LOW BATTERY ON LAPTOP

  • Thread starter Thread starter Judy L
  • Start date Start date
J

Judy L

I always run my laptop (my second - backup computer) on power, but for some
reason the battery has run down somewhat. What happens now, do I have to
replace the battery, or is there a means of recharging it?

A friend of mine went into BIOS and did something to the setting relating to
battery there on his computer, but I dont go into BIOS unless Im told
specifically what to do.

Can anyone help?
Judy
 
How old is the battery? If it is no longer holding the charge, then you
need to order a new one.
 
That is a reasonable period for a battery to begin losing the ability to
hold a charge. If you never have the laptop off of the AC adaptor, then
there is no crisis here, but consider replacing the battery. They are not
very cheap, though.
 
In
Judy L said:
I always run my laptop (my second - backup computer) on power, but
for some reason the battery has run down somewhat. What happens
now, do I have to replace the battery, or is there a means of
recharging it?
A friend of mine went into BIOS and did something to the setting
relating to battery there on his computer, but I dont go into BIOS
unless Im told specifically what to do.

Can anyone help?
Judy
Click to expand...

If the battery loses it's charge quickly after removing the AC power, the
battery needs to be replaced. Batteries need to be cycled [ fully discharged
and charged] frequently or they will lose the ability to keep a charge.
--
Michael Stevens MS-MVP XP
(e-mail address removed)
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com
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I suppose I could take the battery out and use the cord do you think??? I
rarely am in a position that I have to actually use only the battery (when
travelling)

I knew they were expensive, can't remember how much tho
J
 
How do you discharge and charge them Michael? (Hope thats not a stupid
question)
I dont use the laptop as much as my big pc, and I generally have the laptop
connected up to electricity anyway. but I just noticed that its not holding
the charge, if its disconnected, and it turn the laptop on before I connect
the cord (thats if I have been away)
 
In
Judy L said:
How do you discharge and charge them Michael? (Hope thats not a
stupid question)
I dont use the laptop as much as my big pc, and I generally have the
laptop connected up to electricity anyway. but I just noticed that
its not holding the charge, if its disconnected, and it turn the
laptop on before I connect the cord (thats if I have been away)
If the battery loses it's charge quickly after removing the AC
power, the battery needs to be replaced. Batteries need to be cycled
[ fully discharged and charged] frequently or they will lose the
ability to keep a charge.
--
Michael Stevens MS-MVP XP
(e-mail address removed)
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com
For a better newsgroup experience. Setup a newsreader.
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/outlookexpressnewreader.htm
Click to expand...
Click to expand...

You need to use it without the AC connected and let it fully discharge. This
should be done at least once a week.
 
Thanks Michael - it did stay charged for about 2 hours before I hooked it up
to power again
If the battery loses it's charge quickly after removing the AC
power, the battery needs to be replaced. Batteries need to be cycled
[ fully discharged and charged] frequently or they will lose the
ability to keep a charge.
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
In
Judy L said:
Thanks Michael - it did stay charged for about 2 hours before I
hooked it up to power again
If the battery loses it's charge quickly after removing the AC
power, the battery needs to be replaced. Batteries need to be
cycled [ fully discharged and charged] frequently or they will
lose the ability to keep a charge.
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
You need to use it without the AC connected and let it fully
discharge. This should be done at least once a week.
Click to expand...
Click to expand...

That is pretty good, so you don't need to get a new one. Just cycle the
battery and it will last a long time.
--
Michael Stevens MS-MVP XP
(e-mail address removed)
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com
For a better newsgroup experience. Setup a newsreader.
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/outlookexpressnewreader.htm
 
Salut/Hi Michael Stevens,

le/on Sun, 13 Feb 2005 00:03:07 -0800, tu disais/you said:-
You need to use it without the AC connected and let it fully discharge. This
should be done at least once a week.
Click to expand...

This is a good moment for me to ask a question that I've been wondering
about.

What - in the context of a laptop - is fully discharged? My wife's machine
is a Toshiba Tecra. It hsa a variety of power saving features, and it is in
fact very difficult indeed to discharge the battery below about 3% charge,
as it refuses to power on at that level and goes into hibernate mode
immediately.

I know that it can damage the battery to leave the computer permanently
connected to mains power with the battery in position, so what is
recommended practice?
 
3% is low enough to qualify as discharged. Discharged is when the battery
cannot power the computer.
 
Salut/Hi "Colin Barnhorst" <colinbarharst(nojunk)@msn.com>,

le/on Mon, 14 Feb 2005 09:51:46 -0700, tu disais/you said:-
3% is low enough to qualify as discharged. Discharged is when the battery
cannot power the computer.
Click to expand...

Thanks very much.
 
Salut/Hi Michael Stevens,

le/on Sun, 13 Feb 2005 00:03:07 -0800, tu disais/you said:-
[2 quoted lines suppressed]
Click to expand...

This is a good moment for me to ask a question that I've been wondering
about.

What - in the context of a laptop - is fully discharged? My wife's machine
is a Toshiba Tecra. It hsa a variety of power saving features, and it is in
fact very difficult indeed to discharge the battery below about 3% charge,
as it refuses to power on at that level and goes into hibernate mode
immediately.

I know that it can damage the battery to leave the computer permanently
connected to mains power with the battery in position, so what is
recommended practice?
Click to expand...

Ian, may want to check the manual for the laptop. Not all battery types for
portable computers need to be cycled. My tablet PC has a notation in its
manual *not* to cycle the battery.
 
Salut/Hi Sharon F,

le/on Mon, 14 Feb 2005 21:56:00 -0600, tu disais/you said:-

Ian, may want to check the manual for the laptop. Not all battery types for
portable computers need to be cycled. My tablet PC has a notation in its
manual *not* to cycle the battery.
Click to expand...

Thanks for that, Sharon. I'm pretty sure (round about 98%) that the manual
_does_ recommend discharging the battery, but I'll check up.
 
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