Macbook Issues

[nan0click]

So I've been thinking of getting a Macbook for a while, and my friend was leaving for Basic Training, I said hey, you won't need a notebook during USAF Bootcamp, let me borrow it. So fast forward a few weeks, I have it, I love it, and its cool to learn new things every day that OSX does. He bought the notebook back in June with his HS graduation money and soon after that developed RSS (Random Shutdown Syndrome), took it to the Mac store and they replaced the Mobo. Then it started happening again, and he just kind of dealt with it, and finally Apple released a firmware update that seemed to fix the problem. Back to the present. He leaves it on sleep mode all the time, sometimes for days on end, so I've been doing the same. Now though it won't detect the battery at all. I plugged it in overnight and the moment I unplugged it, it turns off. I was like what the heck so I plugged it back in and then turned it on, in the upper right hand corner where the battery power should be is a battery with an x in the middle, saying there is no battery. I hit the charge button on the battery and its one green blinking light. I tried taking the battery out and puttting it back in and nothing happens. I'm at a loss as to what to do, especially since this isn't mine. Can I take it to the Apple store (which is a 45 minute drive, one way) and they'll trade me batteries even though I don't have any warranty information, or is there a way to make it detect the battery?

 

Please HELP!

 

Thanks

[Crow47]

First, always so nice to see a fellow mac/macbook fan in the midst of all the pc users. (Yeah, I know, I have one, but it's just for games.) OK, you could always try buying a new battery. I know that's expensive but you can always return it. Also, try a new charger, that may come with the battery, I'm not sure. Then, try as many firmware updates and such that you can.

[Andrewr05]

Its not that it doesnt detect the battery its that you charged the battery for so long that you damaged it.

Regardless of the "technology" of the battery it still needs to be drained to 0% and fully charged to 100% in order to refresh the memory, if you don't occasionally do that it will never hold a charge...

[Silverfox]

Its not that it doesnt detect the battery its that you charged the battery for so long that you damaged it.

Regardless of the "technology" of the battery it still needs to be drained to 0% and fully charged to 100% in order to refresh the memory, if you don't occasionally do that it will never hold a charge...

 

Lithium Ion batteries have no memory effect. Nickel Metal-Hydride batteries have an insignificant memory effect. I highly doubt the battery is nickel cadmium, which DO have memory issues.

 

batteries have other bits of hardware in them to communicate with the pc. my guess is that the battery may be damaged or faulty or the 'hardware' part that communicates is just broken. it could also be a faulty motherboard with the same issue as i described for the battery.

 

let us know how you get on.

[nan0click]

Its not that it doesnt detect the battery its that you charged the battery for so long that you damaged it.

Regardless of the "technology" of the battery it still needs to be drained to 0% and fully charged to 100% in order to refresh the memory, if you don't occasionally do that it will never hold a charge...

 

No that's not the problem, for sure. The Macbook says the battery isn't even plugged in. It won't detect the battery at all. And, when the battery reaches a full charge, there's a chip that cuts power to the battery to prevent something like overcharging it.

 

I have no idea what to do, I tried booting into XP through BootCamp, and it won't see a battery either, so I'm starting to think this is hardware related. I was hoping maybe someone like Kashk would have a suggestion as to what I could do to fix it, or if the Apple store would help me even though I'm not actually the owner of the Macbook.

 

Thanks so far

[bizzyb0t]

No that's not the problem, for sure. The Macbook says the battery isn't even plugged in. It won't detect the battery at all. And, when the battery reaches a full charge, there's a chip that cuts power to the battery to prevent something like overcharging it.

 

I have no idea what to do, I tried booting into XP through BootCamp, and it won't see a battery either, so I'm starting to think this is hardware related. I was hoping maybe someone like Kashk would have a suggestion as to what I could do to fix it, or if the Apple store would help me even though I'm not actually the owner of the Macbook.

 

Thanks so far

 

I registered, just so I could give you some advice. I just bought a 9 month old Macbook a month ago and I keep my Macbook on on the charger, most of the time and I have it sleeping a lot as well. I came across a program that gives you some interesting (if not alarming) information called coconutBattery and I think you might be interested in it. I found that my battery capacity is not a 100% anymore. <_< There's also a couple other cool programs for the Macbook at the Coconut Flavour site as well.

 

The problems with the Macbook's batteries are all over the internet. However, direct from Apple's site, they tell you the steps that you should try before calling Apple and/or resorting to buying a new battery.

 

Good luck to you!

[Kash]

I was hoping maybe someone like Kashk would have a suggestion as to what I could do to fix it, or if the Apple store would help me even though I'm not actually the owner of the Macbook.

 

Aww, I'm flattered that I was thought of

 

As for solving your problem. Looks like our new member may have the solution to your problem. If that doesn't solve it, head on over to www.mac-forums.com and ask for help as they have a great member base and are very helpful to everyone who comes to them with a problem.

 

Sorry I couldn't offer more, I've only had my Macbook for 4 months.

[nan0click]

Just wanted to update, a few weeks ago, I took it to the Apple Store, went to the "Bar" thingy and told the guy what was wrong, he just flipped it over, pulled the battery out, put a new one in and said if that doesn't fix it, come back. Even though the warranty wasn't under my name, they still did it. I was very impressed, he didn't even turn it on, just switched batteries. After pulling my jaw off the floor, I thanked him and went on my way. It fixed the problem and it was free. This even on its own has inspired my first notebook (whenever that may be) to be a Mac.

 

Thanks for the advice.

[Kash]

Bet you feel good for not buying a new battery eh?

 

I love Apple support.