batteries

Q&A: MacFixIt Answers

MacFixIt Answers is a feature in which I answer Mac-related questions e-mailed in by our readers.

This week, readers wrote in with questions about battery care, where to get Mac-specific training, what to do about guest accounts deleting user data, and the limitations of using an iMac as an external display for other systems. I welcome views from readers, so if you have any suggestions or alternative approaches to these problems, please post them in the comments!

Question: Common battery care guidelines MacFixIt reader Thomas asks:

I am eternally confused by battery care. My current understanding is that the old … Read more

Boeing: Here's our plan to nix 787 battery fire risk

Boeing today outlined its plans for preventing the 787 Dreamliner's batteries from overheating or igniting, issues that have kept the aircraft's global fleet grounded for nearly two months.

While noting that it had not identified the root cause of the heat issues, the aircraft maker said during a news conference Friday in Tokyo that it had developed additional safety features designed to prevent heat issues with the planes' lithium-ion batteries.

"We've come up with a comprehensive set of solutions that result in a safer battery system," Boeing Chief Project Engineer Mike Stinnett said in a … Read more

Monitor your device's battery at all times with Battery Widget

Not every smartphone has detailed battery information at your fingertips. Battery Widget puts a simple but detailed battery indicator anywhere on your home screen. It's simple and elegant, but not as customizable as other battery widgets in the Play store. It's still worth trying out, though.

Though the app prides itself on its cool widget, it features detailed battery information for you to use, too. Since the app is 1X1, it can be placed anywhere on your phone's home screen. It would be nice if there were a bigger version to use, with a few more statistics. … Read more

NTSB: Boeing Dreamliner blaze probe needs more time

The National Transportation Safety Board today released an interim report detailing the events that led to a lithium-ion battery fire on a Japan Airlines Boeing 787 Dreamliner, but it didn't make any conclusions into what caused the blaze.

The organization noted that the report was strictly factual in nature and based on initial findings. That meant it didn't detail a clear-cut reason for the fire, provide analysis, or make any conclusions or recommendations.

The NTSB said its investigation into the probable cause of the 787 battery fire is continuing. It's also continuing to review the design, certification, … Read more

Where, oh where are all the grounded 787 Dreamliners?

There's been no shortage of publicity and investigation surrounding the grounding of the world's 787 Dreamliner fleet after recent battery fires aboard the Boeing airplanes. But there's one question that has gone unanswered: Where are all those Dreamliners?

Thanks to our friends at Airchive.com, we now know where all those planes are sitting as regulators, Boeing, and its battery suppliers work to once again get eager passengers aboard the much-hyped aircraft.

According to Airchive.com, there are currently eight carriers flying Dreamliners -- if you can call having a bunch of planes parked on tarmacs at … Read more

For an iWatch to kick butt, Apple must innovate in batteries

If Apple is hard at work on an "iWatch," it will have to overcome battery issues bedeviling existing smartwatch makers.

This new crop of wrist devices has a lot more in common with smartphones than your old Timex. They have increasingly large displays, and can ferry over notifications and other data, acting as a second screen of sorts for your smartphone. For many of the latest models, that extra utility is not without a compromise: You've got to plug it in at the end of the day.

Charging a smartphone every day can be an annoyance, but … Read more

iOS 6.1.1 causes battery drain, say some iPhone 4S users

Rolled out this week for the iPhone 4S, iOS 6.1.1 may have fixed one problem only to create another, at least according to some users.

Several iPhone 4S owners chiming in on Apple's Support Communities say their battery drains faster after updating to iOS 6.1.1. In a discussion thread labeled "My iPhone 4S battery life is terrible, Even with iOS 6.1.1," many report that their battery life was much better under iOS 6.1.

Here's just a sampling of the comments:

The battery life on my iPhone 4S was fine … Read more

Tesla's Elon Musk lambasts New York Times article

Tesla's CEO Elon Musk has become incensed over a news article critical of the all-electric car that was published in The New York Times last week.

"I do not think this is a he said, she said situation," Musk told Bloomberg West in an interview today. "It is really black and white. The facts are the facts."

The tussle got started after New York Times reporter John Broder wrote an article about taking the Tesla Model S out on a test drive in the East Coast's freezing weather. He claimed that the car couldn'… Read more

FAA approves Boeing test flights of grounded 787 Dreamliner

Boeing was granted permission today to conduct test flights of its 787 Dreamliner as the aircraft maker tries to determine the cause of battery fires that have kept the fleet of planes grounded around the world.

The test flights will be subject to a number of restrictions, the Federal Aviation Administration said today, including limiting the flights to specific airspace over unpopulated areas. Other conditions include preflight testing and inspections, and in-flight monitoring.

"The traveling public's safety is our highest priority," the FAA said in a statement. "These test flights will be an important part of … Read more