9/8/21
9:00 am

14 Things You Can Do To Make Your MacBook Last Longer

If you are thinking about getting or have recently bought a new MacBook Air or Pro, you may want to know how to make it last as long as possible. Here is some advice on how to keep your MacBook running well for many years to come.

Video Transcript: Hi, this is Gary with MacMost.com. Here are some tips to help you make your MacBook last longer. 
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So let's say you just got a new MacBook and you want to make the MacBook last as long as possible. To really increase its longevity you need to start good habits right now so you don't have problems later on. Now my first tip is the only one I'm going to mention that you need to do before you buy your new MacBook. That's to get a large enough drive inside the MacBook. This is probably the most common problem I hear as to why people need to get a new MacBook. Why they can't keep using their current on. It's that they got too small of an internal drive. Maybe they've got the 256 G drive. Maybe that was fine for awhile but now they are taking more photos, maybe they're editing 4K video, whatever it is they are doing the 256 G drive is no longer big enough and they just have to get a new MacBook even though they hoped the current one would last a few more years. 
Okay. My next one seems to me to be the most obvious but I still see tons of people using MacBooks without any kind of cover or case or protection at all. I've got a really simple plastic cover. It's just a thin shell. It doesn't increase the size of the MacBook much at all but it does provide a lot of protection especially for things like scratches, or taking impacts a little bit better. It's just much better to have a case like this on it. I never spend more than $20 on one of these cases and as it kind of wears down after a couple of years I'll just get a new one. But boy when I take this case off it's amazing to see the aluminum here look pristine. No scratches, scruff marks. Nothing on it. 
Alternatively you could get a sleeve. A sleeve you wouldn't have on while you're using the MacBook. You would slip it into it to then put it in your backpack or carry it somewhere. You have to have a lot of discipline to go with a sleeve instead of a case because you have to constantly be putting it on and taking it off. 
Now the third item goes with this. That is Handle With Care. Now of course you're going to handle your MacBook with care but even people that think they are taking good care of their MacBooks sometimes will find themselves tossing it into a backpack and then tossing that backpack into the back of a car. Doing that once, no big deal. But doing it day after day, year after year will add wear and tear. While the aluminum makes it feel like it's just really solid you still need to be careful with it. Just getting into the habit of treating it with care in all cases. Gently putting it in a backpack. Treating your backpack with care when you know your MacBook is in it will add up over the years and make your MacBook last.
Now let's talk about batteries. The number one thing is that if you really want to have your MacBook last pass five years plan on getting a new battery. It's just chemicals in there that are worn down over time. If you want to have a MacBook last beyond five years plan on the fact that at some point in the middle you're going to need a new battery. It's like a car. You can take perfect care of a car. At some point you're still going to need to get new tires. Now besides that another thing you can do to care for the battery is to not use it needlessly. Now I'm a big advocate of using your MacBook. Not letting it use you. So if you have to use it somewhere where there's no power certainly use the battery. But if you're sitting at your desk or there's power right there then use it on power. Don't follow some bad advice like actually using your MacBook that way when you could just have it easily plugged in. The fewer battery cycles the better. So use it plugged in when it's convenient and use the battery when it's not convenient. Another big factor for battery use and for the entire machine is temperature. Try to keep your MacBook away from extreme temperatures. Don't let it get too hot. Don't let it get too cold. Mostly too hot though. So try not to leave it in a hot car. That's going to wear down, particularly, the battery. If you don't have air conditioning at home during the summer try to use it in a cool room if possible or at least store it in a relatively cool room. 
Another kind of Handle With Care kind of issue is opening and closing your MacBook. When you do that you're just using mechanical hinges that are in here. Now in the past Apple has had trouble with these hinges. There's really been no problems with the current aluminum MacBooks. But every new model that comes out is slightly different. So I try not to take any risks. Which means that when I open my MacBook I really think about it. I open it up nice and smoothly. I don't jerk it open. When I go to close it I don't slam it down. Again, this is the kind of thing that works with repetition. Accidentally slamming it down once or opening it quickly once is no big deal. It's how you deal with your MacBook everyday, day in and day out, try to make it last five, seven, nine or more years. 
