages). My batter draw ranges between 10w-20+w, and never drops below 10w unless booting from a cold start.

Its a great laptop, but battery life does not meet my requirements, and the TB is a waste of time (touchID is great though).

 

[sziehr]

Honestly I would have kept the laptop if Apple would have admitted a fault with the battery, instead they have sealed lips and defensive responses. I mean if they would say, YES, the batteries are defective, here's a $400 Coupon for another Apple product or your warranty is extended or you get a discount on a laptop upgrade down the road, I would be fine with the short battery life. Apple had given me little options. Their offer is to return it, or sit on the phone with tech support for 6 months... Tech support wanted to log into my computer and add my laptop to their testing pool, but I declined. Apple needs put on their big boy pants and admit to whats going on. They got billions in cash now, a few laptop fiascos can't be that damaging, can it?

Support is starting the process of putting on the big boy pants. They are collecting data and once they have enough data they are going to go back to engineering and go look this is the real world stats. They will then tweak a setting and fix it or you guessed it silence cause there is no fix. I think CR putting out a do not buy blanket for a product that is fringe already for apple sent a strong shot over the bow. The fact apple care is in data collection mode and capture indicates this issue is being worked at the top level. So they should admit hey we have an issue that is unexpected let us figure it out but that is not apples style.

I am with out a backup laptop cause it crashed and burned right as I got this one. So I am stuck with this or downgrade to a 13 2016 with out the touch bar.

I have 2 more days to ponder it.

I have had about 45 days with the device vastly longer than the normal time. I can say this about it. The keyboard is very nice. The screen is to die for. The speed is on par with what I had but thats all intel being idiots.

The battery life is better than 2012.

The only issue is that it does not meet the pre-scribed metric apple put on it. There is a daylight level gap between what I can achieve on a charge and what apple says I should at around 20%.

So 20% is not a rounding error or slop. 20% is something is not right.

I am glad to hear apple is in capture of data mode.

 

[bjet767]

I posted this in another thread:

On the battery life issue, I am a developer and with build 10.12.3 Beta (16D17a) of OSX it seems to be fixed. I too had 3-4 hours of life and now, even using FCP and multiple programs I'm now getting 8 hours normally and can get over 10.

My computer:

2016 13" MBPTB 8 Gig 5 500 gig SSD i5 2.9

I'm now very pleased with the overall performance of the device.

I think the problem is the older OSX version keeps the CPU humming at a high speed, that is until heat slows it down, and therefore a higher wattage. They seemed to have tweaked some low level machine code.

 

[Creep89]

There is definitely an issue with my 15" (2.7,512GB,460 Pro). Every time I connect an external display and then disconnect it iStat Menus reports that the 460 Pro is sucking 10W even though the iGPU is now in use. At least according to gfxCardStatus.

If you don't reboot your MacBook you end up with poor battery life.

 

[jjjoseph]

One thing I do recall in my testing when I was pulling between 15w and 20w I got the battery below 70% to 60%, once I hit that range the % battery remaining started to drain faster and faster. At one point I remember it almost doing a countdown in seconds.. 40% 39% 38%

I think its something more sinister than a software fix, I feel like it has to do with how they squeezed all their battery components into such a small space. The 2015 MacBook Pro didn't have this problem and isn't the 2015 MacBook Pro the the same battery technology? Its a super super tight squeeze to get anything into these laptops, maybe they are just jammed in there too tight. The fact that we don't have a real software fix, leads me to believe its a hardware problem. Not fixable by any software patch.

 

[vasatrya]

I posted this in another thread:

On the battery life issue, I am a developer and with build 10.12.3 Beta (16D17a) of OSX it seems to be fixed. I too had 3-4 hours of life and now, even using FCP and multiple programs I'm now getting 8 hours normally and can get over 10.

My computer:

2016 13" MBPTB 8 Gig 5 500 gig SSD i5 2.9

I'm now very pleased with the overall performance of the device.

I think the problem is the older OSX version keeps the CPU humming at a high speed, that is until heat slows it down, and therefore a higher wattage. They seemed to have tweaked some low level machine code.

Hmm that is good to hear. Here's to hoping that update is released soon and fixes the problem. Thanks for the info.

 

[sealos]

FWIW... I bought a stock 13" tbMBP early December and I was averaging 6.5 hours using light apps (even made the switch to Safari from Chrome!).

I exchanged it yesterday for the same model and testing things out. I'm using Battery Health 2 and I'm getting close to 10 hours. GRANTED this is my initial test.

