Toshiba Tecra M1 CMOS battery life

[Grant]

Hello Everyone,

We have many Toshiba Tecra M1 laptops here that were bought at the
same time for emergency purposes. These laptops have not been turned
on for between 4 and possibly 8 months. In the process of collecting
them to be updated with the latest patches etc, I had at least 3 of
these laptops that would give me a message that the battery needed
charging and I had to reset the date and time on each one. When
consulting with the technical experts from the company we purchased
these laptops from (I have not contacted Toshiba directly), I was told
that Tecra's need to be charged for at least 8 hours once a month. Has
anyone else had this problem or, know if this statement is correct. I
would have thought the CMOS battery life would be considerably longer?

Thanks

Grant

 

[PLS]

Can't help with Toshiba's, but it isn't the CMOS battery
that is the problem, it's the main battery. Take a look
at these articles, they should give you an overview.

http://www.csd.toshiba.com/cgi-bin/...BV_EngineID=ccccadcmdglhldecgfkceghdgngdglj.0

 

[PLS]

This one is on target. You should have removed the batteries
if you wanted to store them.

DO NOT OVER DISCHARGE THE BATTERY - Your computer consumes
battery power even when it is turned off. If you do not use your
computer for extended periods of time, a week or more, remove the
battery from the unit.
http://www.csd.toshiba.com/cgi-bin/...=M1|380604&ST=11&SortOrder=LT_WEIGHT&awhit=20

 

[Andy]

Hello Everyone,

We have many Toshiba Tecra M1 laptops here that were bought at the
same time for emergency purposes. These laptops have not been turned
on for between 4 and possibly 8 months. In the process of collecting
them to be updated with the latest patches etc, I had at least 3 of
these laptops that would give me a message that the battery needed
charging and I had to reset the date and time on each one. When
consulting with the technical experts from the company we purchased
these laptops from (I have not contacted Toshiba directly), I was told
that Tecra's need to be charged for at least 8 hours once a month. Has
anyone else had this problem or, know if this statement is correct. I
would have thought the CMOS battery life would be considerably longer?

Thanks

Grant

I have a 6110 which has the same problem. If I leave it for a month or more
the CMOS battery (and the main battery) run flat and you have to reset the
date and time. It has done this from new.

The 2 Thinkpads I have do not have any problems at all even when left for
6-12 months without being used. THe main batteries do discharge as is
inevitable given the chemical make up but they will still have a few % in
after 12 months and the CMOs battery is fine. One thinkpad is the same age
as the Toshiba (A31) and the other is 4 years older (600E)

Toshiba seem to have failed to make an off switch that works properly.

Andy

 

[Michael Strefford]

Hello Everyone,

We have many Toshiba Tecra M1 laptops here that were bought at the
same time for emergency purposes. These laptops have not been turned
on for between 4 and possibly 8 months. In the process of collecting
them to be updated with the latest patches etc, I had at least 3 of
these laptops that would give me a message that the battery needed
charging and I had to reset the date and time on each one. When
consulting with the technical experts from the company we purchased
these laptops from (I have not contacted Toshiba directly), I was told
that Tecra's need to be charged for at least 8 hours once a month. Has
anyone else had this problem or, know if this statement is correct. I
would have thought the CMOS battery life would be considerably longer?

Thanks

Grant

While your Tecras are switched off the CMOS battery is still supplying
power to the RTC and the BIOS.
Leaving them switched off for an extended period will eventually drain
the CMOS battery.
The CMOS battery will only charge if the PC is switched on - with
the AC adapter connected - it will not charge with just the AC
adapter connected and not switched on - unlike the main battery.
You will need to leave it switched on for a good 24 hours to fully
recharge the CMOS battery.
You should develop a procedure to recharge your unused PCs on a
regular basis - it looks like you've got a bit more work to do
than you originally thought you had...... !
This applies to all notebook/laptop/PDA devices.

HTH

Michael in Glenrothes, Scotland
Toshiba Accredited Engineer

 

[Cyrus Afzali]

While your Tecras are switched off the CMOS battery is still supplying
power to the RTC and the BIOS.
Leaving them switched off for an extended period will eventually drain
the CMOS battery.
The CMOS battery will only charge if the PC is switched on - with
the AC adapter connected - it will not charge with just the AC
adapter connected and not switched on - unlike the main battery.
You will need to leave it switched on for a good 24 hours to fully
recharge the CMOS battery.
You should develop a procedure to recharge your unused PCs on a
regular basis - it looks like you've got a bit more work to do
than you originally thought you had...... !
This applies to all notebook/laptop/PDA devices.

That said, it's still a good idea to unplug a laptop which is
regularly used with AC power, is it not? I'm only asking because I've
done it both ways, and the battery lasted a lot longer when it wasn't
being continually charged.