A2251 MacBook Pro 13" Charging issue

[Stephen]

Hello old friends,
I have a customer that came in with a A2251 MacBook Pro 13" DFU mode revive works, DFU works, battery is in Normal state checking the computer, however it only charges up to 65% then it stops and charges again and stops and charges again every 5 seconds. It disconnects from the cable (we are using an OEM 61W and OEM cable) question is being that the Battery is in Normal state (Not service recommend or replace now or soon) could this be a faulty board issue or? Would like your expertise, I am leaning towards replacing the battery to see if it persists but before we do that I need to confirm if it is INDEED that battery or a board issue, hoping it is just a faulty battery, the battery has 13 cycles.

[mon2]

I would,

1) test with a beefier power supply @ 100W (Anker or another known good adapter brand - check Amazon and their reviews) - be sure to pair with a 100W rated type C cable with PD support. By specification, if marked at 100W or more, there will be an e-marker chip inside of the Type C cable.

2) then test with another battery (Amazon so you can return it if not required).

PS: Is the battery the Apple (OEM) original or another brand/replacement?

[Stephen]

I would,

1) test with a beefier power supply @ 100W (Anker or another known good adapter brand - check Amazon and their reviews) - be sure to pair with a 100W rated type C cable with PD support. By specification, if marked at 100W or more, there will be an e-marker chip inside of the Type C cable.

2) then test with another battery (Amazon so you can return it if not required).

PS: Is the battery the Apple (OEM) original or another brand/replacement?

Could you link me to the Amazon PD Cable you use? I see the 100w ANKER, have it in the cart, but the cable I am curious about? Could you link me to the ones you use on AMAZON? I am always opposed to not using Genuine but of course for testing purposes yes. Also the Battery is an OEM Original Battery.

Nevermind I found the cable

[Stephen]

I would,

1) test with a beefier power supply @ 100W (Anker or another known good adapter brand - check Amazon and their reviews) - be sure to pair with a 100W rated type C cable with PD support. By specification, if marked at 100W or more, there will be an e-marker chip inside of the Type C cable.

2) then test with another battery (Amazon so you can return it if not required).

PS: Is the battery the Apple (OEM) original or another brand/replacement?

Just received my Anker 100w and the PD cable as well, computer is charging up currently without disconnecting. What would be the cause of this if the computer is charging normally? The original 61 oem brick and oem cable is not charging his computer up for a certain amount of time then disconnects and reconnects to charge. Any reason this is? Battery is still in normal operation. Any feedback would be appreciated.

Battery is still climbing in charge, so something is off? Could it be the charger?

I am most likely going to rule the battery is faulty. EVEN THOUGH, it states it is in Normal operation. Which blows my mind because no doubt Service Recommended I would know right off the bat the battery is bad, however considering its at 68% and not climbing but its still charging is telling me the battery is faulty?

Update: The battery charging is disconnecting and reconnecting with the Anker 100w and PD cable. Ruling this is a battery issue but need a second opinion

[mon2]

How old is this laptop?

Based on the # of charge cycles, the battery 'should' be ok. Can you try to get Apple to cover the battery under warranty or is this box out of warranty? They will probably wash their hands of any service since the laptop has been opened.

I would certainly test with another battery if the battery gauge is stuck during the charging process. Be sure to also check the voltage to ground of each and every pin on the battery connector. This is to confirm that the SMBUS SDA & SCL lines are not defective (due to ESD transients which will take out the ESD diodes which will nuke the communication lines to the SMBUS host controller).

[Stephen]

How old is this laptop?

Based on the # of charge cycles, the battery 'should' be ok. Can you try to get Apple to cover the battery under warranty or is this box out of warranty? They will probably wash their hands of any service since the laptop has been opened.

I would certainly test with another battery if the battery gauge is stuck during the charging process. Be sure to also check the voltage to ground of each and every pin on the battery connector. This is to confirm that the SMBUS SDA & SCL lines are not defective (due to ESD transients which will take out the ESD diodes which will nuke the communication lines to the SMBUS host controller).

There is no Apple warranty on this particular one, since it was way past over due. This is a customer purchase and it's a first time seeing the battery do this, it charges fine then stops charging up to 68%. I will swap out the battery first since we have some spares, for all we know this battery has a defective part on it, not worth fighting it if we have a few spares.

[Stephen]

Upon inspection, we opened the case and noticed the new battery had a swollen cell, it is odd that this did not trigger the service recommend message. We swapped the battery out and all is well.