Odd issues with MBPro late 2016

[ozone]

I have the first generation 15" MBPro that Apple released in late 2016 (only USB-C/TB3 ports); it was an open box sale for a good price, and I needed to upgrade. I've noticed a few oddities mostly related to power management on the USB-C ports.

1. The battery life is pretty poor. Just web/email usage will burn up nearly 25% of the battery in a little over an hour. I will barely get 4 hours use out of this unit compare to my old MacBooks. I know battery life was an issue but I thought there was a fix that improved performance a bit. Anything else I can do to improve battery life?
2. As everybody else, I have several adapters (Apple, a couple legacy ports would have been nice). I use an external small drive that I use for photos when I'm editing in LightRoom that is connected via a USB adapter. If I am editing, and even with the power plugged in for the MBPro, the power demand is still great enough that the battery power is needed, dropping it down to 80% or even 70%. Does it make difference which USB-C ports things are plugged into for the 15" MBPro? I thought for the 15" model all four ports were the same.
3. I have two adapters and both offer pass through power for charging the Mac while peripherals plugged into it. However, it seems that if I plug the power into the pass through, some peripherals don't have enough power drawn to function. I have to plug power into a dedicated port on the MBPro, and even then, it might not be enough (as in #2 above).
4. On the left side, when I'm sitting at the desk, I use the HyperShop USB-C two port connector. (https://www.hypershop.com/collectio...hub-for-usb-c-macbook-pro-13-and-15-2016-2017). Here's the weird thing. When I connect my Thunderbolt-to-USB-C adapter for my old Apple Dispay into the second USB-C port (2nd from the back) on the Hypershop adapter, nothing happens. If I plug the power cord into the is same 2nd to the back port on the Hypershop adapter, my MBPro won't charge either. It's almost as if it's a "dead" port on the adapter. However, if I plug power or any other adapter into the very back USB-C, last port on the Hypershop, everything works: peripherals show up, power charges, etc. I wouldn't have thought the port choice on the Hypershop adapter would have made a difference. So, given the other issues, I can't tell if the problem is with the adapter, or with the USB-C ports on my MBPro, or something else.

Any insights?

 

[alphaod]

I have found some websites for some reason drive up the CPU usage and that really screws up the battery life. I can usually go a whole day on a charge. Perhaps look at the sites you're going on and such.

Interesting about your USB drive. I do not have that issue. Check your power adapter make sure you have the 87W version. Also check the USB-C cable from the power adapter some off-brand cables only support 60W even the Apple original one of the MacBook didn't support 87W for me it was confusing. Anyways I've personally switch my Lightroom to an external SSD that draws very little power.

Most adapters don't support 87W. Some only support 60W include the Sanho one. Some adapter are even worse only support 45W. The Apple one designed for the original MacBook is the worst.

If you have problems with your Sanho adapter contact their customer service. I've used many of their stuff and many times my experience has been good.

 

[ozone]

Thanks... I'll have to check the adapter and cable.

As for websites, most of the time it's just Gmail, the Globe and Mail (news), Facebook, and Instagram. Outlook is usually going as well. I can't recall, but what the best programs to check for CPU usage and if possible, website usage? I might have too many background programs running (although I wouldn't think more than the average person).

 

[jerryk]

Thanks... I'll have to check the adapter and cable.

As for websites, most of the time it's just Gmail, the Globe and Mail (news), Facebook, and Instagram. Outlook is usually going as well. I can't recall, but what the best programs to check for CPU usage and if possible, website usage? I might have too many background programs running (although I wouldn't think more than the average person).

Many of these websites have videos that start playing, or video ads. These can use quite a bit of CPU cycles. I hate these things and try to use blockers to prevent anything from automatically running.

As far as checking, run Activity Monitor. Sort by CPU usage and check memory usage.

 

[kildraik]

1: Get the battery replaced. The battery and touch bar are one unit, so it will take 2-3 days to get it back. Open box warranties usually start when the laptop was originally powered on, so be wary and pray. The issues weren’t fixed with software; that was a bandaid. I would know... Night and day.

