u/StandardComparison89

Hello Everyone!

I own a 2019 16" MacBook Pro (5500M/32GB/1TB) running Sequoia 15.7.7 that I currently own and use, and I will preface this by saying that it fulfills my needs just fine in terms of performance and daily use for my own personal workflow.

However, it is due for a battery replacement soon. As stated in the screenshot, my battery is nearing 80%, and the battery life isn't stellar. Unplugged at 100%, I might get around 4 hours of usage before it gets below 10-20% which is not great for travel, or even use around the house. 😬

I believe that the need for replacement isn't immediate, it should take another 3-6 months before I need to replace it, (right around September which happens to be my birthday as well).

But the real issue is that a battery replacement directly from Apple is NOT cheap. For a nearly 7 year old MacBook, that Apple themselves are phasing out, it will cost $250-$300 for a battery swap.

Granted, it is OEM, and as a subsequent result Apple will not only swap out just the battery, but the entire top case assembly itself. Essentially, I will not only get a new battery, but along with it comes a keyboard, touch bar, touch ID sensor, etc.

But the price is just not right in my opinion. Admittedly, you can get one of my similarly spec'd MacBooks for around the same price (not recommending it, but just to throw it out there).

So, I was navigating around, and after some research and digging, I have come up with three options to choose from:

Option 1: Pay Apple $250, and keep the MacBook for as long as it's supported. MacOS 26 is the last major OS update on my MacBook, and it should be supported up until Fall 2028, before becoming obsolete.

Option 2: Replace the battery myself. Cheaper, at roughly $70-$80, but with exponentially more risk and time commitment. (I do not have experience tearing down MacBooks, and not super comfortable with the idea of it either).

Option 3: Buy a whole "new" MacBook for around the same price, (such as a base model MacBook Air M1), and turn the 16" MacBook Pro into a full-time, docked, windows laptop. So basically, use the MacBook Air M1 for travel, school, and day to day tasks, and resort to using the 16" for more Windows oriented/office tasks.

If I go along with Option 3, I'll keep both MacBooks until late 2027-early 2028 before I save up enough money for a new big MacBook purchase, replacing these two in their entirety.

I am open to more options and/or suggestions from you guys.

Thanks a lot for your time and help!

Current Battery Health/Specs.