After a period of time that will vary depending on use and settings, you may find that your battery will power your device for only a couple of hours, requiring you to charge more frequently. Rechargeable batteries have a limited number of charge cycles and may eventually need to be replaced.

You may choose to replace your battery while it still has a little juice left or wait until the battery does not hold enough energy to power your device at all to replace it. As with all batteries, proper disposal is essential. Check with your local waste or recycling company to determine the disposal method for your area. Putting any battery directly in the trash harms the environment.

iPod Owners

Your one-year warranty includes replacement coverage for a defective battery. You can extend your coverage to two years from the date of your iPod purchase with the AppleCare Protection Plan for iPod. Apple disposes of your battery in an environmentally friendly manner.

iPhone Owners

Your one-year warranty includes replacement coverage for a defective battery. You can extend your coverage to two years from the date of your iPhone purchase with the AppleCare Protection Plan for iPhone. Apple disposes of your battery in an environmentally friendly manner.

Notebook Owners

Your one-year warranty includes replacement coverage for a defective battery. You can extend your replacement coverage for a defective battery to three years from the date of your notebook purchase with the AppleCare Protection Plan. However, the AppleCare Protection Plan for notebook computers does not cover batteries that have failed or are exhibiting diminished capacity except when the failure or diminished capacity is the result of a manufacturing defect. Apple offers a battery replacement service for MacBook Air and all MacBook Pro notebooks with built-in batteries. You can purchase replacement batteries for late models of Apple notebooks directly from the Apple Store.

If you own an older model PowerBook or iBook, several third parties offer compatible batteries and Apple authorised service centres can order batteries for models up to seven years old.