Battery Life

[MonicaAH]

I know there are some questions posted already like I am about to ask, but I
wasn't quite clear on the answers...

Anyways, my boss informed me today that with my laptop I should be
unplugging it when it is fully charged and then use it by the battery. She
said if not, it will cause the battery life to keep on decreasing and there
is no way to restore it. My computer is only about 2 months old and in the
beginning it lasted approx. 3 - 3.5 hrs, today I just got a little over 2 out
of it. Is there any way I can get it back or is she right?

 

[Rick Rogers]

Hi Monica,

First, you need to check your battery type as there is an important
distinction. As it's new, it's probably Lithium-Ion. With LI batteries, they
don't need to (and actually shouldn't) be discharged on a regular cycle and
actually *should* remain plugged in and be fully charged whenever possible.
Draining it fully may actually be detrimental to battery life. Your boss is
probably thinking about the older Nickel-Cadmium type that benefited from
being fully discharged on a regular basis to maintain capacity.

She is correct in that once battery life is shortened, there is no
recovering it. What you can do is minimize power consumption during use
under battery power by lowering brightness and ensuring proper power
settings. Don't run utility tasks like defragging and updates while on
battery power. Keep usage to the task at hand. The time a battery will last
is directly related to the level of usage. The more intense it is, the
shorter the time frame.

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers, aka "Nutcase" - Microsoft MVP

Windows help - www.rickrogers.org
My thoughts http://rick-mvp.blogspot.com