What is Digg?Sponsored by Sony Pictures
Adam Lambert sings the 2012 theme song, “Time for Miracles” view!
whowillsurvive2012.com - Watch the Adam Lambert music video for the 2012 theme song. See 2012, in theaters Nov 13
133 Comments
- ProjectGSX, on 01/07/2009, -2/+89Cliff Notes: Apples new battery is the best on the market. Better stuff could come out in the future.
Shocker there. - jakem1, on 01/07/2009, -1/+39What a silly article.
It poses a question (are Apple responsible for the design of their batteries) and then forgets to answer it instead choosing to discuss alternate battery tech. - abird, on 01/07/2009, -0/+36You can use it for 7-8 hours without having to plug it in.
Yup, that's it. - Soval, on 01/07/2009, -1/+34"But put your ear to the ground in the battery community..."
There's a battery community? wtf? - immatellyouwhat, on 01/07/2009, -2/+25Longer lasting battery life for a giant laptop that will not move so much? and then only 4 hours in the 13" and 15" models? and THEN anti-glare option ONLY for 17" WTF Apple WTF?
- paulsabo, on 01/07/2009, -3/+25I wish I bought a bunch of silver in 2001...
- inactive, on 01/07/2009, -3/+23Well at least they aren't the explody Sony type?
- Balanced, on 01/07/2009, -1/+19Probably about the time they talk to someone who explains they don't have to get a new machine. It looks like it can be replaced, it's just not a user-serviceable part.
- insidius, on 01/07/2009, -2/+19I had a nice big post written up however I scrapped it after I realised that you were seriously comparing an underpowered and under whelming NetBook to a 17" Powerhouse laptop. My jaw met the ground it really did.
- abird, on 01/07/2009, -1/+14Is there really that poor of a battery life? Yours might be defective. I routinely get 3-4 hours of life out of a new 15" Pro via normal usage (screen brightness up, wifi on, etc.)
- DinosWillDie13, on 01/07/2009, -0/+12either way, i want one of these for my old ass macbook pro. this battery blows balls
- superkendall, on 01/07/2009, -2/+14Actually I've found Apple's battery figures in the past to be pretty realistic.
- Teej, on 01/07/2009, -0/+12No, I think he was making a comment on better things coming out in the future being a massive surprise.
- smb3d, on 01/07/2009, -4/+16But apples using it, so it's "revolutionary"!
- Scott2, on 01/07/2009, -4/+15Silver Oxide batteries are still relatively cost-prohibitive. Given how much people gripe about the "Apple Tax", do you really think it would have been a good move to significantly increase the cost of the machine for a bit of extra battery life?
- Dumbledorito, on 01/07/2009, -1/+12Less removable = more powerful.
At least, that's what my mechanic tells me about my car when I can't get the bolts off of something. - BossKey, on 01/07/2009, -0/+10I used to stuff my old laptop with batteries in both bays (removing the optical drive), and I'd get 8 hours. The benefit is that I could grab and go, use the computer the entire day without having to identify outlet locations all the time. I could leave the house without bringing the power cord at all, knowing I'd be fine.
I see you qualified your question by saying "17 inch computer." You and others above question who would carry such a large computer around town. Well, people do. I see them all the time in coffee shops and such. An important part of the answer to this question is the (lack of) thickness and weight of the Apple 17". Because it is *not* a thick brick like a lot of PC laptops, it's actually possible to haul it around all day long. When it's not any thicker and it isn't much heavier than a 15", it's only a little deeper and wider, and that can be dealt with using the proper bag. If you also leave the adapter behind, then you've dropped the true carry weight by about a pound, making it equal to a 15" with an adapter.
So yes, people will carry it around town, and once you've established that, then the need for an 8-hour battery isn't that hard to understand. - 3Den, on 01/08/2009, -3/+12Apple purchasers don't usually complain about the "apple tax".
And last I saw, apple's numbers were doing really well.... - jakem1, on 01/08/2009, -1/+10I don't think there are too many people who'd be able to find space to open a 17" laptop on a plane. If you could you'd probably be in 1st class in which case you could just plug it in.
