AlDente Pro: Better Than macOS Battery Optimization?
Reviews • June 25, 2024
Do you remember when everyone was concerned about the ideal charging limit for their MacBooks? People wanted to know whether keeping their MacBook charged to 100% all the time was safe.
Then, in 2020, all these questions stopped. That was when Apple launched macOS Catalina, which introduced an option called Optimized Battery Charging.
For reference, this feature was designed to enhance the lifetime of your MacBook battery by optimizing the charging routine. In most cases, this feature would restrict the charging capacity to 80% and allow you to charge it fully if needed.
My experience with optimized battery charging
Since then, I have used Optimized Battery Charging on my Mac, iPad, and iPhone.
In the past year, however, I noticed something weird.
Optimized battery charging worked whenever I had almost the same usage patterns. It used to optimize my MacBook Air battery and health was around 95% which is excellent.
But whenever there was a sudden change in my usage pattern, the optimized battery charging feature would wreak havoc.
Within a few months, the battery health dropped to less than 90%.
This was when I started looking for alternative options.
There was always the manual option of unplugging my Mac whenever it hit a specific percentage. But it was cumbersome and unreliable.
But, thanks to fellow MacBook users at r/MacApps, I came across AlDente.
Enter AlDente
AlDente is a charge limiter application designed for Apple MacBooks. By combining machine intelligence with your custom instructions, this utility brings the best of both worlds.
This way, the battery optimization system on your MacBook will work alongside your workflow instead of disrupting it.
AlDente packs many features that I wish Apple had included in macOS. As a result, I ditched the Optimized Battery Charging on macOS for this super-customizable charge limiter.
Here is my experience with AlDente and why you should choose AlDente over macOS defaults.
Getting started with AlDente
Getting started with AlDente is a piece of cake.
- Installation
You can first download the free version from the official website, and it will start in just a second.
For an app that protects your MacBook battery for the long run, AlDente does not take up a lot of space. The installation requires less than 20 MB of storage space, but it is available in 19 languages.
You also have to install the AlDente Helper application for the app to work completely fine.
- Setting Up
When you get started with AlDente, you have a couple of features that you can enable or set up. For instance, you must select your MacBook’s desired charge limit.
I recommend going for a number like 70% or 80% to be on the safe side. This way, you can protect your MacBook battery without compromising a potential emergency scenario. Even if you have to unplug your MacBook and be on the go, 70% or 80% of the battery will be enough.
But keep in mind that you can always change this number based on your usage patterns.
From then on, AlDente will be in charge of the MacBook battery.
You can use this tool to check out the statistics or explore the free and pro features you might need.
Why is AlDente better than macOS defaults?
Here are some features that make AlDente Pro better than the default battery optimization on macOS.
Easy Controls
Unlike the optimized battery charging mode on macOS, AlDente Pro is designed for maximum control, and you can access these controls right from the menu bar.
In my case, I have replaced the system battery indicator with the AlDente indicator. So, with a single click, I can see the desired limit and two quick options for discharge and top-up.
- The Top Up button is handy if I want to be on the go and like my MacBook fully charged. With this button, AlDente will start charging my device until the battery is full or I stop it.
- The Discharge button is useful when you have overcharged the MacBook. AlDente will work with the MagSafe connection to stop charging until the battery reaches the desired limit.
You may also have noticed that I can change the desired battery limit from the menu bar widget.
Advanced Statistics
As you may have noticed, macOS does not provide much information about the battery. Of course, you can go to System Info and find the details through a report. This is a kind of a hassle.
But with AlDente Pro, you can access real-time battery statistics.
For instance, you can check the battery health, design capacity, maximum capacity, and cycle count. It also gives you access to battery specifications, which will tell you the serial number and temperature. You also get electrical specs to help you understand how quickly or slowly your MacBook is being charged.
I can access the Power Flow details from the menu bar widget with the Pro version.
I like this option much better than the details I can access through macOS.
These details are often inaccurate, as many Reddit threads reveal.
Advanced Features
AlDente Pro packs a lot of additional features that can help you manage the charging, sleep, and other aspects of your MacBook battery.
