Low Power Mode on Mac is not what you think it is!
Do you know how Low Power Mode works? I will explain you what it is actually doing, how and when is good to turn it on and also if you have already watched my video on YouTube here is the promised shortcut script:
TOOGLE LOW POWER MODE SHORTCUT
Low Power Mode has remained a handy feature for iOS users for a long time now. It automatically reduces the number of internal system processes that consume significant power, for example animations in order to prolong the time your iPhone stays on.
With macOS Monterey Apple brought the ,,same” Mode to the Mac. But it works differently as compared to an iPhone.
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What is Low Power Mode
First let me explain you what this mean. Low Power Mode is an Apple-specific term for saving battery life on your Apple devices. It’s done by lowering processes that tend to use the most power.
It’s not only apple specific, other devices and platforms have similar things. If you are windows user or have and android you might know term as “Battery Saver Mode.”
Different devices from different manufacturers have unique methods to prolong battery life. And as name of the channel appleonlineacademy suggests, we will talk about apple devices now.
Low Power Mode on an iPhone
On iPhone, Low Power Mode is suggested to be enabled when the charge in the battery is reduced to 20 percent. And it will also turn it off automatically when you recharge your iPhone.
An indication that it is enabled on iOS is the yellow battery icon. That makes it very clear.
But it make sense according to me. If you need to save battery you focus only on what you are actually doing, you don’t need any background downloads or app refreshing. It basically stop processes which you don’t need at the moment but doesn’t really affect performance.
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Low Power Mode on Mac
However it’s quite different story on the Mac.
Low Power Mode on a Mac reduces the system clock speed and decreases display brightness. It does not extend as far as to reduce animations and email fetch. It doesn’t even disable the “Hey, Siri” command as it does on the iPhone.
That said, you might notice reduced performance on your Mac when Low Power Mode is enabled. So make sure to turn it off if you plan on doing any processor-heavy task.
Interestingly, this saving mode is also available when your Mac is plugged into a power source. According to Apple, in this case, it reduces power consumption.
This is especially helpful if you keep your MacBook plugged into an external display at all times. It takes a lot of power and the displays will work perfectly fine on Low power Mode.
Another big differences on macOS Monterey as opposed to iOS. Is that mac does not notify or suggest you turning on Low Power Mode at all. You will need to enable it manually when you think it’s a right moment.
There is also no clear indication that this is enabled on your Mac. The note is only visible when you click the battery icon in the Menu Bar and see the words “Low Power Mode is Enabled.”
On iOS, the battery icon turns yellow, on macOS Monterey, it doesn’t change the colour unfortunately, so it’s very easy to forget that you are still in saving mode.
When should you turn on Low Power Mode on a Mac
The obvious purpose of Low Power Mode on your iPhone, iPad and Mac is to prolong the battery life of these devices so that you can get more usage out of them.
If you find your Mac is running out of juice turning this will push your Mac to stay up a little longer; at least until you can grab hold of a charger.
Unfortunately there are no suggestions on when you should enable enable Low Power Mode. It’s purely based on your choice and judgment. If you are halfway through the day and know you will need your Mac for much longer you can enable Low Power Mode even though it has an 80 percent of battery remaining.
And as I mentioned before you can even turn it on when you are plugged in to reduce the power consumption. It might be useful while using external displays or when you don’t want to heat up your Mac too much, especial these air models without the active cooling.
So Another time to use Low power mode might simply be in a hot summer days. These devices tend to overheat on high temperatures and lovering the initial consumption might prevent that.
How to turn on Low Power Mode on your Mac
Let me show you where to turn on low power mode. I guess you can find it yourself but the Low Power Mode toggle is rooted quite deep inside macOS Preferences and is easy to miss.
Instead of diving into system preferences I prefer to Click the Battery icon in the Menu Bar and select Battery Preferences here. It will take me directly to the tab I need.
Here in the sidebar click on battery or the Power adapter. On both you will find the checkbox that enables “Low Power Mode.”
If you don’t see the option here check the availability of your device. Because low Power Mode on macOS Monterey is only available for certain MacBook models, Generally all the devices from Early 2016 and later.
Unfortunately there is no Easier way to turn it off and you again need to go to system preferences, battery and manually deselect it. Well isn’t it? As I mentioned in the beginning there is a shortcut created by a Reddit user that uses a shell script. So follow the link and just click on the Toggle Low Power Shortcut and add it to your Mac. It works well.
What is the final thought of the whole video? I am using low power mode for a long time on my iPhone already and it’s handy to have similar thing on the Mac as well. Especially With MacBooks becoming more capable and power-hungry, a Low Power Mode is here to save your battery and lower the power consumption to prolong now only the battery life but the life of your Mac in general.
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