Laptop...ON!!..oops!..dont think so...

Most laptop owners neglect to look after the batteries resulting in impaired functionality and utility of the laptop when they are relying upon them. Looking after the laptop’s batteries makes good sense and only requires a minor alteration in user behavior and maintenance practice to prolong not only battery life but also to make sure the laptop functions when needed.

There are two general mistakes that users make with laptop batteries. First, they tend to use the laptop with the AC power supply continuously and are then surprised to find the laptop will not power up at some point. The second mistake is to use the AC power and battery supply without regard to the effect of partially discharging the battery.

So you come to power up your laptop and nothing happens, what do you do? Try removing the battery from the laptop and then power on with AC supply only and if it works then you know you have an issue with the battery. A simple purge of the battery will usually suffice to correct this problem. More on that later.

Continuously discharging the battery without allowing it to exhaust its charge results in the battery gaining a recharge “memory”. Effectively it fails to take a full charge and this results in less power being stored so the ability to use the laptop by battery power alone reduces. This defeats the whole object of having a laptop that you can use anywhere free of connection to a mains supply. This shortening of battery life is also known as “battery fade”.

If you have experienced a shortening of the life of your battery charge when it comes to using the laptop on battery power only, then you are experiencing battery fade. The question becomes: what can you do to ensure that you do not suffer from a restriction of the use of your laptop when you are on the move.

There are two very simple procedures for resolving battery life issues. How often you perform these maintenance exercises will depend upon whether you have NiCad (Nickel Cadmium) batteries or NiMH (Nickel Metal Hydride) in the laptop. Check the battery itself and the manufacturers paperwork that came with your laptop.

The first tip is to ensure that you completely discharge your laptop battery. You do this by powering the laptop up using battery power alone and with the AC power disconnected. Allow the laptop to run the battery down completely until you get the battery low warning. Reconnect the AC power and allow the battery to be recharged from this state, for the period the manufacturer advises for recharge (as long as 12 hours).

Purging is where you disconnect the AC completely and disable the “sleep” feature of the laptop (or hibernation) and allow the battery to be discharged completely. Once the laptop has completely powered down, and you will know this as the display will die, plug the laptop into the AC but do not power up. Leave the laptop like this for up to 24 hours depending upon the manufacturers instructions. You should perform this for NiCad batteries once a month and for NiMH batteries every three months.

These two tips will help you prolong battery life and utility, however you should carefully read the manufacturers instructions to ensure you treat your laptop in accordance with their recommendations. Laptop batteries are expensive to replace and there is also the frustration when sitting on a long flight of suddenly seeing your laptop die and work vanish due to the battery. Caring for your laptop batteries will enhance your laptop utility and your productivity when you are away from home or office.