- bizarrocanuck, on 01/07/2009, -1/+9I get about 6 hours on my macbook with light internet and email usage (wifi on) and about 4 hours with some slightly heavier usage. I think there's something wrong with yours.
Of course, it can get as low as an hour with some heavy duty photoshop work. - christinme, on 01/08/2009, -1/+8article is dumb. It asks if apples new battery is cutting edge....hell yeah it is. It is the only laptop that has that battery and silver isn't out yet and isn't stable.
- jbella, on 01/08/2009, -0/+7Oh yea? I have a solar powered calculator that can go practically forever without any batteries.
And this was like 10 years ago! - encumbent, on 01/07/2009, -1/+8"..which have a much better energy-to-weight ratio than lithium-based batteries."
..ummm no, lithium metal has the highest volumetric and gravimetric capacity of any material known to humankind.. I'm not reading past such utter bs try-hard crappy science writing, what's with all these science/technology sites? Don't they understand that the *majority* of the audience they're aiming for sees straight through it? - Dumbledorito, on 01/08/2009, -0/+7At least it's got a ground.
- cthellis, on 01/07/2009, -0/+7If you seriously are only getting 90 minutes, then something simply wrong. Bring it by a shop and have them take a look at it. That is not in any way "normal" for them.
- judicar, on 01/07/2009, -2/+8Apple released its first system with a Lithium Polymer battery 2 years ago, so yeah it was first to market.
- mrBitch, on 01/08/2009, -0/+6@i88gerbils RE: "So you're saying the article is a bunch of lies?"
No, there was no assertion that the article was a "bunch of lies". ProjectGSX's summary of the article is spot on :
"Cliff Notes: Apples new battery is the best on the market. Better stuff could come out in the future.
Shocker there." - ZenDriver, on 01/08/2009, -0/+6Give it time, not much of it most likely.
Anti-Glare will probably creep into the Apple Store as an option within the next couple of months on the 13" and 15" screens. Apple is a small company shipping a very high volume of product. It takes time for them to roll technologies and changes out across the lineup (it is a lot more difficult from a logistical standpoint, even with outsourcing, than people tend to think, including myself at one time).
The 17" is Apple's lowest volume notebook, used by the highest proportion of "power users." If there is an issue with the new battery design, Apple's exposure is to a far smaller number of users. It is also the computer used most by the sort of people who would potentially have an issue with the non-removable nature of the battery. If the system works and those users seem to buy these things, than Apple can move the tech to the 13" and 15" systems post hast.
I agree with the main article though. I don't know if there is so much innovation going on with this new Apple battery setup. I don't think Apple is designing their own chemistry from the ground up and Lithium Polymer batteries are readily available. The charging system does sound interesting though. The real key is that Apple has the huevos to release a power user's computer without the removable battery.
Given how people complain about the batteries in iPhones and iPods, I am shocked we haven't heard much complaining about the 17" MBP battery. People seem to think the 8 hour runtime is well worth the tradeoff. - plaguepony, on 01/08/2009, -1/+7The USB port cannot handle near the amount of power a computer requires. Computers generally run on 14 to 19 V at around 4 amps, where as the USB Port is rated for 5V at 1 Amp.
- danny31292, on 01/07/2009, -0/+6Lower energy density although safer. The super quick charge would be nice too.
- dandonia, on 01/08/2009, -0/+6I didn't see a rise in price on th 17" MBP but with 4GB ram and a 2.9GHz Core 2 Duo processor, more advanced graphics, double the battery oh yeah and it's lighter - it certainly became a much better investment. Oh and asif anyone really cares it's more like the Hulk.
- macmcraeart, on 01/07/2009, -0/+6it's for those epic marathon bathroom spankathons where you just don't feel like lugging that dumbass power brick, all of those stupid cables and a giant bottle of lotion with you.
- forbetaorworse, on 01/07/2009, -0/+6yea dude if you're under warranty they WILL switch it out. I have a black MacBook (mid-2007) and the battery life is still a solid 3-4 hours. Any apple store or apple service shop can take care of that for you.
- mrBitch, on 01/08/2009, -0/+6@ zoom1928 RE: "As the owner of a new 13", you're lucky if you can get 90 minutes out of it."
