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How to Extend Laptop Battery Life

Laptop Expert — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 18:22:53 +0000

When you need to work or stay connected on the go, there is nothing more useful than owning a laptop. However, this will not do you much good if your laptop battery only lasts 30 minutes. The average laptop battery lasts between three and four hours, but this varies greatly based on how the owner uses their laptop. If you want to learn how to extend laptop battery life, you have come to the right place. You can use these five helpful tips every time you use your laptop to noticeably extend the life of the battery.

The first tip is to alter your power settings. This can make a huge difference, which many people forget about. If your laptop is running a system like Windows XP, Vista or Seven, you should have power/performance options. When you need your battery to last longer, put the setting to power saver instead of high performance.

Next, take it easy on the lights and sounds. Unless you are working outside in the bright light, you should turn down the brightness of your screen, an easy way to know how to extend laptop battery life. You might not consider the battery power required to play sounds, but unless it is truly necessary, it is best to turn off sound altogether to extend the battery’s ability to power your computer.

Another tip is to disable themes and screen savers. A standard look will be far less taxing to your battery, even if it does not look as cool. Themes and screen savers are purely aesthetic. Back when monitors could have images burned on them when left on one screen for too long, screen savers prevented this. Its popularity never died out even though they are completely unnecessary today.

The fourth tip is to maintain your hard drive. By defragmenting the files on your hard drive, you will conserve space and your processer will work better, faster, and with less energy. Investing in a laptop with a faster processor will require less of your battery, helping you know how to extend laptop battery life.

The final tip is to detach everything you are not using from the laptop. Every gadget like your mouse, speakers, CDs, flash drives and keyboards suck the power out of your battery. Remove what you do not absolutely need. Now that you know how to extend laptop battery life, see what you can get from your laptop this time.

Replacement Laptop Batteries

Laptop Expert — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 20:13:51 +0000

The concept that a square peg cannot fit into a round hole applies to the issue of replacement laptop batteries. Since different computers exist, varying computer batteries are required to serve as functional replacements. Before actually purchasing a new battery for your laptop, there are a few things you should consider to help ensure that your selection will be an appropriate one. The first thing to understand if you hope to not feel overwhelmed by the numerous options of manufacturers and retailers of laptop batteries is to know the make and model of your machine. You may also have access to the battery compartment where you can learn useful information. On the battery itself, you may find specifications, such as the battery part number, simplifying your project.

Laptop Power Supply

Now, with the battery part number, assuming it is still being manufactured, you could choose to buy an exact replica. However, in many cases where consumers are acquiring replacement laptop batteries, they were dissatisfied with their previous battery and are now looking for something that will perform better for them. What would you like out of your laptop battery? Many people look for a battery that requires the least-frequent need to recharge. Others want a battery that will last them for years. A combination of these two of these is ideal.

There are three many types of replacement laptop batteries that you may be looking into. A nickel cadmium battery, or NiCad, is the oldest version of laptop batteries. These are quite unreliable, requiring a recharge fairly often and ruining easily if left charging for too long. As time goes by, this battery loses its charging capabilities and holds less and less until it completely dies. Nickel metal hydride, or NiMH, is the next-oldest battery for laptops. It suffers from some of the same problems as the NiCad battery, but to a lesser degree.

What you want, instead of the previous two kinds of replacement laptop batteries, is the lithium ion, or Li-Ion battery. It is light-weight and superior to its predecessors. It is prized for lasting longer because it does not suffer from the same charging issues as the nickel batteries. Within the category of Li-Ion batteries, there are many choices still available, so the next step in obtaining a high-quality replacement battery is to determine which Li-Ion battery you want for your laptop. Price will certainly be affected by life expectancy and reliability.

Most Common Laptop Battery Problems

Laptop Expert — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 10:16:51 +0000

What would we do without laptops? From those who prefer to do work on the go at a coffee shop to those who simply want a smaller computer to work on from home, laptop computers are the way to go. They are portable, easy to work on and the answer to many who wish for a fast method of jumping onto the Internet or performing work no matter where they are. However, as most laptop users know, it is not always possible to plug your laptop in, and you must be able to depend on your machine’s batteries. Batteries can be very expensive, so let’s take a look at the most common laptop battery problems that users experience and some tips that may help laptop users.

