Welcome to Battery for Laptops! Since you’re here, you must have questions and/or concerns with your laptop battery, but you need look no further! We’re here to help you with all of your battery related questions and purchases. We’ve collected in one place all of the information you need to determine:
- Do I really need a new battery?
- What’s the difference between a Ni-Cad and Lithium Ion battery, and which one is better for me?
- What information do I need to have to order a replacement for my laptop?
- What do I do with my old battery?
- How can I prolong the life of my new battery?
First, let’s start with the most important question – do I really need a new battery. This is probably the easiest question for you to answer. Charge your battery to 100%, unplug your laptop, and see how long it takes for your laptop to shut down.
Be sure that you are running with all programs shut down and your power setting optimized before doing so because if you’re running too many different programs and accessories while on battery power, it will only deplete the battery that much faster. If your battery doesn’t last more than 30 minutes to an hour, it’s probably time to get a new battery.
Picking a Battery
There are two types of batteries on the market for laptops, Ni-Cad and Lithium Ion. Ni-Cad batteries are the original technology and as such are not ideal, as they inevitably suffer from a problem called power memory. What this means is that, every time you don’t run the battery empty before recharging, you will decrease the batteries future ability to hold the amount of power it was able to previously. Eventually this situation brings you to where you are now, which is with a battery that won’t hold a charge.
The second kind of battery, the Lithium Ion, does not have this problem, and so will last a bit longer and hold a charge better during their life. They are, however, more expensive. What you have to do is take a look at how often you run your laptop on battery power to determine which option is best for you.
Ordering a New Battery
Once you’ve determined that you need a new battery, follow these easy steps to purchase a new one. First, turn on your laptop and go to the Control Panel. Click Power Options, select the Power Meter tab and click on the battery icon. The information given there will let you know what type of battery you need to order.
Okay. Now what do I do with my old battery?
As with all batteries, you cannot throw them out with the rest of the trash, as it’s terrible for the environment. What you’ll need to do is bag it up and take it down to your local BestBuy or other location that recycles batteries. To find one, click here.
We hope that this has been helpful to you, and for some extra tips, please be sure to watch the below video from Best Buy’s Geek Squad on getting the most from your laptop battery.
Other Resources
There are a number of other places you can find pertinent information on laptops in general that may be helpful to you in the future. If you’re thinking of purchasing an upgraded system, then you may want to check out the following informative piece on the difference between Netbooks, Notebooks and Laptops or the article, Netbook vs. Notebook, it’s not just about size. I also found Rechargeable Battery Reviews, Battery Review, and PC World’s Reviews helpful.
jinnie@Laptopaid (1)
sarika@laptop rep... (1)
i think laptop batteries are only fault which may be the only issue in the laptop since this batteries are sometime get out of work and then we need to change it so this post really helpful. keep it up
power memory issue makes me realize that I always have my computer plugged in and so the battery must be cycling/recharging all the time…no wonder I was eating through batteries.Thanks for the recyle info as I have a number of batteries that are long since dead and had no idea what to do with them.I also like the simplicity of this site as there is sooooo much information out there and you have managed to cut through the clutter