Your battery is faulty, have it replaced for free. - BoneStamp, on 01/07/2009, -6/+11I had a lithium polymer battery in my cell phone 10 years ago. This battery technology is not that "cutting edge."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ericsson_T28 - Balanced, on 01/08/2009, -0/+5If they do it "the right way" this should be a no-brainer drop-off-for-a-couple hours at the local Apple Store (or authorized dealer) so it's not a big deal unless you live in someplace really isolated.
- 3Den, on 01/08/2009, -0/+5Well.. it was a good move. I was about to skip the next generation altogether.. but the concept of 8 hours of battery life in the 17 might have just sold me on a new laptop as my main machine....
- bdsams, on 01/07/2009, -2/+7look, there 8 hour battery isnt good enough for a trans atlantic flight....for those that travel reguraly, we need a removable battery, i hope this trend isnt continued down to the smaller MBP's
- gheide, on 01/07/2009, -1/+6Why they aren't researching other lithium composition batteries like A123 systems is the question I'd ask...
- mrBitch, on 01/08/2009, -1/+6Same here.
@ jabberwolff RE: "Lithium Polymer batteries" are nothing new! 8 hours is BS"
And you know this HOW, exactly?
Thought so, you just troll Apple threads and post up whatever stupid thoughts pop into your head.
You make ***** up and post as if it is a fact.
You are an idiot. - ZenDriver, on 01/08/2009, -0/+5I am sure Apple is constantly evaluating companies like A123 and zPower. There are a couple of downsides to going with them (and a couple of other companies) right now though:
1- These are small companies, mostly research focused, with no currently deployed products in the marketplace.
2- These companies have never shipped product (more accurately - their contract manufacturers) in anywhere near the sort of volume Apple needs. Designing a product is one thing, shipping a few thousand to early adopters is relatively simple. Shipping the millions of cells Apple requires, to Apple's quality standards, is something else entirely.
3- Li Polymer batteries are a well known technology. Dozens of companies in China and Taiwan churn them and have the ability to build to any size. Apple can source cells from multiple companies, get lower prices and have a stable supply chain.
Apple knows Lithium Polymer technology very well, as their laptops have been using them for a few years. - Seishi, on 01/08/2009, -0/+5According to gizmodo.com - Apple will replace your battery for $179.
http://i.gizmodo.com/5124811/apple-confirms-179-ba ... - BossKey, on 01/07/2009, -0/+5Amen to that. An airline adapter + seatguru.com for power port locations on specific aircraft, and you know exactly which seat to reserve. It's so great to not worry about battery life because it isn't draining.
- suprememilo, on 01/07/2009, -1/+6I flew from Houston to London 3 weeks ago, 9 hours and at least an hour of that you couldn't have your laptop out. Therefore 8 hours is perfect.
- rmferrer87, on 01/07/2009, -0/+5LOL
- rmferrer87, on 01/07/2009, -0/+5Yeah but realize that Apple wasn't boasting about the technology so much as what they can achieve with the technology (8 hour battery life).
Also, that thing is uuuuuuuuuuugly. - dandonia, on 01/08/2009, -0/+5Does it say anywhere that you can't send the laptop in for an exchange of battery? Besides - yeah I buy new every two years so if it lasts that long - it will be three times better than my dell battery. I am just curious as to how long it will keep an 8 hour charge. I know it says the battery will be rechargable for 1000 cycles but does it mean full charge for that long or half charge for most of it (still 4 hours lol).
- Soval, on 01/08/2009, -0/+5They must have a very polarizing cult leader. I'm imagining loaded people dancing around the golden capacitor.
- ZeroSum1975, on 01/08/2009, -1/+5If Dell this, if this happens, if, if , if, if... C'mon man, there is no "if" with Apple. They get that ***** done and out in the market. No conceptualizing for them they actually materialize.
- mrBitch, on 01/08/2009, -0/+4RE: "Apple knows Lithium Polymer technology very well, as their laptops have been using them for a few years."
That's actually the key point to make. -
Show 51 - 100 of 134 discussions
Browsing Digg on your phone just got easier with our enhancements to the 
© Digg Inc. 2009
— Content created and posted by Digg users is