With macOS Catalina 10.15.5, Apple is bringing Battery Health Management features to the Mac for the first time, introducing the functionality on Macs that have Thunderbolt 3 ports.
Apple has shared details on Battery Health Management with sites like Six Colors, TechCrunch, and The Verge, giving us a look at what to expect when macOS Catalina 10.15.5 launches to the public.
Battery Health Management is designed to extend the overall lifespan of a Mac notebook by reducing the rate of chemical aging. The feature will analyze the battery health of the laptop and its charging pattern, and in some cases, will preserve battery health by not charging a MacBook to full capacity as this can reduce battery life.
When a Mac is used plugged in and the battery is kept full for the most part, the Battery Health Management feature will kick in and it will stop short of a full charge.
Apple has been using Battery Health Management features in its iPhones for years now, and when the functionality was initially introduced, it caused an uproar as Apple was not clear about its implementation.
In iPhones, the battery management features reduce processor speed at times of peak usage to prevent an iPhone with reduced battery capacity from shutting down. The Mac feature works differently, and will instead limit charging to full in some cases.
Battery Health Management can be disabled by checking the new Battery Health Management option in the Energy Saver section of the System Preferences app once macOS Catalina 10.15.5 has been installed.
The Battery Health Management feature is new in the second macOS Catalina 10.15.5 beta and is limited to developers at the current time. It will be available to all users when macOS Catalina 10.15.5 is released.
