Macbook will not work on battery power!

TweedleDum

TweedleDum

TweedleDum

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Hi there,
My friend bought himself a Macbook from the USA about 4 months ago. It has been problem free up untill the past few days. Now, the laptop will not work (will not boot, or work otherwise) when running with the battery only. It has to be plugged in to the mains. When switching the laptop on without the charger plugged in, it starts to power up, but then flicks off, as if there is not enough power to start the laptop. If the laptop is started with the charger, and then the charger is later removes, the computer just turns off.

I assume that there is a problem with the battery. I have removed it to inspect it or whatever, but it seems fine. Also, when the battery button is pressed, all the LED's light up as if the unit is fully charged.

Any ideas anyone?

He does not have the reciept or anything. Do you think a UK apple store would help out?

Many thanks!
 
The battery has died, simply.

Your warranty will be tied to the serial and apparently is Worldwide, so a replacement shouldn't be a problem.

I had the exact same thing with my MacBook Pro and the warranty replacement was ridiculously smooth. They sent me a new battery (arrived in 3 days) and shipped the old one back in a box provided at no cost.
 
Apple has worldwide warranty on their products, so take it to an Apple Store. You wont need a receipt, they go by the serial numbers of the machines.
 
I have a similar issue which, iirc I posted about a while ago...My MB dies after about 15 mins running on the battery. The problem started with the computer dying every time the power level reached 30% then it worked its way up to something like 60%. Now I can't leave it off the charger for more than 15 mins without power failure. Unfortunately my warranty expired a long time ago.
 
shifty_uk said:
I have a similar issue which, iirc I posted about a while ago...My MB dies after about 15 mins running on the battery. The problem started with the computer dying every time the power level reached 30% then it worked its way up to something like 60%. Now I can't leave it off the charger for more than 15 mins without power failure. Unfortunately my warranty expired a long time ago.
Click to expand...

Worth just checking anyway even if you are out of warranty. I'm not sure if the faulty batteries are covered under a replacement programme.

It is a very common issue with the batteries. It happened to me about a year ago and I needed a replacement. They have issued firmware updates but I dont think that solves anything tbh. AFAIK it is an issue with the battery itself not waking from an ultra-deep sleep mode.
 
There may have been a recall on that particular model.. if so, you may still qualify for a replacement under an extended warranty :)
 
I remember having this 1yr ago, Apple where aware of the problem. Check if there are any firmware updates, if not ring apple, i had a replacement battery at my door within 24 hours!
 
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