Rechargeable Battery - 15-inch MacBook Pro (aluminum)

Rechargeable Battery - 15-inch MacBook Pro (aluminum)

Customer Reviews and Ratings

2.0 out of 5 stars

Based on 110 reviews

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  • 3.0 out of 5 stars

    It's a battery, not a Mercedes!

    • Written by from BIG SKY

    It's a battery, even if it IS an Apple battery. I got exactly two years out of the battery that came with my 15 inch MacBook Pro. I was dumb back then: I just forked out $99 and slapped in a new one. I got two and a half years out of that one and was only a little smarter: before forking out $129, I checked the system stats and discovered the fool thing only had 62 cycles on it! You can bet I have done some research and will be doing some cycling this time around! Maybe I can at least make it to three years on lucky number three battery? Even at this rate it was only about $3.30 a month for the second one.

    2 of 2 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Not bad

    • Written by from Grand Forks

    I have had this same battery on my 15in MBP since mid 2009. I have had no problems with it, but lets face it having a battery for over 3 years is pretty good. One thing people need to realize is that you are not supposed to drain you battery ever. New batteries do not have the "memory" that old batteries have had. The trick to long battery life is keep it above 20ish percent and do not leave it plugged into a power source, unless you absolutely need to. If you treat it right this is a good product, I will be buying a new one!

    8 of 10 people found this useful

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  • 1.0 out of 5 stars

    Horrible swelling

    • Written by from APO

    Had to replace the first battery because the old one swelled up so much I couldn't use the touch pad any more. The second one hasn't even lasted 6 months and now reports a "Service Battery" alarm. I'm happy with my MacBook Pro but I really wish there was another option for the battery.

    4 of 4 people found this useful

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  • 1.0 out of 5 stars

    The only reason

    • Written by from Euclid

    The only reason I'm spending 130.00 on this battery is because the battery that came with my MacPro started swelling so bad I couldn't use my pad anymore, it still kept a charge and everything but I just couldn't use my track pad this is Bull. And the filter wouldn't let me use worse words.negative 5

    26 of 28 people found this useful

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  • 1.0 out of 5 stars

    Horrible battery Great Computer

    • Written by from Plano

    I'm going to order a third battery for my MBP 5.1 That is one per year, the first one lasted 14 months the other 2 not quite as long, come on Apple get you battery problems fixed, it ridiculous having to buy a battery every year for a computer that is only used on battery power a couple of hours a week, the rest of the time it's always plugged in to AC power.

    14 of 19 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    No Problems

    • Written by from Concord

    I have had a MBP since mid 2008 and the battery is still doing well. I bought a new one for my wife's MBP last year. The batteries are expensive but I haven't had any problems with them at all.

    11 of 17 people found this useful

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  • 2.0 out of 5 stars

    High Technology, Low Performance

    • Written by from Hollister

    I bought a new 15" MBP in 2009 with an extended warranty. The first battery lasted less than two years, and swelled sufficiently to prevent the trackpad from operating properly or allowing the battery cover to fit flush. I got a replacement battery free and, when the trackpad failed to operate properly, that was replaced also. A year later, the second battery failed - bloated as a dead pig - and, the trackpad didn't work, and the battery cover wouldn't fit. When I tried to purchase a second battery from the "premium reseller" (my warranty had expired 2 months earlier, the "new" battery serial number indicated that it was almost 3 years old. My laptop is now a desktop.

