Battery Woes & Coconuts

Why is it that all laptop batteries eventually die?

Whenever I charge my MacBook Pro completely, the battery meter stops at 98%, and the battery says it's charged. I'd like to think this just means that I get 2% less charge than I used to, but the reality is far less appealing. When I unplug the juice, my laptop informs me I've got 1:33 to live. I used to get at least 2:30.

I know it's a reality that laptop batteries behave like this, and I'm aware that nothing short of a breakthrough in chemistry is likely to change this, but what I would like to see is some kind of transparency about the state of the battery - an advanced battery meter if you like. Something that shows the theoretical battery capacity, the charge attained last time it was full and it's current level. The meter could also show the number of 'charge' cycles the battery has been through to provide a view of the likely useful life of the battery.

I guess it would look a little like this:

Thankfully, someone's gone to the trouble of doing exactly that. CoconutBattery provides all of the above information at a glance, allowing you to understand exactly the position you're in. Which in my case is that I'm the proud owner of one of the oldest MacBook Pro's on the market (29 months? Has it really been that long?), and its battery is getting a bit weary. Perhaps it's time to buy a new one...