MagSafe Charge Indicator Stays Orange All of the Time

[BanditoB]

My 16" M1X MacBook Pro always indicates via the charger's orange LED on the MagSafe connector that it is charging, even when charging is paused at 80%. Shouldn't it turn green when it's not actively charging the MBP?

I use the same charger to charge my M2 MacBook Air and it behaves normally there, i.e. when the laptop reaches 100% the MagSafe LED turns green. So I know that the charger is working correctly. Could it be that the LED will only turn green when the MBP is at 100% charge and remain orange while it's paused?

Just wondering what is the normal behavior.

 

[russell_314]

My 16" M1X MacBook Pro always indicates via the charger's orange LED on the MagSafe connector that it is charging, even when charging is paused at 80%. Shouldn't it turn green when it's not actively charging the MBP?

I use the same charger to charge my M2 MacBook Air and it behaves normally there, i.e. when the laptop reaches 100% the MagSafe LED turns green. So I know that the charger is working correctly. Could it be that the LED will only turn green when the MBP is at 100% charge and remain orange while it's paused?

Just wondering what is the normal behavior.

What do you mean paused at 80%? Is that a setting on the Pro only? On my M2 Air it keeps charging till 100% and only then turns green.

 

[hg.wells]

If you look at Apple’s support documentation it only has two status lights. It will only show green when the battery is 100% charged.

About your Mac laptop’s power adapter

On your Mac laptop, use the power adapter to provide power and recharge the battery.

support.apple.com

 

[ChedNasad]

What do you mean paused at 80%? Is that a setting on the Pro only? On my M2 Air it keeps charging till 100% and only then turns green.

If you have "Optimized battery charging" turned on it should stop at 80% if you regularly use the device while plugged in. I've noticed it doesn't exactly stick to that charge percentage and will eventually top off based on when you most often go off the charger, so there is some learning and logic on the feature's part that anticipates your habits. I really suggest using this feature. I've had my Mac since launch day and still have 100% battery health despite being plugged in most of the time so it seems to do its job.

As for the OP's question, the light will only be green when it is at 100% charged in my experience.

 

[russell_314]

If you have "Optimized battery charging" turned on it should stop at 80% if you regularly use the device while plugged in. I've noticed it doesn't exactly stick to that charge percentage and will eventually top off based on when you most often go off the charger, so there is some learning and logic on the feature's part that anticipates your habits. I really suggest using this feature. I've had my Mac since launch day and still have 100% battery health despite being plugged in most of the time so it seems to do its job.

As for the OP's question, the light will only be green when it is at 100% charged in my experience.

It was on by default and I keep it on. It hasn’t stopped at 80% but it probably can’t figure my crazy schedule yet 😂

 

[BanditoB]

Thanks for the replies! I just wanted to be sure that what I was seeing was normal.

And, yes, this MacBook Pro is normally on AC power and rarely gets used on battery, so it's good to know that it isn't actually charging all the time as the orange indicator might lead one to believe.

 

[jav6454]

Thanks for the replies! I just wanted to be sure that what I was seeing was normal.

And, yes, this MacBook Pro is normally on AC power and rarely gets used on battery, so it's good to know that it isn't actually charging all the time as the orange indicator might lead one to believe.

Yeah, that's just the machine learning doing it's thing to prevent unwanted wear.

 

[russell_314]

Just to update this thread, mine has started doing it and the light is orange.

Does anyone use an app to keep theirs at 80% or it's just not worth the hassle. I keep it on my desk most of the time and unless I travel won't use more than 50% of the battery so even if it stopped at 80% it would be more than enough for me.
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