Filed under: Utilities, Macintosh, Freeware, Beta
SmartSleep 1.0 Beta 1: Your Macbook or Macbook Pro will sleep smarter
by Simon Kerbel Feb 27th 2008
SmartSleep 1.0 is a Mac preference pane designed for the MacBook or MacBook Pro that will help your computer get the most from its Da Vincian cat naps. SmartSleep sets a schedule for your Mac laptop's sleep patterns: when your battery has a high level, SmartSleep sets the computer to sleep only (sans hibernation). If your battery goes below 20% (the default setting, user customizable) then SmartSleep will tell your machine to sleep and hibernate. If your battery sneaks below 5%, you should really find an outlet -- but in case you can't, SmartSleep will set the computer to hibernate only (thus preserving the battery completely).
SmartSleep also allows you to choose any one sleep setting as the default, useful if you want your computer to always sleep and hibernate, or hibernate only, etc...
Now some of you might be asking: if it ain't broke, why try to fix it?
SmartSleep was created to free the user from certain limitations of each individual sleep setting. If your computer is set to sleep only, for example, you cannot change the battery, because the battery is needed to keep the contents of the memory. If your computer is set to sleep and hibernate, there might be a significant delay before your computer actually goes to sleep because the contents of the memory are being saved to disk. SmartSleep maximizes the effectiveness of each setting to give you the fastest response time based upon your computer's current power state.
SmartSleep is a free download, Mac OS X only, and is best suited for MacBooks and MacBook Pros (trust us, you won't get much out of the program if you're on an iMac or Mac Mini).
[via Softpedia]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Big John said 10:06PM on 2-27-2008
Ignoring the fact that hibernate can take a toll on a battery, of course (intensive process vs. just a sleep).
I can see how this would be useful to those folks that actually do swap out batteries (though I've never met one!)
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Just_a_guy said 7:14PM on 2-28-2008
This will help me so much because I have long commutes, and hours where I don't use my computer. By putting it into hibernation mode, I can use a lot less battery power. Plus. If I do this, then I could buy another battery, and continue to use my computer the way I want to on airplanes! This is awesome!
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TjL said 10:03PM on 2-29-2008
> trust us, you won't get much out of the program if you're
> on an iMac or Mac Mini
Actually I just installed this on my iMac (and it worked).
Why? Because I like to turn the machine off at night, but I hate having to go through the initial cold boot in the morning, login, wait for apps to launch, open documents, etc.
"So just use 'sleep'!" someone will say.
Well, if my iMac wasn't so jittery, I would. I've never met such a light sleeper (well, except for my wife). If I walk next to it, it will wake up. Which wakes up the external drive. And fetches my email. Did I remember to mute the computer, or will I hear my "New Mail" chime?
This is a perfect solution. It takes only moments longer than waking from sleep, and doesn't put extra wear/tear on the computer/drives.
Only downside is that when it is Hibernated, an iPhone plugged into the iMac will not charge. I have an AC charger I usually use at night anyway.
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