If you plan to go out with your MacBook and want to make sure the battery life will last you all day, you can turn on Low Power Mode. Low Power Mode automatically reduces screen brightness and system clock speed, reducing the amount of power used and saving battery life.
We’ve shown you how to enable Low Power Mode in macOS Monterey. Apple redesigned System Settings in macOS Ventura, but Low Power Mode is still there. Here’s how to activate it.
- Time to complete: 2 minutes
- Hardware required: macOS Ventura
Battery System Parameters
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Open System Parameters in the Apple menu, then in the window that appears, scroll down the left column until you see Battery. Click on it.
Low Power Mode Settings
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At the top of the main section of the window is the Low Power Mode setting. You have the choice between four options in the context menu:
- Never: The MacBook is operating normally.
- Always: The MacBook works with the brightness and the system clock turned down a bit, whether the MacBook is plugged in or not.
- Battery only: When MacBook is not plugged in, brightness and system clock are reduced. When the MacBook is plugged in, the MacBook runs at normal brightness and clock speed.
- Only on AC adapter: When MacBook is plugged in, brightness and system clock are reduced. When the MacBook is not plugged in, the MacBook runs at normal brightness and clock speed.
Select the option you want, then close System Settings.
Low power mode
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When the Mac is in low-power mode, the battery system setting shows when it’s on and when it boots up.
Check Low Power Mode
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The quick way to check the status of Low Power Mode in macOS Ventura requires the battery icon to appear in the menu bar. If it’s there, you can click on the con and see if Low Power Mode is enabled.
If the battery is not in the menu bar, you can bring it up by going to System Parameters > Control centerthen scroll to Battery section and flip the switch to Show in menu bar.
If you want to enable or disable Low Power Mode quickly, you need to install a third-party utility. Developer Jordi Bruin has created a menu bar utility called Cooldown that can do this – and it’s free.
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