Battery Macbook Newbie Questions~

[nocturnal dark]

Ok, I never ever had or used a Laptop before. This is very first Laptop, before this I owned an eMac. So please excuse my lack of knowledge.

Can you charge a Macbook? If so, how low should you let it go before charging it?

When I am not using my Macbook, should I leave it plugged in or unlpugged?

Is it better to shut it down or put it to sleep?


Experts, please don't laugh too hard. I just need some help.

 

[maxmax]

Ok, I never ever had or used a Laptop before. This is very first Laptop, before this I owned an eMac. So please excuse my lack of knowledge.

Can you charge a Macbook?

no, the macbook does not charge. you have to buy a new battery every time you run it down. (sorry i couldn't help myself.)

If so, how low should you let it go before charging it?

When I am not using my Macbook, should I leave it plugged in or unlpugged?

Is it better to shut it down or put it to sleep?


Experts, please don't laugh too hard. I just need some help.

i don't think it matters how low you let it go before charging. leave it plugged in, can't hurt. it doesn't charge when it's already charged about 95% or above. shut down or sleep. some people on here seem to rarely shut down.

go read on the apple support site about calibrating your battery.

 

[Scarlet Fever]

You must be in the dark if you haven't ever used a notebook computer before!

1. Yes you can charge the battery. It is a rechargeable battery which should last you a few thousand charge cycles (completely discharge it then completely charge it again).

2. It doesn't really matter how low the battery is before you charge it again. I'm currently on 25% capacity, and i'll charge it again when OS X tells me I'm on low power, but you can plug it back in when it's fully charged with no damage to the computer.

3. This depends on how you plan to use it when you come back to it. If you think you'll be using it away from a power source (ie making it portable), you should plug it in. If you aren't, you can leave it out, our plug it in.

4. Booting up uses a fair bit of battery power, so unless you are leaving it for a long time (longer than 2 days), you should just let it sleep.

 

[nocturnal dark]

You must be in the dark if you haven't ever used a notebook computer before!

No, I never have used a notebook before. In the dark....yeah maybe.

But, I can learn if taught well with the right information and patience.


When it's in sleep mode, does that use any of the battery power? I am guessing YES. But, not as much as if it was running.

 

[Scarlet Fever]

But, I can learn if taught well with the right information and patience.

That's what MR is meant to be; a resource where people can learn stuff about their Apple products from others

When it's in sleep mode, does that use any of the battery power? I am guessing YES. But, not as much as if it was running.

You're pretty much right. I think it only uses power to keep data in the RAM, and to keep the sleep light going.

 

[0007776]

When it's in sleep mode, does that use any of the battery power? I am guessing YES. But, not as much as if it was running.

it uses some but less than it takes to start it back up if you have shut it down unless you are leaving it asleep for several days

 

[nocturnal dark]

That's what MR is meant to be; a resource where people can learn stuff about their Apple products from others

Yes, this site has really helped me learn so much just a few weeks of being here.

I personally don't know anyone other than online, that uses a Mac. I never have heard, saw or even seen a Mac until I found about it online about 4 years ago, after a google search for finding a computer that didn't get viruses.

I did however use Apple 2 e's in High School back in the 90's. LOL!!

 

[JasonMac]

I just leave my AC plugged in pretty much all the time and once or twice a week I run it on the battery.