getting good battery life on a lightly used laptop

[tim2short]

I just bought the new iMac (love it!!!) but I still have a macbook. obviously, I rarely use the macbook anymore, except for occasional trips out of state, or just to a coffee shop- times where battery life is more important than anything else. (used for internet, e-mail, and microsoft word primarily).

my question- how do I get the best battery life for that macbook? should i leave it plugged it... take the battery out...? or any other suggestions. thanks!!

 

[mkrishnan]

It's not too complicated... run it on wall power whenever you can, except make sure you run it through a full charge cycle on the battery about once every month or so.

When you're using it on battery, you can turn off Bluetooth if you're not using it, for a minor boost, lower the screen brightness, etc.

 

[dontwalkhand]

I would leave it plugged into the wall. Just try to use your MacBook on battery at lest once a month, until the battery runs out (calibrating it), and this should help extend the longevity of your battery.

 

[powermac_daddy]

what about take the battery out of the machine and use the wall power only?

 

[mkrishnan]

what about take the battery out of the machine and use the wall power only?

Well, aside from the fact that you'll have a large chunk missing from the bottom of your notebook... it honestly won't do all that much good. The system is designed to not over charge the battery. Also, batteries have a natural life, meaning that if you leave them in the refrigerator for a few years, they'll still lose capacity. I wouldn't obsess that much over the battery.