I know it is a debated topic, but isn't it still recommended to run your battery into the ground, then charge it while the machine is not running? repeat a few times? i just got a non-Apple long life ibook battery last year and they still recommend that for the most fun.

Very intresting comparation!
If you can, could be intresting test the battery life of MPB running only rosetta application.
I mean, if i had to work with Photoshop, or any of CS application, i can do that only in rosetta, till 2007!

Hi,

Could you do the real calibration process and then put all energy saving options "on", screen to minimum and Airport to "on" and BLuetooth to "off" to get a more realistic scenari for people on the road ?

Thank you

Fabrice

Could you give us feedback on how long the macbook lasts when put into "Better Battery Life" and a DVD is playing?

Also does the MacBook share the same capability of the last generation Powerbook where an end user can swap batteries without turning it off if they simply shut the LCD before taking the battery off.

How is the AirPort reception? did the redesign help any?

I miss great battery life.

I would like to see a test where you end up with decent battery life!

But seriously, if the screen is as bright as it's supposed to be, it should be readable at less than 50% brightness. I'd like to see a so called "normal use" test where you turn off bluetooth, leave wireless on, allow the HD to spin down when possible, have the screen dimmed as low as possible while still acceptable for reading. In other words, I'm at a coffee shop, I want my battery to last as long as possible while browsing the web through their wifi (maybe playing music through headphones the whole time as well). Does that make sense?

Apparently, they haven't implemented any kind of processor performance option (like on the g4 PB)? That could make a big difference when it becomes available (I hope).

That's quite good ... But I think that with both hard disk sleep and screen brightness reduction it should be better, don't you ?

Maybe it is just me, but the way you did this test is extremely bizarre. What exactly were you trying to measure, because it certainly wasn't the maximum battery life and it certainly wasn't the minimal battery life?

coconutbattery crashes on my mbp. i'm calibrating my battery as we speak. gonna drain a couple of times today and then do some tests tomorrow.

Quick question: you wrote "current PB G4," but I am pretty sure the final PBG4 at 1.67 increased battery life in idle by a significant amount. Your is a 1.5 GHz, so probably would get about 1/2 hour less than the "current PBG4."

Am I missing something?

I have better numbers from my MacBook. I didn't rigorously test/time the battery and it's more of a real-world experience. I unpacked mine and plugged it in to charge right before having to go out for dinner. The MBP charged for about 2 hours out of the box. Once I got home, I used it for about 2 hours plugged in. Then I took it upstairs and it ran on battery power. I used the MBP for close to 3 hours on the "Normal" settings and then went to bed. Instead of sleeping around midnight, I went to bed around 3am. During the 3 hours, I was emailing, webbrowsing and downloading universal binaries. This morning the system had another 20 minutes left.

"This rocks, while all you kiddies are going gaga over a hyped up midrange pc (macbookyuck), I will be able to grab real macs (powerbooks) at rock bottom prices. Keep up the illusion suckers."

shad, I think you are the one that is being delusional, why not say that real macs are only 68k-based? The MBP appears to be a far faster computer without being throttled by the G4, and still have better run time. As it sits, the only reason to stick with the Powerbook is if you need to use Adobe software.

I was hopeing for the battery to last at least 4 hours.

The folks at www.batterygeek.net have just introduced several brand new external power solutions for all the new MacBook 13 inch and MacBook Pro laptops.

In order for thier laptop battery solution to work however you must request from them the custom MacBook connector cable and tip at the time of your order.

I bought thier new highest capacity 140Wh Portable Power Station model which is compatible with my MacBook Pro and powers it for over 6 hours.

Here are a couple of product reviews on the new BatteryGeek Portable Power Stations:

Providing my Sony UX-180p over 20 hours of battery life!
-by David Ciccone from Mobility Today
http://mobilitytoday.com/articles/portable_power_station.html

Get powered up on the go with the Portable Power Station
-by Matthew Miller from ZDNet’s The Mobile Gadgeteer
http://blogs.zdnet.com/mobile-gadgeteer/?p=30