Our M1 MacBook Air units don't go to 100% even with lid closed #208

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opened 2025-12-30 02:19:38 +01:00 by adam · 4 comments
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Originally created by @Peter376 on GitHub (Jun 26, 2021).

Let me show you the following log file, which is populated by an Applescript routine.
I created a plist in ~/Library/LaunchAgents/ which runs the Applescript (made Executable) every 1 minute.

Every minute, the log is refreshed with the current battery charge, the time and - when charging - Wall Power.

The test below is with the following settings:

  • M1 Macbook air 2020 16GB
  • Al Dente 2.2 (free version) downloaded last week
  • Al Dente max. battery charge set to 85% for this test, but also works the same at 70%
  • M1 Optimised battery charging disabled
  • Wall Power connected and Lid closed as from 22:27, at 71% battery charge.

As you can see, even with the lid closed, the battery will not charge beyond the % set in AD.

Tested with two identical M1 MBA 16GB units.

In issue 256 (closed), it is clearly stated that:

Hi @mzsombor86,
AlDente can not control the Charging behavior of your MacBook while it is in sleep. Therefore, it will keep charging until it is at 100%.

At first, I was a bit disappointed about this limitation of setting a battery charge delimiter such as Al Dente. But in my testing I found that it is now behaving the way i would like it to be.

But why are our M1 units behaving differently? I am posting this because if this turns out to be a new insight, it could contribute to the development of Al Dente. Would be happy to test further if you like.

Here is the log:

71 - 22:23:06 - Wall Power
71 - 22:24:06
71 - 22:25:07
71 - 22:26:07
71 - 22:27:08
71 - 22:28:08 - Wall Power
71 - 22:29:09 - Wall Power
71 - 22:30:09 - Wall Power
73 - 22:31:09 - Wall Power
73 - 22:32:10 - Wall Power
74 - 22:33:10 - Wall Power
75 - 22:34:11 - Wall Power
75 - 22:35:11 - Wall Power
76 - 22:36:12 - Wall Power
77 - 22:37:12 - Wall Power
77 - 22:38:13 - Wall Power
78 - 22:39:13 - Wall Power
78 - 22:40:14 - Wall Power
79 - 22:41:14 - Wall Power
80 - 22:42:15 - Wall Power
80 - 22:43:15 - Wall Power
81 - 22:44:16 - Wall Power
82 - 22:45:16 - Wall Power
82 - 22:46:16 - Wall Power
83 - 22:47:17 - Wall Power
83 - 22:48:17 - Wall Power
85 - 22:49:29 - Wall Power
85 - 22:55:03 - Wall Power
85 - 22:56:12 - Wall Power
85 - 23:11:19 - Wall Power
85 - 23:12:20 - Wall Power
85 - 23:37:40 - Wall Power
85 - 23:54:21 - Wall Power

Pete

Originally created by @Peter376 on GitHub (Jun 26, 2021). Let me show you the following log file, which is populated by an Applescript routine. I created a plist in ~/Library/LaunchAgents/ which runs the Applescript (made Executable) every 1 minute. Every minute, the log is refreshed with the current battery charge, the time and - when charging - Wall Power. The test below is with the following settings: - M1 Macbook air 2020 16GB - Al Dente 2.2 (free version) downloaded last week - Al Dente max. battery charge set to 85% for this test, but also works the same at 70% - M1 Optimised battery charging disabled - Wall Power connected and Lid closed as from 22:27, at 71% battery charge. As you can see, even with the lid closed, the battery will not charge beyond the % set in AD. Tested with two identical M1 MBA 16GB units. In [issue 256](https://github.com/davidwernhart/AlDente/issues/252) (closed), it is clearly stated that: > Hi @mzsombor86, > AlDente can not control the Charging behavior of your MacBook while it is in sleep. Therefore, it will keep charging until it is at 100%. At first, I was a bit disappointed about this limitation of setting a battery charge delimiter such as Al Dente. But in my testing I found that it is now behaving the way i would like it to be. But why are our M1 units behaving differently? I am posting this because if this turns out to be a new insight, it could contribute to the development of Al Dente. Would be happy to test further if you like. Here is the log: 71 - 22:23:06 - Wall Power 71 - 22:24:06 71 - 22:25:07 71 - 22:26:07 71 - 22:27:08 71 - 22:28:08 - Wall Power 71 - 22:29:09 - Wall Power 71 - 22:30:09 - Wall Power 73 - 22:31:09 - Wall Power 73 - 22:32:10 - Wall Power 74 - 22:33:10 - Wall Power 75 - 22:34:11 - Wall Power 75 - 22:35:11 - Wall Power 76 - 22:36:12 - Wall Power 77 - 22:37:12 - Wall Power 77 - 22:38:13 - Wall Power 78 - 22:39:13 - Wall Power 78 - 22:40:14 - Wall Power 79 - 22:41:14 - Wall Power 80 - 22:42:15 - Wall Power 80 - 22:43:15 - Wall Power 81 - 22:44:16 - Wall Power 82 - 22:45:16 - Wall Power 82 - 22:46:16 - Wall Power 83 - 22:47:17 - Wall Power 83 - 22:48:17 - Wall Power 85 - 22:49:29 - Wall Power 85 - 22:55:03 - Wall Power 85 - 22:56:12 - Wall Power 85 - 23:11:19 - Wall Power 85 - 23:12:20 - Wall Power 85 - 23:37:40 - Wall Power 85 - 23:54:21 - Wall Power Pete
adam closed this issue 2025-12-30 02:19:38 +01:00
Author
Owner