Laptop Battery Problems

It has probably happened to you before; you were working on an important presentation or perhaps a complicated Excel spreadsheet when your laptop suddenly warned you that the battery was low. You rush to save your work before everything closes down. Or perhaps you just charged your laptop, believed all would be fine and suddenly an issue occurred. It’s happened to all of us, so let’s take look at the most common laptop battery problems that people experience and what may be done to prevent them.

Batteries, as you probably know, can be extremely expensive. The main reason for this is that the manufacturer of any particular laptop is the only manufacturer for the battery as well. Each laptop will only work with one certain battery and most are not interchangeable as everyday batteries are.

Because of this, owners are not given the opportunity to shop around and compare prices. Many times, the battery itself is almost as expensive as the laptop. For this reason, we are discussing the most common laptop battery problems.

One of the most common problems is called memory effect. This is a term used to describe what happens when an owner constantly recharges the battery without it discharging fully. For example, you may have worked on your laptop all day and noticed in the evening that the battery had roughly half life left. You then charge the battery overnight and wake up to a fully charged one. This may seem like a good idea, however charging a battery that is not fully discharged and in need of charging will eventually cause memory effect and begin to last less and less time for you until eventually a so-called fully charged battery only lasts minutes. While batteries are not alive, this is referred to as the battery forgetting that it has unused capacity and it discharges faster each time that it is used. This can all be avoided if you only recharge your laptop battery when it truly needs charging.

Another one of the most common laptop battery problems is when a laptop is left sitting unused, with the battery still in it. Even while not in use, the battery will slowly be drained. You will then find that when you do finally try to turn on your laptop, the battery is dead . This can be avoided by taking out the battery if you will not be using your laptop for several days to a week or longer.

Another issue that is one of the most common laptop battery problems is an overheating battery. Have you ever been at work on your machine and realized that the battery was becoming very hot to the touch? If this happens, the battery would be removed and allowed to cool off. If this issue continues to happen, it may be a defective battery. It is then recommend to not use that battery as doing so could cause damage to your machine.

You can also experience battery problems if you allow your battery to completely discharge outside the laptop. You should check the battery while it in storage so it will not be allowed to completely discharge. This could also prevent the laptop from accepting the battery when you place it back into the computer.

If your laptop battery becomes hot to the touch you will need to remove the battery and allow it to cool off. If this problem continues when you replace the battery in the laptop, you will probably have a defective battery. It is best to remove the battery and replace it since a defective battery could cause extensive damage to the laptop. Check with the manufactured to see if your particular battery has been recalled.

Replacement Laptop AC Adapters

Laptop Expert — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 11:07:47 +0000

Replacing the AC adapter for your laptop is a much more important process than you may think it is. There are many things to take into account when looking for laptop AC adapters, and a failure to be as thorough as possible in your search could result in purchasing a unit that could damage your laptop. To avoid any problems with your replacement laptop power adapters and to help make sure that you are finding the correct replacement battery charger for your laptop, it is a good idea to follow some advice on what to consider when looking for a replacement laptop AC adapters.

Replacement Laptop AC Adapter

The AC adapter is the unit that can power your laptop when you have access to a power outlet, and it is also the unit that recharges your laptop battery so that you can enjoy the power of portable computing. Having a functioning AC adapter is critical to any laptop owner, and if your AC adapter suddenly dies then you are going to need a notebook battery charger as soon as possible. There are several things to take into account when purchasing replacement laptop power adapters, and as long as you make all considerations then you will be fine with your purchase.

Universal Laptop AC Adapter

The easiest way to purchase replacement laptop AC adapters is to purchase them directly from the laptop manufacturer. The laptop manufacturer will have each laptop model lined up with each compatible AC adapter, and you should be able to make your selection without experiencing any difficulties at all. But an AC adapter from the manufacturer can be extremely expensive, and in some cases the laptop may be so old that replacement laptop AC adapters are no longer available from the manufacturer. To save money, or for convenience, it is better to look for a third party replacement AC adapter.

Third party manufacturers are usually the companies that make the replacement laptop power adapters for the laptop manufacturers in the first place, so getting complete compatibility with your laptop should not be a problem. Most third party manufacturers have a compatibility matrix you can refer to in order to find the model of their replacement laptop AC adapter that works perfectly with your laptop. Most third party manufacturers warranty their products very well, and they are also available to answer questions should you have any.

