Miscellaneous laptop discussions : Extending the life of my laptop's battery
- 3/20/09 3:10 PM
Extending the life of my laptop's battery
by DEJ68 - 3/14/09 9:29 AM In reply to: Extending the life of my laptop's battery by kdkwilliamsWith all due respect to you and all the other well intentioned people trying to help this gentleman with his battery question, all batteries and all computers are not constructed the same therefore there is no ONE answer that will meet the requirements of each person seeking an answer to their question.Observe carefully how many conflicting answers there are in this forum and each believes his/her answer is the right one. Can that be so?
Having about 40 years working as an engineer in electronic research and development I have observed that far to many people are willing to take the advice of a stranger instead of going to the manufacturer and obtaining the best answer for their application.
We live in a very complex and highly technical period where new material composition of items in the home, office or technical environment is different although identified by the same name. If you want the best out of life and save time and money, read the manufacturers instructions when you purchase any product and follow them. They are usually correct unless reliable test data proves otherwise.
My recommendation is not popular these days because people want someone else to do the work for them. Remember when we used to go to the dictionary when we weren't sure of spelling or word usage? When in doubt go to the source.
Laptop Battery Life
by uniquelyjewell - 3/14/09 9:05 AM In reply to: Extending the life of my laptop's battery by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I was told by a Dell Computer Tech yesterday...The battery only has so many "Starts". It does not matter if you unplug your computer when you have 20% or 80% battery. It all counts as a "Start" He said the best way to improve your battery...if you are using it with your power adapter, remove the battery totally. Once you start to let it charge, let it charge completely. Do not plug it in until part way thru charging. Set the % to about 10% and then when it gets to that 10%, use the power adapter.
It makes sense, so I am following that guideline.
Laptop Battery Life
by DEJ68 - 3/14/09 9:41 AM In reply to: Laptop Battery Life by uniquelyjewellYou say it makes sense so you follow his advice. You are assuming the tech was technically accurate but you don't know unless you are more educated than he is on the subject.
Is is best for you to follow the recommendations of others because IT SOUNDS GOOD? Wouldn't you be in a better position if you knew he was right? There are well informed techs and there are not so well informed techs just like every other profession, so if you ask for advice don't feel intimidated by asking your advisor for the source of his/her data. A confident, well informed person without an ego problem who cares for your wellbeing will be happy to provide it to you.
Re: laptop battery
by jeff6500 - 3/14/09 9:06 AM In reply to: Extending the life of my laptop's battery by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Apple has figured it out. Battery last 7 to 8 hours.
Laptop batteries.
by kingsley-lewis - 3/14/09 9:07 AM In reply to: Extending the life of my laptop's battery by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Set your cut off level in power management at 75% as you should never take a lithium ion battery below a DOD. (depth of discharge)of 75% ,if you want to preserve its life, also recharge as soon after use as you can and whenever possible run on mains power.
Battery Life
by jack allinson - 3/14/09 11:14 AM In reply to: Extending the life of my laptop's battery by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I have a Li battery ( now 2 years old ), and can still get ~2 hours use out of it.
Having had my fingers burnt using Ni/Cd, caused by my bad practice, I would recommend Li.
My 1st Ni/Cd lasted 6 weeks !!!, and the 2nd less than a year.
It is best practise, whatever the type of battery, to take it off charge when 100% charge is reached.
Set the low battery alarm @ ~10%, and do not recharge the battery until the alarm is activated.
This regime is essential for Ni/Cd, not so for Li, although even Li do go off with age.
Battery Life
by pkarirose - 3/14/09 11:23 AM In reply to: Extending the life of my laptop's battery by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Ultimately it depends on what where and how you use your laptop.
I remember reading in a cnet post somewhere about 6 years ago to only buy a laptop that you can remove your battery from and work on ac power and since i pretty much only use it at home its always on ac power where ever i can.
Even if i go out i take power cable with me and charge it or run it on ac power at my destination.
only put my battery in to charge it or use it at least once a week and i always will discharge it at least once a month.
Have lost 2% of the total battery life in 3 years.
am running HP pavillion dv9007
Battery life
by m-miracle - 3/14/09 11:27 AM In reply to: Extending the life of my laptop's battery by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I always recommend that if you start using the battery finish using it on the battery, as you have found out batteries can need replacing regularly if not looked after properly, I assume you read the manual that came with the laptop.
A battery has a hourly rate of say 2 hours when new, if you only use the battery for 1 hour then plug it in the mains all the time, eventually the battery life will be shortened to 1 hour, same will happen if you only use the battery 30 minutes eventually it will end up with a battery life of 30 minutes.
Hope this helps Tony
P.S. All rechargeables are the same Mobile phones etc.
Extending the life of your laptop's battery
by HenryBeitz - 3/14/09 11:29 AM In reply to: Extending the life of my laptop's battery by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
When you get your new battery connect it to your charging adapter and leave it to charge without using the laptop for a good 24 hours.
Never store your computer for an extended period with the battery in it. Also ensure that the battery is charged before you store it - all batteries will lose their charge gradually when stored. Batteries should be stored in a cool, dry place. If the battery has not been used for a week then charge it for a few hours before using your laptop.
