Ok I use my M1 MBA in two locations, Living Room and Bedroom. I know I want to keep my cycle count down, and I use the MBA equally between the two spots. About 6-7 hours daily total. I get a day and a half or more out of a single charge. Would it be best to have two chargers? Moving the charger is a PITA. What do you recommend? Thanks.... I am already at 8 cycles after only 3 weeks.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Charging Set Up
- Thread starter AdamNC
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
If I'm not mistaken, with that utilisation, you'll reach 1000 cycles within 7,2 years. By then, if your battery behaves normally it will have about 80% capacity. Don't be a slave of your computer, enjoy it.
I wouldn't necessarily keep your machine plugged in 24/7, but I've got multiple chargers. If it's a pain to move it, I don't see why you wouldn't. They're not terribly expensive (especially if you go 3rd party). I have one at the office at work, one in my upstairs study, one in my downstairs workroom and one in my briefcase/laptop bag in case I'm somewhere else at work and need one. There's also one on my nightstand though that generally is where I charge my iPad (though it'll work fine for my MBA if I need it to). And my wife has one in the kitchen pantry as she usually uses her laptop at the kitchen table.
My understanding is that the battery will degrade faster sitting full-time at 100% than it will if you just use it. Batteries are happiest between approximately 20-80%. However, I just use mine without paying much attention and will charge it when it's time or when it's convenient and I know I'll need it later.
Yeah I think I will do the same. I have AppleCare+. If right before it expires in 3 years I'll put in a claim. Screw it. LOL
That's your first mistake, trying to micromanage your machine. Don't. Just use it normally.
I keep my M1 MacBook Air plugged in most of the time. Apple has added a feature called "Optimized battery charging" that basically keeps my MBA running without charging most of the time. Right now I've been at about 75% for the last 2-3 days.
This takes a little while to kick in as macOS figures out your habits but once it starts working it seems to be pretty good at limiting charging. There is a menu item in the battery menu extra "Charge to Full Now" that lets you tell the computer to start charging to full immediately if you need it.
I know others are using a little application called Al Dente to have more control but I find I don't need it.