Battery indicator
Mac Tip #261/20-Sept-2006

To keep track of your Mac laptop’s battery you can use the buttons on the battery as I described in last week’s Tip or, more easily, you can display the battery charge in the menu bar.

Go to the Apple menu and choose System Preferences, then click on the Energy Saver Preference. You should see a small window, with a button near the bottom labelled Show Details. Click the Show Details button and click on the Options tab.

In the Options section you will see a checkbox to Show battery status in the menu bar. Check that box if you wish to use Apple’s battery status icon.

Note: these instructions are valid for Mac OS X 10.4.7. In earlier versions you may find the Show battery status checkbox in a slightly different place within the Energy Saver Preference Pane.

Apple’s battery status icon gives you information about your battery’s charge, but the free Slim Battery Monitor does it better.

Apple battery recalls

Note that Apple has recalled batteries from several recent models of laptop because there is a small risk of the battery catching fire. To see if you are eligible for a free, new battery visit: https://support.apple.com/macbookpro15/batteryexchange and support.apple.com/batteryprogram.

For more general support and information be sure to check: www.apple.com/support.