Laptop Shutdown on Battery Power

[Guest]

When I run my Sony Vaio laptop on battery power, after about 5 minutes it
shuts down completely without warning. I have XP Home SP2 installed. I have
the latest updates from Sony and Microsoft. The ONLY way to repower up the
laptop is by connecting main power. It will not restart on battery. I have
even tried installing another battery whilst it is in the powered down state
but it will only respond after reconnecting mains power. I have configured
the machine never to switch off or shutdown. I have the latest updates in my
virus checker. Just for info, this only happened after installing SP2!
Anyone got any ideas?

 

[jpeck]

When I run my Sony Vaio laptop on battery power, after about 5 minutes it
shuts down completely without warning. I have XP Home SP2 installed. I have
the latest updates from Sony and Microsoft. The ONLY way to repower up the
laptop is by connecting main power. It will not restart on battery. I have
even tried installing another battery whilst it is in the powered down state
but it will only respond after reconnecting mains power. I have configured
the machine never to switch off or shutdown. I have the latest updates in my
virus checker. Just for info, this only happened after installing SP2!
Anyone got any ideas?

How long have you had your box?

I had the same problem. I ended up replacing the battery. Lithium Ions
are good but they can only take so many charges (mine lasted 2.5 years
with care). Also, take a close look at the electrical connections on the
battery and the laptop. A small bit of corrosion can cause a lot of
problems. If you are in the US try batterymart.com They have locations
all over the US. Some locations can load test your battery for reliability.

JP

 

[John Peck]

When I run my Sony Vaio laptop on battery power, after about 5 minutes it
shuts down completely without warning. I have XP Home SP2 installed. I have
the latest updates from Sony and Microsoft. The ONLY way to repower up the
laptop is by connecting main power. It will not restart on battery. I have
even tried installing another battery whilst it is in the powered down state
but it will only respond after reconnecting mains power. I have configured
the machine never to switch off or shutdown. I have the latest updates in my
virus checker. Just for info, this only happened after installing SP2!
Anyone got any ideas?

How long have you had your box?

I had the same problem. I ended up replacing the battery. Lithium Ions
are good but they can only take so many charges (mine lasted 2.5 years
with care). Also, take a close look at the electrical connections on the
battery and the laptop. A small bit of corrosion can cause a lot of
problems. If you are in the US try batterymart.com They have locations
all over the US. Some locations can load test your battery for reliability.

JP

--
John Peck
Technical Director
ATM and Network Services
Bank Design and Equipment
1401 Hopeman Parkway
Waynesboro, VA 22980
Office : 540-943-3150
Mobile : 540-256-3226
Email : (e-mail address removed)

 

[Guest]

Thanks for this John. However, I have a new battery also and the problem
exists when using each of them. I have tried swapping them out once the
machine has powered down but the only way I can get the laptop restarted is
to connect external power. Thanks again.

 

[jpeck]

That's a tough one. It almost sounds like you have a physical problem
with the laptop. Did you check the power management settings for wrong
settings? You could try disabling management and see how long the laptop
runs. Is there any bios settings that could interfere?

JP

 

[Guest]

I have tried all of the above. The machine is still under warranty however,
I have been avoiding returning it to Sony due to the time required to
reinstall all programe and settings. Unfortunately, it now looks like I will
need to do this.

Thanks for your pointers,