FAQs & Tips About Laptop Battery
 
The rule of thumb is to discharge your batteries fully then recharge each time. Most users do not do this! Instead they use their PDA/Handheld PC for a period of time less than a complete discharge and then charge it. This uses up the number of cycles that the laptop battery can provide. The problem is that most devices do not fully discharge the batteries. Also, if you leave your unit plugged in there is a trickle charge going to the battery. Over time this may reduce the laptop battery life due to overcharging. These units were not designed to be continuously charging for extended periods of time.

The NiCad and NiMH batteries are subject to what is commonly referred to as the memory effect. Basically it is a change in the battery's ability to charge fully based on not being completely drained when it is charged. The best solution is to periodically (perhaps monthly) fully discharge your laptop batteries by running your unit until the unit will no longer turn on. Then fully charge it. This cycle should be done at least twice in a row to keep the batteries in good condition.

The Lithium Ion and Lithium Polymer laptop batteries are designed to be kept charged. If the laptop batteries are fully discharged they can reduce the number of charging cycles. Further whey they fail, your PDA may not work at all. I have seen this in notebook PCs as well.

Take care of your laptop battery and ensure that it will be ready to work properly when you need it most. Some general tips for laptop care include: avoid extreme temperatures, don't leave a laptop outside in cold weather or leave it in a hot car. Cold laptop batteries can't create very much power and hot laptop batteries will discharge very quickly. Use electrical power when available to keep laptop battery charged. Don't let your laptop go for long periods of time without using the Laptop battery.

1) Smaller Is Better
Consider an ultraportable or thin-and-light rather than a desktop replacement laptop. Smaller displays use less power. Going with a hard drive that runs at 4200rpm uses less power than a hard drive running at 5400rpm.

2) Power Control
Use as little power as possible by adjusting laptop settings. Use the Power Options to set to the laptop to go inactive after a set amount of time. Set adjustments so that the display goes off first, then hard the hard drive stay active a bit longer and store the system content's to the RAM.

3) Turn Down the Lights
Adjust the display brightness to a lower setting, make sure you can view the screen without squinting. You can also adjust the brightness of the display to suit the conditions you are working in.

4) Watch Your Battery Use
Keep an eye on your laptop battery consumption and know how much power you have remaining. Use the laptop battery power icon on the system tray or you can purchase laptop batteries which have LED gauges on the outside of the battery itself.