@Peter376 commented on GitHub (Jun 27, 2021):

Here are the energy settings of the unit I used in this test:

BatterySettings1
BatterySettings2
BatterySettings3
BatterySettings4

@Peter376 commented on GitHub (Jun 27, 2021): Here are the energy settings of the unit I used in this test: ![BatterySettings1](https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/84773525/123527023-46912a80-d6dc-11eb-84d9-3c54e0ee7ab6.jpg) ![BatterySettings2](https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/84773525/123527025-4db83880-d6dc-11eb-9320-8d5efeda2c0c.jpg) ![BatterySettings3](https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/84773525/123527028-50b32900-d6dc-11eb-8e59-1a0fd6845fb1.jpg) ![BatterySettings4](https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/84773525/123527030-53158300-d6dc-11eb-828f-e1ad7b15065c.jpg)
Author
Owner

@MatthiasKerbl commented on GitHub (Mar 3, 2022):

Hi @Peter376,

Unfortunately, we could not get AlDente to work reliably in sleep mode due to third-party apps not being able to run when the MacBook is asleep.
That is why we introduced the features "Stop charging while sleeping" and "Disable sleep until charge limit".
You can read more about those features on our blog:

https://apphousekitchen.com/feature-explanation-disable-sleep-until-charge-limit/
https://apphousekitchen.com/feature-explanation-stop-charging-when-sleeping/

Cheers,
Matthias

@MatthiasKerbl commented on GitHub (Mar 3, 2022): Hi @Peter376, Unfortunately, we could not get AlDente to work reliably in sleep mode due to third-party apps not being able to run when the MacBook is asleep. That is why we introduced the features "Stop charging while sleeping" and "Disable sleep until charge limit". You can read more about those features on our blog: https://apphousekitchen.com/feature-explanation-disable-sleep-until-charge-limit/ https://apphousekitchen.com/feature-explanation-stop-charging-when-sleeping/ Cheers, Matthias
Author
Owner

@Peter376 commented on GitHub (Mar 3, 2022):

Dear @MatthiasKerbl
Thank you for your kind reply and for your time looking into this matter. The point I was trying to make, though maybe a tad inarticulately, is that AD - despite not being designed or even being considered unable to operate with lid down - actually does keep our M1 macbooks safe below the boundary set by the user. Free version used for the test.

I am intrigued as to why this could be. Would we need to assume the unit is not in sleep mode despite the lid being closed? As you can see from the log file, the plist I created runs every minute faithfully from the moment the lid was closed.
Another option to consider might be that the operating system is being kept awake by the plist running continuously.

Elaborating a bit on the link you provided about "Disable Sleep until Charge Limit": this option is not available on the free version 2.2. However, as its operation is explained in the article, it certainly sounds like this feature is the go to solution for users that wish to charge their batteries with lid down. I actually wonder why anyone would even consider using the "Stop charging when sleeping" option instead.

Kind regards,
Peter

@Peter376 commented on GitHub (Mar 3, 2022): Dear @MatthiasKerbl Thank you for your kind reply and for your time looking into this matter. The point I was trying to make, though maybe a tad inarticulately, is that AD - despite not being designed or even being considered unable to operate with lid down - actually _does_ keep our M1 macbooks safe below the boundary set by the user. Free version used for the test. I am intrigued as to why this could be. Would we need to assume the unit is not in sleep mode despite the lid being closed? As you can see from the log file, the plist I created runs every minute faithfully from the moment the lid was closed. Another option to consider might be that the operating system is being kept awake by the plist running continuously. Elaborating a bit on the link you provided about "Disable Sleep until Charge Limit": this option is not available on the free version 2.2. However, as its operation is explained in the article, it certainly sounds like this feature is the go to solution for users that wish to charge their batteries with lid down. I actually wonder why anyone would even consider using the "Stop charging when sleeping" option instead. Kind regards, Peter
Author
Owner

@MatthiasKerbl commented on GitHub (Mar 4, 2022):

One theory I have is that the new Apple Silicon MacBooks have the power nap feature activated by default and probably wake up many times during the sleep. When they wake up, AlDente most likely also gets some cpu time and can prohibit charging when the SOC is at the charge limit and when charging is prohibited while the MacBook goes into sleep, it will not continue charging. However, we did not get a too consistent result especially considering older MacBook models. That is why we took a different path with our features but we will keep our eyes open and when we find an improvement, we will definitely update AlDente.

Cheers,
Matthias

@MatthiasKerbl commented on GitHub (Mar 4, 2022): One theory I have is that the new Apple Silicon MacBooks have the power nap feature activated by default and probably wake up many times during the sleep. When they wake up, AlDente most likely also gets some cpu time and can prohibit charging when the SOC is at the charge limit and when charging is prohibited while the MacBook goes into sleep, it will not continue charging. However, we did not get a too consistent result especially considering older MacBook models. That is why we took a different path with our features but we will keep our eyes open and when we find an improvement, we will definitely update AlDente. Cheers, Matthias
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Reference: starred/AlDente-Battery_Care_and_Monitoring#208