I did get a new 14 day return window and I will continue to monitor the battery. If it does start to dip to the 6.5 mark again... I will return it for a new machine before the window expires (and will keep doing it until the issue is fixed)

Seals

 

[jjjoseph]

Are people testing the battery all the way to 0% then doing a full charge? Then testing again? I know a lot of people where testing to 50% then just doubling the time.. I really noticed the battery % plummet as the % remaining got lower. Would love to know if those numbers are getting fixed on updates. Testing all the way to zero % on the battery.. or close to it.

 

[Wildkraut]

Received mine today, unplugged at 16:00, now its 19:00 and still have 6:57h remaining (activity monitor)
Top so far!

 

[ipodlover77]

Can 15" users chime and on what the battery life is when ONLY the integrated graphics are used?

 

[^_^]

As a person in exactly your situation: empathy and solidarity. I was so good and restrained, repaired all I could, and waited until I really need a replacement - and now I feel totally confused about what to do.

I don’t believe in buying old tech, so I’m not getting an air or a 2015. I really like the MacOS and I do not want a windows machine - especially not if I have to pay a premium on it: the Surface Book in the specs I was holding out for are $700 more than the MBP! And while I do have enough money to buy the MBP I want today - overpriced as it is - I do not have the kind of money where I can burn the cash on buying an overpriced Gen 1 today and then resell it at a huge loss in 12-18 months when the Gen 2s are cheaper and better.

For this reason I keep following this thread, and it is profoundly frustrating. If most people were reporting a solid 8+h, I'd buy today. But hearing about 3 and 4? I can't.

Exactly! Hell, my first post here is on the 36th or 37th page.... This is beyond frustrating at this point. I can relate to everything you've said - I don't want a Windows laptop (even thought this is going to be my very first MBP and first experience with MacOS. Getting my first Apple product soon, which is the iPhone 7 Plus. After realizing how blind I was to this whole Android VS. iOS thing, blindly following the hate of Apple and mindlessly vouching for the Android, I had decided to conduct my own research and actually look around, and realized how naive I was. Then, when I needed a laptop, going for the MBP was the obvious decision, especially since it won't be for gaming), and don't want to settle for older tech.

Sometimes I'd read about a guy with an MBP claiming how he hasn't performed a data transfer and w/e, and is getting 10+- hours, and think to myself 'maybe I should just go ahead and get one, then!' But then the next person would go on to rant about how he has done the exact same thing and has been getting mere few hours of work time. To gamble with such uncertainty isn't something I'd like to do. I don't understand why Apple won't just release an official statement...

 

[jjjoseph]

Sometimes I'd read about a guy with an MBP claiming how he hasn't performed a data transfer and w/e, and is getting 10+- hours, and think to myself 'maybe I should just go ahead and get one, then!' But then the next person would go on to rant about how he has done the exact same thing and has been getting mere few hours of work time. To gamble with such uncertainty isn't something I'd like to do. I don't understand why Apple won't just release an official statement...

I don't think people are really testing a laptop all the way to 0%. When people say 10+ hours I think they are using something generic counter like iStat. The Battery life is inconsistent and somebody testing a battery from 100% to 90% who got 1 hour will say they will get 10 hours... Thats not an accurate portrayal of the battery life... All the people I know who where testing the battery doing real work and testing the whole battery from a high % to low where getting low numbers. Something is weird about these batteries to say the least..

 

[BondFancy]

Battery life went from over 10 hours the first week or so, to now getting only 4-6 hours under similar conditions. Very bizarre, has to be a software issue.

 

[jjjoseph]

Battery life went from over 10 hours the first week or so, to now getting only 4-6 hours under similar conditions. Very bizarre, has to be a software issue.

Lets hope!!! I bought a 2015 13" a bunch refurbished just popped up on Apple website. Honestly if the battery gets figured out I might return and get another 2016.. Apple has the best return policy out there.. so I guess we can all play around with different models until then.

 

[SamVilde]

To gamble with such uncertainty isn't something I'd like to do. I don't understand why Apple won't just release an official statement...

From following these threads rather insanely (it is making me insane!), this is what I think - Everyone's holiday return period is coming to an end nowish/early next week. I'll give Apple one week past that to make a statement or release an update to the OS, and then I'll order. By the time that order is delivered, maybe it will be okay, or I'll be more informed. Unlike you, I will be able to return it if I absolutley have to - I guess get the nTB in that case.

Lets hope!!! I bought a 2015 13" a bunch refurbished just popped up on Apple website. Honestly if the battery gets figured out I might return and get another 2016.. Apple has the best return policy out there.. so I guess we can all play around with different models until then.