The same thing for the Ports. When you plug into a port or pull a connection out do it gently because in the past these ports here, which again are just physical objects, right. Every time you push it in you are actually applying force. They can break. It's not uncommon for somebody to have a perfectly good MacBook that works really well except that one of the ports now isn't working. It really pay just to get into the habit of carefully and gently inserting a connector and then carefully and gently pulling it out. It will also make the actual cables last longer. 
Also treat your power adaptors with care and the cables too. Now fortunately today these are all replaceable. You can get another power adapter. You can even get smaller, lighter ones from other companies. Also these cables, they can be easily replaced. Maybe $10 and you can get a new power cable. But still if you are using your MacBook for a long time it would be nice to keep using the originals. So treat these with care. You know make sure they are kind of kept clean. When you need to wrap the cable around it don't wrap it super tight. Maybe just fold the cable up and put a velcro strap or something on it. If you care for this, this should last you through the whole life of your MacBook. 
Now a word about keyboard covers. Little covers like this that you could put over the keyboard and it keeps the keyboard clean. That seems like a really good idea and something that should extend the life of your MacBook. The only problem is that when you add one of these to the keyboard and when you close the screen you may be putting pressure against the screen and against the keyboard. Definitely do NOT close your MacBook with one of these in there. If you want to use one you have to put it on and take it off every time you open and close your MacBook. There are plenty of reports online for people with broken screens or broken keyboards because they used one of these. But you definitely do want to keep your keyboard clean. The best way to do that is to simply not get it dirty in the first place. Maybe practice washing your hands before using the keyboard especially if you were working in some sort of industry where your hands get dirty often. Like you're an auto mechanic and then you go to use your MacBook. Maybe plan on only doing that when you have clean hands instead of constantly getting dirt on it and then have to actually clean it which could also then wear things down. All those things. Any time you're doing something with the keyboard like that you risk maybe getting some dirt in there or maybe pressing a key too hard or breaking something. So you want to have good habits and minimize how often you get your keyboard dirty and thus how often you have to clean it. 
Now from a software standpoint the main thing you want to do is be a minimalist. Don't throw a lot of junk on your MacBook. Most of the time when somebody complains that their Mac is slow is because they just overloaded it with stuff that's running in the background. Think about it this way. Every time you put new software on your Mac you're making your Mac more complex. There's more on it that's running. More that's going on. Every time you make it more complex you adding more points of failure. More things that could be slowing it down or causing trouble. To minimize that only install things that you really truly need. 
That brings me to my next point which may be the biggest thing out of all of this. Which is don't put up with problems. Your Mac is running slow if something isn't working. I so often hear from people saying that for the last year or for the last six months my Mac's been running slow. Do you have any idea what could be wrong? If something is wrong with your Mac you have free technical support from Apple. Call them or take it to the Genius Bar and they'll take a look at it and be able to fix the problem for you. It's probably something that you installed that isn't working well with your operating system or with some other software. The important thing is don't put up with issues like that. Your Mac is running slow or having problems and you can't fix it yourself get help from Apple or another expert. 
One more thing I need to mention here is that if you want your MacBook to last a long time you have to make sure nobody steals it. It's easy to steal a MacBook. We carry it around everywhere. You have to get in the habit of always knowing where your MacBook is remembering that this thing is worth a lot and that somebody may try to steal it. I know this seems obvious. But you have to kind of practice this everyday. There is no substitute for just being aware of where your MacBook is at all times and making sure that somebody can't easily steal it. 
So while I'm sure most people were practicing some or most of these things already hopefully this video gave you some new ideas about how to make your MacBook last as long as possible. Thanks for watching.

