The side effect of the new MacBook Pro battery life fracas was the loss of the battery time remaining indicator. Apple removed in the macOS Sierra 10.12.2 update because it just wasn’t providing sane, real world numbers for the newer devices. Now, you’re only left with the percentage stat, just like iOS.
While Apple might not think so, the time remaining stat is still useful for a lot of users. Yes, we know it’s an estimate, thank you very much Apple. Thankfully, while the indicator from the menu bar drop-down is gone, the feature and the API for third party apps is still there in the OS. So there are a couple ways to get it back.
1. Battery Health 2 (Free)
Battery Health 2 is one of the best battery monitoring utilities for the Mac. It tells you all about the health and charging status of the battery. It also has the estimated time remaining stat.
After installing, when you click the menu bar icon you’ll see a detailed drop down menu. There’s an entire estimated battery remaining section here where you’ll get detailed estimates for different kinds of activities (like if you continue what you’re doing right now, or if you’re watching a movie).
Click on the gear icon and then select Preferences. From the bottom, you can switch to showing the time remaining in the menu bar icon instead of the percentage.
Download: Battery Health 2
2. Battery Monitor (Free)
Battery Monitor is another free option. It’s a minimal option compared to Battery Health 2. The app has a much more polished design and visuals. There’s also a Notification Centre widget.
When you click on the menu bar icon, you’ll see a short drop down with visuals for how much batter is left. In the row below, the last circle is for the estimated time remaining.
Click on the menu icon to open the app’s preferences. From here select Menu bar settings -> Show time remaining. This will show the time remaining in the menu bar.
Download: Battery Monitor
Battery Time Indicator ($0.99)
If you don’t want any of the battery health and status stuff and just want a simple icon that shows the remaining time in the menu bar, just get the Battery Time Indicator app.
Download: Battery Time Indicator
Remove OS Battery Indicator
Now that you have the battery indicator in the menu bar that shows the estimated time remaining, you might want to remove the OS’s default battery indicator. To do that, go to System Preferences, select Energy Saver and uncheck Show battery status in menu bar.
How Accurate Is the Time Remaining Stat for You?
I consider this stat purely as an estimate and I still find it really useful. Especially when I’m just doing work in 2-3 applications I usually do. Looking at the number is helpful for my brain. Ok, I have about 3 hours of charge left if I keep writing and browsing. The percentage metric just doesn’t do that for me.
What about you? How accurate is the time remaining estimate for you? How much do you rely on it? Share with us in the comments below.
