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White Unibody MacBook Q&A - Published June 6, 2010
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What is the battery life of the White "Mid-2010" MacBook? Is it possible to swap the higher-capacity battery out of this model and into an older MacBook?
Apple estimates that the White "Mid-2010" MacBook -- the MacBook "Core 2 Duo" 2.4 13" (Mid-2010) -- provides "up to 10 hours of wireless productivity" which the company further defines as "wirelessly browsing various websites and editing text in a word processing document with display brightness set to the middle setting".
By comparison, for the previous White "Unibody" MacBook -- the MacBook "Core 2 Duo" 2.26 13" (White Polycarbonate Unibody/Late 2009) -- Apple estimated "7 hours of wireless productivity" performing the same test. For the 13-Inch "Mid-2010" MacBook Pro models, Apple estimates the same 10 hour runtime as the company does for its white counterpart.
It is worth noting that the "Mid-2010" MacBook and MacBook Pro models both have 63.5 W/Hr batteries whereas the previous "Late 2009" MacBook has a 60 W/Hr battery. Consequently, with more watt-hours, one would expect the battery life of the "Mid-2010" MacBook model to be superior to its predecessor. Likewise, with such similar specs and performance, one would expect the battery life provided by the "Mid-2010" MacBook to be quite similar to the 13-Inch MacBook Pro models as well.
As the "Mid-2010" MacBook was a minor update (Apple did not even issue a press release), it did not attract a swarm of battery tests from the blogosphere, but MacWorld ran a simple movie playback test and reported:
In our tests, where we loop a movie from the hard drive at full screen, full brightness with AirPort connected to our local network and the volume on (but low), the MacBook was able to run for nearly 5 hours, or 58 minutes longer than the MacBook it replaces. It lasted 35 minutes longer than the 13-inch MacBook Pro and 22 minutes longer than the 15-inch MacBook Pro.
In more day-to-day use, one is more likely to get seven to eight hours of use, like its contemporary 13-Inch MacBook Pro, and possibly the full Apple estimated runtime should one make a significant effort to conserve the battery.
As for "swapping" the higher-capacity 63.5 W/Hr battery in the "Mid-2010" MacBook into an older "Late 2009" MacBook with its 60 W/Hr battery, it first is important to recognize that it is not possible to conveniently "swap" the battery at all. However, in a teardown and test, iFixit discovered that the batteries between these two models are interchangeable with some effort. The site also discovered that both batteries (annoyingly) are labeled with the A1331 model number, despite the difference in watt-hours (and weight). It is not possible to install the battery from the White "Unibody" MacBook models into an earlier MacBook.
Ultimately, it appears that Apple's battery life numbers for the "Mid-2010" are realistic for day-to-day use. However, as Apple notes as well, battery life may vary depending on "configuration and use". Additionally, although it certainly is not supported by Apple, it is quite possible to install the higher watt-hour battery from the "Mid-2010" model in the "Late 2009" model.
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