How to Save MacBook Battery Life

admin, How To , June 30th, 2022 , 0

The Macintosh line of systems by Apple is one of the best and the most powerful desktop computers ever built to date. Not only they are powerful but also excel in other areas when compared with other computers around the world. With each year, we get a massive upgrade on hardware as well as software, which solve almost all problems. However, a question still lingers in the minds of masses that daily use MacBook. How can I save the battery life of my MacBook or how can I increase the capacity of my MacBook battery? Even though the company is aware of this problem as it is not faced just by Apple’s customer but by almost every computer user. They are working pretty hard to solve, but there are some steps and tips which you can follow to save the battery.  Most of the time, unknowingly, we make some changes or not handle our device carefully, which goes against the favorable conditions needed for extended battery life.

So today, in this article, I am going to share with you some of the best tips and suggestions which you can use to save MacBook battery life and continue using your device for a long time. Have a look:

How To Save Battery on Macbook

You can go to settings in “System Preferences” and then click on Energy Saving tab, and you will have some options and basic settings for saving battery life. Make sure they are set according to your usage. They will help you, but here are some steps that can help you further.

1. Clean Junk & Optimize Mac

Get CleanMyMac X From Here

This all in one software package comes with the name of CleanMyMac X and it helps in saving Macbook battery life by cleaning away system junk, mail attachments and trash bin which pinches the space and eats the resources. Apart from them, it keeps your system away from malware, maintains browser privacy and uninstalls the applications which are not required. When a software keeps the balance of your system, the battery of Mac is maintained by itself.

2. Turn off Backlights

If you want to run your MacBook for longer periods and want to know how to save battery on Mac, then you will have to make sure that there is nothing that is draining the battery unnecessarily. Back-lights present in your keyboard is one such thing. Now I do understand that it is a very attractive feature and can be very useful when the lighting conditions are poor. But what about when we are working in a well-lit environment? Turning off those back-lights will do a great job, or if you still want them, then you can choose to bring down their brightness or set them off after a certain amount of time when the system remains inactive. Go to System Preferences and then click on Keyboard to change the settings related to it. In here you will find the option that says “Turn off back light after (time) of inactivity”. Here you can set the time limit and you are done.

3. Turn Down the Light

One of the significant factors that are responsible for the low battery life of draining it faster is the light emitted through the monitor. Many offices and homes are well equipped with ample lighting conditions, so this shouldn’t be a problem. The first step you should take here is to turn off the automatic brightness adjustment feature. Though it is designed to take care of the brightness on the screen according to lighting conditions and maintain a screen comfortable for the eyes, it does drain the battery unnecessarily. If the ambient light sensor is facing a light source directly, then it will detect more luminosity than actually present in the room and the vice versa, if there is a cover or a patch of shadow on the sensor, then it will turn down the brightness. In both cases, it will make the screen uncomfortable for the eyes.

You can click on Display Setting in System Preferences and there select the option of adjusting brightness automatically, and this feature will be turned off.

More light coming out of the screen also means that the brightness setting is set on too high. Now that you have turned off the light sensor, you will have to take care of yourself, and I prefer it this way. The brighter your screen is, the more battery capacity of your MacBook will be reduced, remember this rule whenever you start tweaking for saving battery. There are more steps you can take here to enhance your Mac Book’s battery life further.

• Set a limit on the time of inactivity after which the screen will turn off automatically. This makes sure to save your battery even if you forget about it.
• You can also set the preferences to lower the screen brightness automatically whenever your MacBook comes off charge and on battery. Set it here, go to Energy Saver Settings in the System Preferences menu.
• This step requires you to connect an external monitor to your MacBook. Yes, you read it right. Many users attach a big monitor/s to the MacBook to further increase the number of displays.
• What a lot of people don’t realize is, that’s how you can dramatically enhance your MacBook battery life.
• While using the onboard screen, the system’s battery is being used to power every pixel on it.
• But if you attach a separate monitor which has its power source and switch off the original display, then you will have a big monitor regularly working as your Mac’s screen but at the same time also saving a lot on the battery.

4. Update

You might be wondering what has updating a Mac got to with how to save battery on MacBook and you may or may not be paying much attention to the health of your MacBook, but if you are an old-time user of Apple’s products or are computer savvy, then you may know how important it is to stay up-to-date with the latest releases. Updates and patch releases are the tools adopted by a software company to get rid of the bugs in the programming and to add enhancements and new features. All of these changes make a computer compatible with recent technological changes and advancements. If you don’t update your MacBook, then it may become prone to crashes, freezes and even incompatible with using with the latest software.

These updates and patches also affect the battery life of your MacBook significantly. If you want the optimal battery life, then I would suggest you keep your computer on the track. There are update and patch releases from time to time, to check if you have any pending update click on Software Update under System Preferences. You can also change the update settings to Automatic in the Advanced section, which will enable your MacBook to download and install updates on its own and without disturbing you. These updates use internet data, so if you have a limited data plan; then I would recommend you not to enable it as it can drain quite an amount of it.

5. Turn off Bluetooth

Not just in MacBook but in many digital devices like tablets and smartphones, Bluetooth stays turned on even when we are not using it. Forgetting to turn it off is a common mistake. In earlier times, when security measures did not protect the Bluetooth, it would have resulted in grave mistakes and loss of data. Still, as the times progressed, even if you leave you Bluetooth turned on, no one would be able to get to your data unless they have your system and its password. Even though it is safe from digital theft, this small device does take up battery life faster than normal. So if you are not using the MacBook, it is highly recommended that you keep the Bluetooth turned off. To turn it off, you can click on Turn Bluetooth Off in Bluetooth Settings under System Preferences tab.

6. Unplug Extras

If you have a wired mouse, keyboard, USB drives, Hard Drives, SDD, mobile, etc. connected to your MacBook which is currently not in use, then unplug them. Each of these devices doesn’t have its power source and rely on MacBook battery to operate. So the more unnecessary devices are attached, the faster the battery will get down. You may say that the mobile phone has its battery source then why? Yes, you are correct, but even the modern-day smartphones are designed to go in charging mode whenever they are connected to the computer.

7. Battery Condition

If you have performed all the steps mentioned above and are still not enjoying a better battery life, then there is a possibility that your Mac’s battery quality has degraded over time. MacBook batteries are designed in a way to offer 1000 battery life cycles and then still offer 80 per cent of the original capacity. So if you have not followed the battery life cycle guidelines by Apple, then you may have already used them.

On your keyboard, click on the Options button and then click on the small battery icon that you will see on the top left corner of your screen. This will relay the condition your MacBook battery is in. If it says “Normal”, then your battery is good and working correctly but if it says “Replace Soon”, “Replace Now”, or even “Service Battery” then it means that the capacity has been reduced. If you see the last or last second option, then you need to contact Apple store for further information.

Wrapping Up

Now that you armed with some great tips and tricks on how to save battery on MacBook, do let us know which of the above proved useful to you. And, if you found this post helpful, then do share it with other Mac users as well. To stay updated with more such content, keep reading BestMacCleaner.

So these were all the steps that I wanted to share with you.

Hope it helps.

Thanks for reading!

Frequently Asked Question