    16 of 22 people found this useful

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  • 4.0 out of 5 stars

    In my opinion

    • Written by from Baton Rouge

    Once upon a time i believe I heard that these batteries can hold a charge longer than the original ones in 2008, which is my main reason for ordering one. I never got much time out of my battery but i also used my mbp constantly and intensively on high performance mode. i got about a two hours the first month then i never got more than an 1:30. just these past couple months my battery would only last for about 30 minutes. my battery got power cycled at least 3 times a week just from use, never on purpose, and usually more than once in a day. 830 cycles... id say i got good use out my 4 years, especially with how much i used it. never had any swelling either.

    i think that most people probably leave their macbook charged all the time. thats not how batteries are supposed to be used. at least let them drain to 20% before you charge them again. if you leave your macbook plugged up all the time, what's the point of a battery? if you aren't using you macbook, dont charge it... keeping the battery charged with minimal use could definitely cause swelling... if i don't need it for a week, i don't charge it until i need it again. don't get me wrong, i leave mine plugged up sometimes for extended sessions but thats it.

    i would like it to hold a charge for longer but thats the case with any battery. time to see if this battery is actually different.

    16 of 20 people found this useful

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  • 4.0 out of 5 stars

    Can't complain

    • Written by from Athens

    I have been reading all these bad reviews for the MBP battery pack and honestly I couldn't disagree more. Beside the fact that it is a bit costly (130dollars? com'on! I would say 90dollars would be reasonable), the battery did well all these years. I am sure people have different experience, although on my previous PowerBook I had also a good battery experience; I changed the battery once on the fourth year, half a year before I got my MBP.
    I bought my MBP on Oct 2008, just a few days after the redesign model launched. So since the beginning of Nov 2008 I have been using my computer every single day, mainly as a desktop replacement. Just for you to get an idea, the iStatNano widget (I really don't know how accurate it is) shows 1232 cycles and 74% health. I have to say that the health was around 90-95% all these years and has been falling the last month noticeably.
    I have been unplugging my Mac everytime it reached 100% (or 99%, sometimes it never got to 100) and plugging it in after the "battery running low" notification (it is extremely easy to do so with the magsafe). Other than that I didn't take any extra care.

    Will I buy a new battery? Well, my MBP is kind of old, a friend of mine has the 2010 model and it really goes superfast (i5/7 chip vs the core 2 duo.. huge difference).

    I will probably get a third party battery till the (much anticipated) new MBPs are launched end of 2012 or early 2013. Apple is definitely losing some clients with that kind of pricing.

    PS I am really curious of how much it costs to all these people who own the "non-user replaceable" MBPs to get a new battery pack..

    4 of 5 people found this useful

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  • 1.0 out of 5 stars

    3rd Battery

    • Written by from River Falls

    Just ordering my 3rd battery in a little over 3 years. Totally unacceptable.

    7 of 8 people found this useful

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  • 2.0 out of 5 stars

    Total Fail

    • Written by from Chandler

    Ive had this MacBook Pro for about a year and the battery went from lasting 7 hours to lasting 2 hours.

    This is worse than my 4 year old MacBook.

    If Apple makes the batteries, they should have actual battery companies make the batteries instead.

    I like Apple, and they make GREAT products, don't get me wrong, but batteries, not so much...

    6 of 7 people found this useful

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  • 1.0 out of 5 stars

    Give me liberty or give me better battery life, please!

    • Written by from Bartlesville

    I just replaced my MacBook Pro battery. My system profiler indicated that my battery life was "poor" and I bought a new battery at the Apple store. Well, the life on this "new" battery is not much better. Rated as "good" in my system profiler, this replacement battery is not worth the $129 price tag. With a 100% charge and utilizing energy saver settings to increase battery life, I get 1 hour 27 minutes of time unplugged. I have drained, charged and tried again...just about the same. I have never owned anything but a Mac, please please please Apple give us a battery that has some staying power and really is worth the $129 we willing give you!

    20 of 23 people found this useful

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  • 3.0 out of 5 stars

    Swelling issue

    • Written by from Forest Hills

    In spite of the reputation, Apple's batteries (largely due to the software that controls the battery, not the battery itself) last far longer than batteries in typical PC laptops. After several years, my battery will still give me 2-3 hours of life in my Mac.

    But I have the same issue that DB has. My battery swells and it interferes with the operation of the track pad. When I first turn the machine on, everything is okay, but as the battery heats up, it swells and then the trackpad doesn't work properly.

