As much as we love our MacBook, one of our main concerns is the battery life. It’s frustrating when we’re in the middle of an important task, and our laptop gives up on us. Thankfully, Apple has introduced battery health management features with the macOS Catalina 10.15.5 update to enhance the maximum battery life of your Mac. In this guide, we’ll walk you through how to use battery health management features on your Mac, so you can squeeze some extra hours out of your device.
Understanding Battery Health Management on Mac
Battery Health Management is a MacOS Catalina feature that enhances the longevity of your MacBook battery by reducing the rate at which it chemically ages. With this feature, your Mac automatically reduces how much it charges its battery to keep it at its optimal level. By reducing the amount of time your laptop spends fully charged, it reduces the number of charge cycles on the battery, thereby extending its longevity.
How to Enable Battery Health Management on Your Mac
Unlike some other features on your Mac, this one is not automatically enabled. But no need to worry; enabling it is easy.
1. Go to the Apple menu and select “System Preferences.”
2. Click on “Energy Saver.”
3. Select the “Battery Health” tab.
4. Check the box next to “Battery Health Management.”
Once you’ve enabled Battery Health Management, the changes will happen automatically behind the scenes.
Check The Battery Status of Your Mac
Before you start using Battery Health Management features on your Mac, it’s essential to determine the current state of your battery. Here’s how to check:
1. Hold the option key and click on the battery icon at the top-right corner of your Mac screen.
2. Select “System Information” from the dropdown menu.
3. On the left-hand side of the window, choose “Power” under the “Hardware” options.
4. The current battery health will be displayed on the right-hand side of the window under “Battery Information.”
You’ll see one of the two notes under “Battery Health”:
“Service Battery”: This note indicates that the battery is depleted and should be serviced.
“Normal”: The battery is working correctly and doesn’t require any corrections.
Best Practices to Maximise Battery Life
Although Mac’s Battery Health Management feature is designed to help maximize your Mac battery life, it’s still essential to follow some battery-saving practices to ensure that your battery lasts longer. Here are a few tips to help you keep your battery in shape:
- Reduce screen brightness to an appropriate level
- Quit apps that you’re not using
- Unplug unnecessary peripherals when not in use
- Use Safari instead of Chrome or Firefox
- Avoid using high-performance graphics applications
- Turn Off Bluetooth When Not In Use
- Close Apps Using the Activity Monitor
- Allow Your Laptop to Hibernate or Sleep
Concluding Thoughts
As a MacBook owner, battery life is one of our biggest concerns. By utilizing the battery health management feature, you can maximize your Mac’s battery life and prolong its longevity. Be sure to keep your laptop in good shape by avoiding power-draining elements like running many applications simultaneously, high-performance graphics applications and keeping the screen brightness at a reasonable level.
FAQs About How to Use Battery Health Management Features on Your Mac
1. What should I do if my battery health is poor?
The best thing to do if your battery health is poor is to replace it. You can check the status of your battery health by holding the option key and selecting the battery icon on the top-right corner of your Mac screen. If the battery has the note “Service Battery,” it’s depleted and should be replaced.
2. Can I disable battery health management?
Yes, you can disable Battery Health Management, but it’s not recommended. Turning this off will let your laptop run even when the battery is FULLY charged, which may cause any damage to its longevity.
3. Does the battery health management feature work on all models of Mac?
This feature is available on most MacBook models that run the macOS Catalina 10.15.5 update. To check if your MacBook is compatible, launch the “About This Mac” window and view the version you have.