If you have a docking station and it is plugged in to a wall outlet then remove the battery from the computer when using the docked laptop.
Periodically, say once a month, use the laptop, on battery only, until it is completely discharged. By all means plug it in when you get the warning message, but leave it plugged in after you shut down the computer.
I personally have always bought a second battery. I husband both batteries in the same way and know that I will never be left high and dry should one of them fail. This also allows me to have a very long battery life away from electrical outlets.
Some laptops make it possible to recalibrate the batteries by doing a cycle of - full charge - full discharge - full charge. This works well and does seem to restore the batteries.
With some laptops different capacity batteries are available. If purchasing a second battery I recommend buying the one with highest capacity.
Setting the Power Options correctly is also necessary. How you set these depends on what you use your laptop for. Unless you are constantly using data from the hard drive have it shut down after 3 minutes. On battery operation shut the screen off in as short a time as makes sense for how you use the laptop. Also enable hibernation and set the laptop to hibernate shortly after the screen is turned off. You may want to have different Power Options for use on the road and when docked.
Henry Beitz - BYTES by Beitz
EXTENDING BATTERY LIFE to Raji
by GEO2003 - 3/14/09 12:15 PM In reply to: Extending the life of my laptop's battery by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Hi,
First I have to mention that my laptop is a Dell 3 years old packed to the gills with hardware.
When I got the laptop, it would give me 2 hours of life on battery, today it gives me only 1 and a half.
That is not bad for a 3 year old laptop.
I am not going to repeat in lengh what many are suggesting here, but I will suggest something else although I have not read all the messages posted so I hope I am not repeating.
1-Use AC as much as you can while you are near a power outlet. I personally don't take the battery out of the laptop because for me is to much of a hassle but it is recomended.
2-Most post I have read are refering to the battery mechanics and how to keep the battery itself last longer through this means.
3-In addition to addressing the battery itself. I would recomend that you create a power saving profile when you are using the battery.
You should understand that doing intensive task like playing a DVD and playing games or music playing or editing will drain your battery quickly.
You should leave most of this task for when you are plugged in. No one is saying don't have fun with your laptop, but these tasks will drain your battery and that is just the nature of the beast.
I don't know which operating system you have, If you have XP, the power profile is very limited.
However if you have Vista, you can easily switch between profiles by clicking the BATTERY ICON on the Taskbar.
The 3 plans available can be further tweak to save you battery. To further tweak the plan, click on the battery icon:
-Select More Power options.
-Select any battery plan and click on Change Plan Settings.
-Select Change Advance Power Settings.
Here, no matter what plan you use, you can modify the:
ON BATTERY AND PLUG IN SETTINGS.
Expand each tree, for any On Battery settings, try lowering everything you can, for example, you don't need the CPU to be at full 100 percent when on battery, depending on what you are doing. If you are just cruzing the net put it at 35 or lower.
Another example would be your LCD screen, you can lower the power futher to a confortable illumination so long as you set it at a confortable level for you.
I know that you have already 3 plans to select from in Vista, but my point is that you can tweak it further to save battery.
You can tweak one plan for performance when you're connected to AC and another for when you are on battery power.
As soon as you disconnect from AC you should remember to change the plan to better suit your needs on what you are doing from that point on.
This is how I have extended my battery life this long.
I hope this helps you, it has help me a lot.
Geo
full recharge
by frollo17 - 3/14/09 12:30 PM In reply to: Extending the life of my laptop's battery by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
It's sometimes easy to boost your battery life by fully discharging the battery and then recharging it to the maximum manufacture recommendation (read your manual, usually around 4 hours)
Fully drain it before you recharge it
by Tech.Wizard - 3/14/09 12:32 PM In reply to: Extending the life of my laptop's battery by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
About monthly, fully drain your battery before you recharge it.
If that doesn't work, buy a replacement battery and fully charge it before first use. Then follow the instructions above.
when you charge the battery
by ducklady63 - 3/14/09 12:37 PM In reply to: Extending the life of my laptop's battery by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Like any of these batteries (mobile phone, laptop etc) you need to prime the battery by charging it and then letting it run right down several times at the beginning. Then try and charge it up and let it run down instead of trickle charging all the time. My guess is that you are using it on mains most of the time and only a little on battery. Try using it on battery and connect to mains when it tells you is running out of juice and then charge it right up.
Extending the life of my laptop's battery
by IrocJuno - 3/14/09 12:41 PM In reply to: Extending the life of my laptop's battery by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
i would not use both at the same time when you use the cord detach the battery that helps preserve its battery life. also manage your power options that helps you with maxing its potencial.also usb devices such as wireless mouse... pendrives etc.. eats away your battery up, hope this helps .
Work the Battery
by cedbenson - 3/14/09 12:47 PM In reply to: Extending the life of my laptop's battery by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
My experience is the more you use these types of batteries, the longer they last. If you never use the battery, it will evenually just drain itself. If there's anything else, I would like to hear it.
An example. I've had my laptop for 13 months and still get a good two hours out of it, cause I was always unplugging it and letting the battery work harder.
ed benson
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