    Personally, and even though the machine and battery is out of warranty, I consider this to be a defect and IMO, Apple should give some credit towards a new battery.

    30 of 32 people found this useful

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  • 2.0 out of 5 stars

    Swells over time

    • Written by from West Hills

    It seems to be a well known phenomenon that these batteries swell over time. I was reassured at the Genius bar it won't malfunction and start a fire, though it looks uncomfortably plump. It holds a charge and works fine. However, related to its odd girth, it causes the bottom of my Macbook Pro to not sit flat and prevents the trackpad from clicking down. The Genius bar says the bloat is typical of aging batteries, though some grow more than others. Mine affected functionality of the Macbook Pro in an annoying way. The battery was out of warranty so I had to purchase another battery. I left feeling there was a high probability I'd have to purchase another in the future for the same reasons. I would say beware these batteries, but there isn't really an alternative.

    43 of 51 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Very pleased

    • Written by from minneapolis

    I've had my macbook pro since this model(redesigned) came out in fall of 2008 and have had great success with the machine both in performance and wear. 3 years later I'm still on my first battery and only now starting to see a slight taper in it's life on a full charge. I see comments people have made on this exact batter but they are referencing older vintage machines. People the 2006 or 2004 machines had a whole different technology. These are a rock solid design and this batter is for the 2008 unibody and newer MBPs. I couldn't say more good things about this machine and battery combo. It's a gem.

    14 of 23 people found this useful

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  • 1.0 out of 5 stars

    Thumbs down

    • Written by from Amboy

    Own a fifteen inch MBP for almost 4 years now, luckily I bought the extended care plan, I got two free batteries out of apple whilst still under my time limit, but now I'm out in the cold and have to keep 130 dollars stashed away for when this battery goes bad as well.

    13 of 20 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Battery

    • Written by from TUCSON

    This battery has lasted me 3 years, and I am getting a replacement. The battery still works but is losing it's charge. Last night I noticed that the battery has bowed out and the cover to the machine no longer fits. Wow! Overall, I am happy with a battery lasting 3 years, as I use this machine daily.

    18 of 23 people found this useful

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  • 4.0 out of 5 stars

    Battery life

    • Written by from Seattle

    We've had mixed success but have not been dissatisfied. We bought our MBP in 2006, since then we've had two new batteries, but Apple replaced both of them for free. Once we were, told at the retail store, to let our battery discharge completely once each month but it was okay to leave the Pro tethered to the power cord as the MBP would automatically switch from DC to AC when the battery was full. We've also been advised to leave it untethered and plug it in only to charge because after a finite number of charging cycles the battery life would decrease. Throughout all this, we've had the same AC power adapter, which finally went TU today. The battery life was better while the machine was newer and we were leaving it plugged in. Too many variables to tell what is the "right" thing to do, but h*ll it's been five years on this MBP, and we've not spent any money on it -- other than applecare. So, were not dissatisfied, even as I'm on my way to buy another AC adapter and battery or . . . a new Mac Book Pro.

    5 of 8 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    492 cycles (32months) and still has nearly 3500 mAh

    • Written by from san antonio

    Most of the issues I have heard and read about battery life are connected to how the battery is used (or not used). If you leave any rechargeable battery at full charge and plugged in you are going to experience issues with battery life and swelling. Regardless of brand of the battery. Try actually using your laptop for what it is. If you use your computer pretty much as a desktop, buy an iMac that will solve your issues with battery replacement. Otherwise remove the tether from your MBP and use it anywhere and everywhere. You should get much longer life out of your battery.

    16 of 27 people found this useful

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  • 1.0 out of 5 stars

    Battery Bulging After 35 Charges

    • Written by from Brooklyn

    I purchased my Macbook and found out that I really do not take it anywhere and it mainly sits after my desk. After 18 months I only went through 35 battery cycles. I am very upset to see that my battery is expanding in size and pushing the lid away from the computer.

    30 of 32 people found this useful

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