Replacement AC Adapter

Something that many people forget to take into account when purchasing replacement laptop AC adapters is where they are in the world. The power requirements for electrical equipment in Europe, and the connections needed to plug into the outlets in Europe, are much different that those requirements found in the United States and the rest of North America. There are international adapter kits available for your laptop AC adapter to allow it to plug into the European outlets, or you can be certain to purchase a replacement laptop power adapter that is compatible with the European power configuration.

Universal AC Adapter

Either way, it is important to keep in mind every detail possible when purchasing something as important as a replacement laptop AC adapter. Purchasing a unit that is not compatible with your laptop or not sufficient for your power needs, can cause major problems and potentially damage your laptop. To protect your laptop, be certain to ask questions and cover all the bases when purchasing a laptop battery charger.

MacBook Battery Testing

serg — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 14:21:03 +0000

A notebook battery of Apple’s MacBook’s is designed so that it can save up to 80% of its primary capacity within about 300 full cycles of charge and discharge. So we can resume that the longer we use the battery the less charge it gets during a sequential cycle. To follow the process of decreasing capacity we should have a tool for its analysis. We wonder if the Apple notebook has such a tool. As we have found out a 15″ MacBook Pro has got a built-in diagnostic which is able to analyze battery’s life.

MacBook Battery Charger

It is easy to make the test operation. We opened the Apple menu, chose About This, clicked the more Info button Mac and found launch system profiler. It also to be found in the utilities folder. Then one can glom the Contents window in which there is battery line, and the first entry battery Information is what we need. In some other models, like Leopard, Tiger one can choose cycle count or condition entry in the health information.

In nowadays models must have good pane in the condition, if not, it is necessary to contact Apple and clear out the reason of is absence. The up-to-date Apple’s users would like to have the needful current battery statistics, the battery original and present capacity, actual charge, charge cycles, running voltage. All this he would like to see in an interface.

Apple Notebook Battery Monitoring

Laptop Expert — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 17:46:00 +0000

While the portability of laptops is the main reason they’ve grown increasingly popular, that portability comes a price, namely rechargeable batteries. Not only do these batteries limit how long you can use the computer away from a power outlet, they gradually lose their ability to hold a charge.

Battery Health Monitor: Another freeware option, not quite as pretty as CoconutBattery, but gives you most of the same information. Battery Health Monitor has a grid at the top that shows you the power status of the laptop. When plugged in, the word “A/C Power” is bold for example; when on battery power, the word is grayed out.

Other indicators include “Battery Depleted” and “Not Chargeable,” neither of which you’ll want to see bolded. Battery Health Monitor also tells you how many charge cycles the battery has gone through as well as the current voltage the battery is delivering.

SlimBatteryMonitor: This piece of freeware is essentially a fancy replacement for Apple’s laptop battery icon.

While it does not provide any of the supplemental data the other options do, SlimBatteryMonitor’s main attraction is that it takes up less space in the menu bar than Apple’s built-in version and is much more customizable, particularly in the colors you can choose for the battery icon…

CoconutBattery: Perhaps the most elegant of the freeware options, CoconutBattery offers a single gray window with three panes and lime green indicator bars. One pane shows the current battery charge and another current battery capacity, indicating how much of your original capacity your battery has lost since you’ve owned it.

A bottom pane of “Additional Info” shows you “battery load cycles” and the age of your Mac laptop in months. CoconutBattery even has a Dashboard Widget available…

Article source: Weblogs.Baltimoresun.com

FreshBattery Introduces “Legacy” Battery Line

Laptop Expert — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 08:24:04 +0000

FreshBattery announced a new Legacy line of laptop batteries. The units are designed to provide batteries for notebook models that have been discontinued for three to 5 years, including older Apple PowerBooks and Apple iBooks.

According to Macworld News, the company claims that the laptop batteries are designed to meet or exceed the original manufacturer’s specifications. In the case of a Legacy battery for an original Apple PowerBook G4, FreshBattery has substituted the original 3600 mAH cells with 4400 mAH cells, resulting in a battery that adds an additional 40 minutes of run time between charges.

FreshBattery currently produces a battery range that covers the original “Clamshell” iBook G3s and goes back as far as the Wall Street and Pismo-era G3 PowerBooks. The Legacy battery line is currently priced under US$100 and available immediately.

Full Story: Powerpage.org

Just Laptop Battery.com » Apple

How to Extend Laptop Battery Life

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Replacement Laptop Batteries

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