Comments: 19 Responses to “14 Things You Can Do To Make Your MacBook Last Longer”

Patty

3 years ago

Please share details on which clear cases you use to cover MacBook Air 13” m1 2020. Also, is it ok to buy the off (Anker) brands usc/b adapters, cords & chargers? I just bought a new MacBook Air & really appreciate this posting!

Gary Rosenzweig

3 years ago

Patty: I don't have any specific recommendations. Just get one that fits your style and has decent real reviews. Hard to say whether all adapters, cords and chargers are OK. You just have to research it a bit for the particular one you are interested in. I don't do hardware testing or anything like that so I don't have any information that you couldn't find online elsewhere.

Ramon

3 years ago

Excellent video, as always. I recently bought a MacBook Pro and notice it has no slot for a chain/cable lock. What solution is there for this?

Gary Rosenzweig

3 years ago

Ramon: I've never looked for something like that. Searching Amazon there are a bunch of solutions, like something that glues on, or latches on some other way. I think setting up Find My Mac and FileVault is probably better protection as then if it is stolen they can't get to your data and you can disable the Mac forever remotely making it worthless except for parts.

Laraine

3 years ago

I have a MacBook Pro from 2008, but only because there are applications I can no longer use. I still prefer my 2017 27" iMac. Mostly the 2008 MacBook sits on my desk, permanently plugged in, but I sometimes take it to the living room for short times. I use the battery then. It has a case but that's falling apart now. Maybe a new one is worth getting?

Kenneth Vignona

3 years ago

Gary, I always use power cord when using my MacBook. I also very rarely shut it down. Is it ok that when I finish using my book, I close the cover (sleep), leave it on and plugged in? Ken

Gary Rosenzweig

3 years ago

Kenneth: Yes. That is what most people do.

Robert Hutchison

3 years ago

Hi Garry,
Thank you for the tips, my question is related to keeping my MacBook Air plugged in all the time, I have an intel 2020 Mac,
I want to keep the battery in good condition and have two questions.
1. If not plugged what percentage would you let it run down to without damaging the battery? I usual let it go to 60% then charge to full
2. You said about keeping plugged in on power all the time. Will this not overcharge the battery?

Thank you.

Robert

Gary Rosenzweig

3 years ago

Robert: I wouldn't pay any attention at all to the percent except to check to see if I was almost out of power and couldn't work anymore. If I needed to use it until it is almost out of power I would. If I was at 90% and it was convenient to put it in at that moment I would. Use your MacBook, don't let it use you. The battery will not "overcharge." It is way smarter than that. The hardware and macOS will manage things like that. Focus on your work (or whatever you are doing) and let the software worry about the details of battery management.

Lali Raj

3 years ago

Gary putting a plastic cover won't heat up the MacBook when it is on?

Gary Rosenzweig

3 years ago

Lali: No. The vents are out the back edge and the cover is open there. The cover doesn't block the vents at all.

Patricia Stirling

3 years ago

Hi Gary
I kept my MacBook Pro plugged in all the time and the battery swelled up. I had to get a new battery. But you say it's safe to leave it pugged in all the time? I'm being told otherwise by the shop. Now I put it through cycles thinking that's the best thing to do. But it's not? A swollen battery is horrible and I'm confused! Can you advise me please?

Jack McNeil

3 years ago

Hi Gary, thanks for the video. When you recommend leaving the laptop plugged into the wall for power so as to not use the battery (to prolong its life), I think of the articles I have read that say leaving your Apple device plugged in after you reach 100% charge is not good for the battery. What am I misunderstanding?

Gary Rosenzweig

3 years ago

Patricia: Yes, keeping it plugged in all the time is how many people do it. That isn't the reason it swelled (random chance, age). Adding cycles needlessly will only wear it out.

Gary Rosenzweig

3 years ago

Jack: You are probably reading old articles or bad ones based on old info. MacBooks manage the battery and won't overcharge the battery or anything like that.

Mick

3 years ago

I have a 2015 MacBook and think it's the best bit of tech I ever purchased. The battery was replaced a couple of years ago under a recall (wonder if that's what happened to Patricia S?) Thanks for taking time to make the tutorial. Very helpful. Regards Mick

Christine

3 years ago

My MacBook Pro battery was replaced last year because it was swelling and stopped charging. I always had it plugged in. The Apple genius tech told me to charge and let it run down. Glad to read what you recommend.

Gary Rosenzweig

3 years ago

Christine: Using your battery a lot is only one factor with that problem. Temperature changes are another. Then there is just luck as the battery is just a bunch of chemicals and sometimes it happens.

John Hill

2 years ago

I have the Touch Bar late 2019 16 MBP that I leave plugged in 24/7. I noticed a battery related message to the effect that the OS recognized the continuous 24/7 power source and it said the battery would be autonatically maintained at 80%. Note: I disable the Touch Bar after trying it for several months.

Comments Closed.

14 Things You Can Do To Make Your MacBook Last Longer

Comments: 19 Responses to “14 Things You Can Do To Make Your MacBook Last Longer”

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