Got a new notebook, please tell me best way to preserve battery!!

[chocolategal]

Hi
As subject says really, My old laptop battery went really quickly so can only use it in certain places where I can plug it in.
Hoping to be a bit more successful with new notebook.

Is the best thing to go to let the battery run right down before charging or to constantly top it up?


Any advice welcome!

[chocolategal]

Anyone?

[prism]

As far as I'm aware those old tricks like running the battery down and charging it up fully don't apply any more but what kind of battery is it? Ni-mh, li-on, etc?

[Snorbs]

If it is a Li-ion battery (it almost certainly is) then it's best to keep it topped up rather than letting it run right down. That being said the laptop's battery meter may lose track of exactly how much charge is in the battery if you never let it completely run down. So if it seems that the laptop's battery life seems to be getting shorter, do try letting it run down completely and then do a full charge in an attempt to reset the meter.

Temperature also makes a difference - the warmer the battery the shorter its life. If you usually use the laptop plugged in then it can help prolong its life to just remove the battery entirely and only to connect the battery when you need it.

[Niceguy2]

Can you just remove the battery and only use it when you need it rather than leave it plugged in?

[WPOnline]

Yes, if you want to leave it plugged in all the time, then just remove the battery and use it on the mains power.

[chocolategal]

Thanks everyone.
I don't need to leave it plugged in all the time.
I've been plugging it in to charge then unplugging it, using it for a few hours on & off during the day.

Then plugging it back in to charge when the battery is down to about 20% left.
Sound ok?

[Snorbs]

When you're using it during the day could you leave it plugged in? Or do you need it to be portable?

If you want to maximise the life of the battery then the simple answer is to not use the battery except when necessary.

Charging it and then running it off the batteries every day will shorten the battery life. The more charge/discharge cycles a battery does, the more capacity it will lose.

Using the laptop while it's still plugged in - so the battery itself isn't being used - will lengthen the battery's life as it's not doing the charge/discharge thing.

Half-charging the battery, taking it out of the laptop and storing it in the fridge, will maximise the battery's life. But obviously make your laptop a lot less portable.

[suzikettles]

I looked this up when I got a netbook.

The only thing that majorly affects the life of Li-on batteries is exposure to heat. Apparently some people keep their batteries in the fridge, but personally that's a step too far for me

[chocolategal]

Ok thanks again

I can keep it plugged in most of time when using it so will try to do that more.
I'm just very aware that I must have done something bad to last laptop battery!! :(

[chocolategal]

Oh one last question, I won't do it any damage using it plugged in even when the battery says 100% fully charged? My DH seems to think I can drain battery life ??

[Snorbs]

Laptops have intelligent charging circuits in them. They notice when the battery is full and stop the charging cycle. There's no real problem with leaving a fully-charged battery in a laptop that's plugged in.

[kayah]

I think some makes are better at providing good batteries for their laptops, not sure what as a user you can do t oprolong it's life.

[chocolategal]

Thanks everyone :-)

I bought the notebook as it was one of the better ones for bettery life, here's hoping I don't knacker it!!

[suzikettles]

One of the things I read when looking this up was that laptop batteries are only designed to last a couple of years anyway whatever you do.