I cannot list all these features here, but I will mention the ones that make most of the difference.
To avoid additional charging, you can set up Al dente Pro to stop charging when the device sleeps. Similarly, you can prevent additional charging when applications are closed.
Regarding sleep management, you always have the option to turn off sleep until the desired charge limit is reached. AlDente Pro does this because it has less control over your Mac when sleep mode is on.
Another feature that many of us would appreciate is the hardware battery percentage. This feature will show you the exact battery percentage of your MacBook battery instead of the synthesized result that macOS may display.
By the way, did you notice those question mark icons next to each feature? These links will help you better understand each feature if you are confused.
Professional Battery Management
With the pro version of this app, you also get a couple of security features that go beyond what most system monitor apps offer. For instance, there is Sailing Mode, which accounts for calculation mistakes while maintaining the battery percentage. Equally important is Heat Protection, which can prevent overcharging issues on your MacBook. Because Al dente Pro can access heat sensors, it will turn off charging when the temperature hits a specific limit.
My favorite feature would be Calibration Mode, which solves several issues I encountered with my MacBook battery health.
As you may know, it’s not safe to keep running your Mac at lower percentages all the time. Instead, you have to calibrate the battery once a month.
Instead of doing it manually, you can let Al dente Pro take care of it. It will charge your MacBook battery to 100%, then discharge it to 15%, back to 100%, and hold the temperature for one hour before discharging it to the desired level.
You also get other options, such as Appearance Customization and MagSafe LED Customization. There is also a Task Scheduler built into AlDente Pro. You can also use it to trigger some tasks as you wish.
Customization
Alongside all these professional battery management features, you also get a pretty cool battery icon interface on the menu bar. Here are a few things I love about it.
- First, you have complete control over the menu bar icon. You can decide whether to show the percentage and choose the icon style from many options.
- Second, a pop-up window shows the battery percentage and other statistics about the battery. You can customize what appears in the pop-up window as well.
These features are great if you want to replace the default battery icon with something that can double as a battery monitor.
The Power Flow interface is also great at times. You get a more intuitive representation of how power works within your MacBook. For instance, when charging the MacBook, AlDente Pro will show how much power goes to the battery and how much to the device.
What could be better?
I don’t mean to suggest that Al dente Pro is a perfect tool. It has room for improvement, particularly regarding the technicalities of installing and uninstalling the app.
For instance, if you simply uninstall Al dente Pro while it is set to a lower power limit, your MacBook battery may have trouble reaching a higher limit and discharging correctly. Therefore, you must always disable and increase the power limit to 100% before uninstalling the application.
This point is well explained on their website. But having this option directly within the main user interface would be nice.
Availability and pricing
Here is something else that I love about AlDente.
AlDente is currently available for macOS; there is no information on other versions yet.
You should have a Mac running macOS 11 Big Sur or later to use this app.
You have two options when it comes to the pricing of AlDente.
- The AlDente free version offers the charge limiter and discharge features.
- But if you need all the features I discussed in the review, you should get AlDente Pro, which will set you back $12.
- You can also go for a lifetime purchase, which you can get for $25.
Alternatively, you can get AlDente Pro through Setapp, which will cost you $10 monthly but will give you other $240 applications.
If you do not need those advanced features, you do not have to pay for them. The essential functions for discharging and topping up the battery still give you better control over your MacBook battery than what is built into macOS.
FAQs
- Is AlDente a safe app?
AlDente is an Apple notarized app that is completely safe to use. It does not ask for too many permissions or make system-level changes. You always have the option to uninstall the app and its helper in a single click.
- Is AlDente good for M1/M2/M3 Mac?
AlDente and AlDente Pro are good for M1/M2/M3 Mac models because they can better optimize the battery situation accordingly. You also have better control over the battery, even in the clamshell mode.
The final call
I don’t know if you know this, but I spend hours each week searching for great apps to recommend to my readers and friends. Aldente Pro is one of those apps I can endorse without any doubt.
As I mentioned, the free version has no strings attached, allowing you to see how the basic features work.
Only if you need additional features, such as Sailing Mode or Calibration Mode, would you need to upgrade to the pro version. I believe the investment is worth it.
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