Laptops have increased our level of productivity because it allows us the convenience of working anywhere, anytime. But your laptop’s portability is largely dependent on its battery. The longer your laptop’s battery life the longer you get to work without having to plug your laptop to an electric socket. But over time, the total charge of your battery will slowly dwindle. It’s inevitable but if you know how to take care of your laptop battery you’ll be able to prolong its life.
Don’t remove the battery from your laptop. Keep it attached to your laptop even if you’ve plugged it into a power socket. Contrary to popular belief, this will actually help prolong the life of the battery because it will not drain its juice, which will happen if it is not attached to a power source.
Operate the laptop using the battery even if an electrical outlet is near you. Doing this will allow the battery to drain through the regular usage of the laptop. The laptop will use the full power of the battery. Regularly draining and recharging the battery is what will help prolong its life. Doing this process at least once a month will help in prolonging your battery’s life.
If, for any reason, you need to store your laptop’s battery, make sure that it is at the very least forty percent charged before you store it. This recommendation comes from the manufacturers themselves. They say that this level is considered the best storage level that will allow you to charge the battery once again when you do need it. Be careful where you store your battery. Make sure that the place is dry and not subject to moisture.
Do remember that different battery makes have different effectivity periods. For example, batteries made with lithium ion will typically last for three years if taken cared of properly. This translates to about five hundred charging cycles. To guarantee that you reach this number, make sure that you only charge at the correct times. Frequent recharging is a sure way of shortening the battery’s life.
As part of the maintenance of your laptop battery always keep the contact points clean. Put some alcohol on a cotton bud and clean the contact points of the battery to remove any build up of dirt or grime.
You can prolong the amount of charge that is left in the battery and work for a longer time by saving up on power. You can do this by dimming the LCD screen and shortening the standby period so that the laptop will go into hibernation mode faster. You should also remove any peripherals that are not being used and perform periodic maintenance like defragging your hard drive so that the computer will be more efficient and, thus, use less power.
Photo from phgbattery.com