Laptop Batteries

Laptop Batteries


One of the main problems and concerns of laptops is their battery life. They work great at first and the laptops can last for 4 or 5 hours, but then over the passing months and years, you're lucky if your laptop can last half an hour without the AC adapter plugged in.

Laptop Battery 

How do I make my laptop battery last longer?


When you first get your laptop or new laptop battery, make sure to fully charge your laptop before using it. This will allow a full charge for the battery and insure it lasts longer.
Don't use your laptop with the AC adapter frequently. In the long run, this will cause the laptop battery to have a chemical memory, which will basically make the laptop have a life-span of about 3 seconds without the AC adapter plugged in.
Keep your laptop stored at room temperature. Low or high temperatures can reduce the life span of the batteries.
Allow your battery to get to a low charge level before charging again. The lower your battery is when you start to charge it again the longer it will last. So allowing your laptop to die before charging it will insure the longest life span.


Where can I get a replacement battery for my laptop?


When it comes to purchasing laptop batteries, you have two options.


Option 1


First, you can call the manufacturer of the laptop or battery and purchase a new replacement battery. This is always the safest decision you can make when purchasing a replacement battery for your laptop. You may have the guarentee of the company in that they may send you a replacement battery free of charge if you purchased a defective replacement battery. But while it may be the safest choice, there is a downside to it, and that is the manufacturer's overprice the laptop replacement batteries by way more than the actual cost of a replacement battery, which is around $30.


Option 2

Laptop Battery

If you prefer another option, then there are many companies today that sell replacement rechargeable batteries for your laptop that can often last longer than the original battery. Some small scale companies will tend to sell defective batteries for cheap. If you end up buying batteries from a site such as this, prepare for the worst. There have been many customer complaints that have purchased batteries from sites such as these, that will sell batteries for half the price to get people to buy them. Some of the complaints were the battery overheated, the battery life had a very short life-span, and even the battery catching on fire.


So for the safety of yourself and your laptop, make sure to do a little research on the company you are going to be purchasing from before you actually proceed. And if you don't want to take the risk then the manufacturer's site is always a safe way to to purchasing a replacement battery, but at the expense of paying more. But you may end up spending as much as $150 for a replacement battery.


Making the most out of your laptop battery


Laptop batteries are the most important part of your laptop. Without them your laptop is basically a miniture desktop computer, and they are no longer portable. So here are some tips and advice that will allow you to care for your laptop battery and get the most out of them.


Most laptop batteries today are Li-Ion/Lithium Ion batteries. They are great as they have great energy capacity and they don't have memory effect, meaning you don't have to or should let the battery die down all the way before charging it again. You may have heard that is better to let your laptop die all the way before charging it, but that is quite the opposite if your battery is a Lithium Ion battery, in fact it causes your laptop battery to get worse faster, so make sure to not allow your Lithium Ion battery to completely discharge, or die. But for the first 2 or 3 times charging your Lithium Ion battery, you SHOULD let it die all the way, but after that you do not need to or should do so.


Tips and Advice


Defrag your computer regularly. This will allow your hard drive to not work as hard which won't drain your battery more.
Lower the brightnest of your screen. The brighter your screen, the more power being used.
Try to keep the amount of programs to a minimum. Every program open helps drain the battery a little bit more.
Cut down on external devices, such as USB devices, like a mouse. Also WiFi will drain your battery so turn it off when you aren't using it to save power.
Clean the battery contacts. Every 6 months are so you should take out your battery and clean the contacts that connect to the laptop. You can use a cloth with rubbing alcohol to achieve this.
If you ever put your computer on standy, you should try to switch to hibernate, as hibernate fully shuts down your computer, but it allows you to quickly resume your work when you turn it back on.
Go to “Power Options” on your laptop and change it's setting to Max Battery, Super Energy Saver, or one of the other many different forms of it. But it all means the same thing, switch to the setting that is set for saving the most amount of energy.

Laptop Battery

While most laptop batteries today are Lithium Ion batteries, that does not mean all, as there are NiCad/Nickel Cadmium and NiMAH/Nickel Metal Hydride batteries, both having the memory effect. You will usually find these batteries in older laptops, low budget laptops, or small corporation laptops. So for these battery types, as they have the memory effect, you should allow the battery to completely die before charging it, as this will prolong the overall battery lifespan.