Hi guys! This is my first time posting here at PhilMUG! I just recently bought my MBP 16" days ago. And today while I was doing my work and my MBP plugged in almost the entire day, then suddenly, my MBP battery percentage starts to drops down. I got worried so I had to unplug it. I was searching the internet and found out that it's a macOS Catalina feature called "Battery Health Management". What it does is the battery drops down to 90% and it will go back to 100% (based on the answers in a forum I've read earlier). I want to hear your thoughts about this, is this really normal? Should I unplug my charger once it reached 100% or keep it plugged in during my work hours? And if you have any apps that you can recommend, kindly include them as well ☺️ Thank you for your help!
Apple says the feature helps prolong the life of the battery. More than that, I think it has something to do with the recent battery recalls from models of recent years; wherein batteries tend to bloat or fail earlier than usual. These are due probably to poor design or materials or deliberate "features" (so consumers will but new ones) by Apple and/or it's suppliers. It's too early to tell from a consumer perspective if this feature will indeed work as Apple says it will due to its recent implementation. You can disable it if you don't want or need it. Having got a 2017 MBP with a battery that needed replacement (turns off on battery power around 30% charge) within a year and a half of use (mostly plugged in), I'm keeping the setting on for my 2020 model for now. I realized that all batteries will wear out sooner or later, no matter how much I tried to do the practices advised to prolong its life. I've had 2011 and 2012 macbooks with batteries working until now or have just been replaced recently after years of use. And I have this 2017 model whose battery failed in 1 1/2 years. I never changed my working habits and they are mostly used plugged in to a power outlet, except for few occasions when I needed to use them outside my home and not even draining the charge to anything below 5%. Just prepare yourself and your wallet in case the battery bonks out earlier than expected since control over everything electronics seem to be out or just within slight grasp of our hands nowadays.
