MacBook battery draining while plugged in
Posted: Mon Oct 27, 2025 17:23
Just got a new 14" M4 Max. While running my effects-heavy composition, the battery slowly drains down to zero while plugged in to the original charger. Apple engineers blame the software, which I find to be ridiculous. The hardware shouldn't allow it to pull more power than it can take from its charger...
The 14" comes with the 96w brick, which in System Report pulls 94w. I tried purchasing the larger 140w charger, but still only 94w is drawn, and the battery continues to drain.
I'm considering biting the bullet and trading this in for the 16" (still within my return period), which comes with the 140w brick and thus I *hope* is able to pull more power, but curious if anyone with a 16" has also had this issue.
I saw in the forums another user had this issue with the 2019 Intel 16", which I was previously using and never had this happen with unless I was on an under spec cable.
The 14" comes with the 96w brick, which in System Report pulls 94w. I tried purchasing the larger 140w charger, but still only 94w is drawn, and the battery continues to drain.
I'm considering biting the bullet and trading this in for the 16" (still within my return period), which comes with the 140w brick and thus I *hope* is able to pull more power, but curious if anyone with a 16" has also had this issue.
I saw in the forums another user had this issue with the 2019 Intel 16", which I was previously using and never had this happen with unless I was on an under spec cable.