April 7, 2007
My MacBook’s not-exactly-random shutdown syndrome
Posted Apr. 7, ’07, 8:01 AM PT by Dan Moren
Category | Apple » Huh?
And here I thought I’d put the days of spontaneous shutdowns behind me. I’ve noticed over the past few weeks that when my MacBook battery level gets low (to the point where my gauge suggests there are around 30 minutes of battery power left), the computer will decide to just turn itself off. No warning, nothing. Just zip: power off.
Now, this isn’t quite like the dreaded random shutdown system—then, my MacBook would shut off even if it was connected to a power cord, and not just when the battery was low. I’m hoping this is maybe just some issue with the battery not being calibrated correctly; I plan to try resetting the SMU to see if that helps. But if this is a recurring problem, it’d be nice to get it resolved before my warranty runs out next month.
Anybody other MacBook users experienced this? It’d be nice to think that I’m not just wandering alone in the darkness.
Update: Four commenters have already chimed in, so I’m clearly not alone. I’ve also located an Apple support discussion thread about this problem. It dates from January, which suggests that maybe this isn’t related to 10.4.9 as some have proposed. We’ll keep looking into this.
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Mine does the same thing!
Glad you posted this. I wanted to call Apple today because I am having the same issues. Just this morning my macbook powered off! My battery will say 30 minutes then quickly drop down to 2 minutes then shut down!
Keep us updated!!!
Yes, exactly the same thing is happening to me.
It's nice to find other people with the very same problem as me. Sometimes it's 13%, sometimes it's 6%, and even once it shut down at 34%.
I've reset the SMU twice to no avail. I guess it's got to do with an internal counter inside the battery, and he SMU can do nothing about it.
Too bad i'm out of warranty. I have one of the first Core Duo Macbooks and while I absolutely love it, I find it to be less solid than my iBook G4.
This started happening about two weeks ago with my wife's Macbook also. I'm wondering if it's something to do with 10.4.9, because it started after that update.
I have seen this many times in every laptop, including the MacBook and MacBook Pro. Every time it has been some PMU / battery calibration issue. That is all. Resetting everything in that range (batter and PMU) has always fixed it except in cases where a new battery is required.
Given that MacBooks are getting to be a year old soon this will crop up more and more for units where the battery was discharged frequently. If you this does not correct itself with the resets Apple will give you a new battery under warranty.
Have you folks tried re-calibrating your batteries? It sounds like it may be as simple as your computers not correctly reading how much charge is left.
See Apple's doc here: Calibrating your computer's battery for best performance
Had the same thing on mine after 6 months or so. Had my battery replaced by AppleCare and the problem was solved.
Had the same problem a while back with a core 2 duo black macbook. I did however resolve the problem by doing this: http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=86284.
It does take time but now it warns me everytime before it goes to sleep.
My friend's BlackBook had the same issue, and like Gus said, the problem was fixed with a new battery. He was under warranty, though.
I have a white core duo macbook and have had the same thing happen. My warantee is almost up unless I decide to get apple care. Mine also completely turns off when battery power gets down to anywhere from 30% to 5%.
I originally took my macbook in to an apple authorized specialist because I thought I was suffering from random shutdowns. They diagnosed it as a battery problem and replaced my old battery. The problem seemed to be fixed until two months later it started happening again.
I've tried recalibrating my battery and resetting the SMU to no avail.
New battery. That solved the problem for me. It took several calls to Applecare to get them to send me a new battery, but once they did, it has worked fine since then.
I had my Macbook about 6 months before the problem happened.
Dan,
This isn't a Macbook problem, but a bad battery problem. I started having this issue with one of my G4 Powerbook's batteries not too long ago. I don't think it's so much that the computer is randomly shutting down, but that some defect in the battery leads the meter to read there is charge remaining when in fact there is none.
The automatic shutdown is what happens when your computer suddenly realizes there's no battery left.
Get Apple to send you a new battery and I guarantee you won't see this problem anymore.
Dan,
This isn't a Macbook problem, but a bad battery problem. I started having this issue with one of my G4 Powerbook's batteries not too long ago. I don't think it's so much that the computer is randomly shutting down, but that some defect in the battery leads the meter to read there is charge remaining when in fact there is none.
The automatic shutdown is what happens when your computer suddenly realizes there's no battery left.
Get Apple to send you a new battery and I guarantee you won't see this problem anymore.
Hi,
I have the same problem for a month. The apple center here said it was a faulty batter and I am waiting for the replacement now.
I guess the batery does not report correct charge levels.
I had this as a bad battery problem. The diagnostic trick to convince applecare of this is to borrow someone else battery and test it out. Mine got replaced under warrenty as DIY. Note however that they don't really understand this. I had mailed it in for repair on this and other issues and they replaced the connector but not battery, solving nothing.
I have the opposite problem. My Black MacBook I got three weeks ago simply refuses to go to sleep, power cable or not
It's not a recalibrating issue, nor is it the PMU. I've done both but it doesn't help. It seems like this is happening to a lot of people but just started recently.
If you do call Apple about getting a new battery make sure that the battery charge cycle is under 300. Mine was actually at 306 and thankfully they said they would take it in since I bought the computer back in May. So check that...
I've had it with a battery that was apparently full! Just shut down as soon as I removed the power lead. It was just under 90 days old, and a replacement battery fixed it.
I had the same problem with my 17" macbook pro. It was the battery, everytime it as around 45% it would shut off. I took it to the store and the chemicals inside were doing something wring and was physically causing my battery to swell. The case on it was actually cracked. Needless to say I have a replacement which is now battery number 3. I hope there are no more issues.