2: All ports are T3. It should not matter. Make sure you’re using the right charger.

3: Make sure your adapters are T3/Apple certified, otherwise they’re useless. Make sure they’re power rated correctly. Lots of 3rd party compatibility issues I ran into in 2016.

4: USB-C is not T3, check your wattage rating on cables. Most are lower 60W. Apple cables work best.

I hope you did your research before purchasing. You have to get all-new-everything once you get the big guns. T3, T3, T3.

 

[ozone]

1: Get the battery replaced. The battery and touch bar are one unit, so it will take 2-3 days to get it back. Open box warranties usually start when the laptop was originally powered on, so be wary and pray. The issues weren’t fixed with software; that was a bandaid. I would know... Night and day.

2: All ports are T3. It should not matter. Make sure you’re using the right charger.

3: Make sure your adapters are T3/Apple certified, otherwise they’re useless. Make sure they’re power rated correctly. Lots of 3rd party compatibility issues I ran into in 2016.

4: USB-C is not T3, check your wattage rating on cables. Most are lower 60W. Apple cables work best.

I hope you did your research before purchasing. You have to get all-new-everything once you get the big guns. T3, T3, T3.

I'll look into the battery issue. I got an extended warranty at the local store I got it from and they've been pretty good, so it might covered if I complain enough.

I use the original Apple charger, but I do use a Griffin breakaway cable. I tossed the box ages ago, so I'm not sure about its wattage rating.

No idea if my adapters are Apple certified. Never even thought that would be an issue so long as they worked for data transfer.

I did some research but frankly did not look deeply into the nuances of T3. Given how well my Macs have worked in the past, I did not think there would be an issue.

Sigh.

 

[kildraik]

I'll look into the battery issue. I got an extended warranty at the local store I got it from and they've been pretty good, so it might covered if I complain enough.

I use the original Apple charger, but I do use a Griffin breakaway cable. I tossed the box ages ago, so I'm not sure about its wattage rating.

No idea if my adapters are Apple certified. Never even thought that would be an issue so long as they worked for data transfer.

I did some research but frankly did not look deeply into the nuances of T3. Given how well my Macs have worked in the past, I did not think there would be an issue.

Sigh.

Yeah, just check your list thrice. I ran into a lot of potholes.

T3 docks and Apple adapters will be your best friends. Definitely do the battery through AppleCare if you can- double check the serial number on Apple’s AppleCare page. Does it still have coverage?

The breakaway cable was originally made for the MacBook. It is not compatible with the 15”.

It’s otherwise an amazing laptop, but I spent another $500 or so migrating all of my cables to USB-C/T3. The only upside is I won’t have to do that again for *hopefully* many years to come.

 

[ozone]

No, it's not Apple Care. Since I don't live in a city with an Apple Store, I just went with the service plan from my Best Buy. I find they've been pretty good at our local store.

However, I was not aware of the breakaway cable specs.

Thanks.

 

[conifer]

My battery started dropping fast twice these past few weeks. the battery monitor said excel was taking up space and the first time I noticed excel wanted to do an update. The second time I am not sure why excel was the issue but I closed it and opened it again and it was ok.

Likewise safari was drawing power. Thanks to the tip here, I found the sites in activity monitor and closed them. They were nothing special, just various coompany websites for the most part.

I have found that I need to watch this. If I do I can get close to the Apple ten hour mark.

 

[alphaod]

The Griffin cable "works" just that it won't supply the full 87W. I think the original only supplied 45W for the original MacBook. The current version supplies up to 60W which is only for the 13" MacBook Pro.

So you'll find the cable charges your computer fine, but when the demand of the computer exceeds 60W, it will use the battery.

The reason these cables having ratings is the the adapter will supply only the wattage that the cables support. Kind of a "smart" cable.

 

[ozone]

Further to this thread... I've been sitting at my desk typing on my MBPPro 15 (2016) and only using the web for about 1 hour, 15 minutes, and I'm already down to 47% battery life. I won't last until lunch at this rate, never mind 8 hours that many people claim.

I guess I'll just have to get the battery changed. What's the best route? Send it back to Apple? How much does it cost?