Dissecting Apple's new eight hour battery

Removable batteries are a kludge, not a feature. The only reason you want a removable battery is that a single battery’s life is too short.

The MacBook Pro 17-inch is only the world's second notebook computer to ship with a non-removable battery – the first was the MacBook Air. Only Apple could ship a notebook with a fixed battery and actually try to convince consumers that it's a good idea.

Apple claims that the space saved by removing the latches, doors and support structure required for a removable battery allows them 40 percent more room for cells, translating into 40 percent more capacity. Further, Apple claims that the new battery will last for 8 hours, can last for 1000 recharge cycles and has a five year life.

Hell, they even had me drinking the Kool Aid after I watched the video by Apple's battery engineers during Phil Schiller's Macworld Expo keynote address. You can watch the battery video by clicking on the "breakthrough battery" link on Apple's MacBook Pro product page.

What do you think about the MBP17's new battery design? Is eight hours of run time fact or fiction?