You make it sound so easy to hop from computer to computer trying different ones out. Isn't it time consuming to locate and download and install and set up all the programs that you normally use in order to do a decent test? I am not asking this to doubt your plan, but I think you have a better technique for quickly getting the things you need from one computer to another and I would like to know what that is... I may need to copy your computer-hopping-until-it's-fixed plan!

 

[jacob_w]

Can 15" users chime and on what the battery life is when ONLY the integrated graphics are used?

I had a base 15" for 5 weeks. The thing is, it is really hard to only keep the iGPU active - Adobe PDF reader triggers the dGPU, so does switching between apps... Occasionally Finder and Messages trigger the dGPU too and there's no way to swtich back to iGPU.

 

[jjjoseph]

You make it sound so easy to hop from computer to computer trying different ones out. Isn't it time consuming to locate and download and install and set up all the programs that you normally use in order to do a decent test? I am not asking this to doubt your plan, but I think you have a better technique for quickly getting the things you need from one computer to another and I would like to know what that is... I may need to copy your computer-hopping-until-it's-fixed plan!

Its not quick per say, but I never used Apple iCloud, it is pretty much a joke at the price apple charges for space and its SLOW... The Wifi only world is such a crock, so I try to use external backups as much as possible.

Time Machine on a fast external drive is the way to go. Have you seen the new samsung external SSD's? The Samsung T3? 450 mb/s and they are super TINY. That is the way to go, get a 1TB and you could run around Time Machining all day!

 

[ipodlover77]

I had a base 15" for 5 weeks. The thing is, it is really hard to only keep the iGPU active - Adobe PDF reader triggers the dGPU, so does switching between apps... Occasionally Finder and Messages trigger the dGPU too and there's no way to swtich back to iGPU.

Did you try the gfxcarstatus?

 

[Roller]

I posted this in another thread:

On the battery life issue, I am a developer and with build 10.12.3 Beta (16D17a) of OSX it seems to be fixed. I too had 3-4 hours of life and now, even using FCP and multiple programs I'm now getting 8 hours normally and can get over 10.

My computer:

2016 13" MBPTB 8 Gig 5 500 gig SSD i5 2.9

I'm now very pleased with the overall performance of the device.

I think the problem is the older OSX version keeps the CPU humming at a high speed, that is until heat slows it down, and therefore a higher wattage. They seemed to have tweaked some low level machine code.

Are the hours you're reporting actual run time (i.e., until the battery goes down to zero) or based on estimates from Activity Monitor or other software? Also, have you seen a commensurate drop in power draw as shown by coconutBattery or another utility?

I hope that what you're seeing is verified by others running the beta. I recall reading about great improvements after the last dot update, but they didn't persist.

Thanks.

 

[SamVilde]

Time Machine on a fast external drive is the way to go. Have you seen the new samsung external SSD's? The Samsung T3? 450 mb/s and they are super TINY. That is the way to go, get a 1TB and you could run around Time Machining all day!

I have both Time Machine and Crash Plan backups on good drives (as one does with an 8 year old computer) - but that's just data, right? I'm more wondering about programs. I assume my pirated outdated copy of some expensive Adobe software can't come with me (can it?! That would be great!), or the version of Microsoft Office that I installed from a CD? Finding replacements for those (and other) programs to do my job and therefore test my real-usage battery life with the computer - that's what I think will take time.

 

[ipodlover77]

https://github.com/steveschow/gfxCardStatus/releases

For those who want to try it on the 2016 macs.

 

[xmonkey]

https://github.com/steveschow/gfxCardStatus/releases

For those who want to try it on the 2016 macs.

Do you know if v2.4.3i works ok on the new MBPs?

 

[ipodlover77]

Do you know if v2.4.3i works ok on the new MBPs?

I found the link through a reddit post. Both users who have the 2016 macbook said it worked fine with their radeons.

https://www.reddit.com/r/macbookpro/comments/5ioxn1/question_gfxcardstatus_sierra_fork_and_the_2016/

edit:
another thread with the mention of the fork
https://www.reddit.com/r/macbookpro...ssion_less_than_24_hours_with_the_new_15_the/

 

[skids929]

I have got 8-9 hours consistent on mine with light use. I am sure if I did something intense it'd drain it quick, but at that point I'd likely be wired up. Right now I am at the end of day two of open/close lid activity with 11% left. Thats from 8 am yesterday to today (4:00pm edt). About 5 hours use a day. I don't have an issue with that kind of life and I expect that a laptop this thin will not be as robust as something thicker with a larger battery for heavier tasks.

Overall mine is delivering most of it's promise and I am happy with it. I'd say the machine gets about and hour worth of use per 10% of battery, which is about 10 hours. But thats always a give and take stat. BTW, I shut it down completely at night and this helps retain as well.