Tips for Laptop Battery Care

1. Laptop Battery Maintenance

Your new laptop battery comes in a discharged condition and must be charged before use (refer to your computer manual for charging instructions). Upon initial use (or after a prolonged storage period) the battery may require three to four charge/discharge cycles before achieving maximum capacity.

When charging the battery for the first time your computer may indicate that charging is complete after just 10 or 15 minutes. This is a normal phenomenon with rechargeable batteries. Simply remove the battery from the computer and repeat the charging procedure.

It is important to condition (fully discharge and then fully charge) the battery every two to three weeks. Failure to do so may significantly shorten the battery's life (this does not apply to Li-ion batteries, which do not require conditioning). To discharge, simply run your device under the battery's power until it shuts down or until you get a low battery warning. Then recharge the battery as instructed in your user's manual.

If the battery will not be in use for a month or longer, it is recommended that it be removed from the device and stored in a cool, dry, clean place.

A charged battery will eventually lose its charge if unused. It may therefore be necessary to recharge the battery after a storage period.

2. Tips to Maximize Laptop Battery Performance

New batteries come in a discharged condition and must be fully charged before use. It is recommended that you fully charge and discharge your new battery two to four times to allow it to reach its maximum rated capacity.

Keep your battery healthy by fully charging and then fully discharging it at least once every two to three weeks. Exceptions to the rule are Li-ion batteries which do not suffer from the memory effect.

It's a good idea to clean dirty battery contacts with a cotton swab and alcohol. This helps maintain a good connection between the battery and your portable device.

Do not leave your battery dormant for long periods of time. We recommend using the battery at least once every two to three weeks. If a battery has not been used for a long period of time, perform the new battery break in procedure described above.

If you don't plan on using the battery for a month or more, we recommend storing it in a clean, dry, cool place away from heat and metal objects. Ni-Cd, NiMH and Li-ion batteries will self-discharge during storage; remember to break them in before use. Sealed Lead Acid (SLA) batteries must be kept at full charge during storage. This is usually achieved by using special trickle chargers. If you do not have a trickle charger, do not attempt to store SLA batteries for more than three months.

3. Top Ways to Extend Laptop’s Battery Life

Turn off ports. Disabling unused ports and components, such as VGA, Ethernet, PCMCIA, USB, and yes, your wireless, too. You can do this through the Device Manager or by configuring a separate hardware profile.

Create Power-Saving Hardware Profiles. Configure your laptop for the various scenarios in which you use it (on a plane, at the coffee shop, at the office, and so on). You can do this through the Hardware Profiles menu by right-clicking on My Computer and selecting Preferences or by using a freeware utility such as SparkleXP (for Windows XP users).

Configure your display to turn off when not in use. This is different from just using a screensaver, because in many cases a screensaver still requires the display's backlight to be on. You can set the interval to turn the display off in Windows' Power Options—found in the Control Panel.

Use a cooling pad when using a notebook computer on your lap.

Avoid propping your laptop on a pillow, blanket, or other soft surface that can heat up.

Clean your desk. It sounds strange, but if you have a dusty, dirty desk, that dust will get into the vents and clog the cooling fan. Once the dust is inside your laptop, it is much harder to remove. You can try blasting it out with canned air, but you run the risk of damaging internal components. You can also remove the vent and clean out the grit, but remember that taking apart your laptop can void the warranty. So clean your desk at least once a week, if not daily.

Never store your laptop in a place where the air temperature exceeds 80 degrees Fahrenheit, such as a hot car or an outdoor patio.

Consider taking your battery out when using your laptop plugged into AC power. Just make sure to keep the contacts clean. If you need to clean them, use rubbing alcohol.

For lithium ion batteries, you do not need to discharge them fully and recharge constantly. Since they don't have the same "memory" as older nickel-metal hydride batteries, it is actually better to discharge a lithium ion only partially before recharging. You need to do a full discharge only about every 30 charges.

Reference: http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2324229,00.asp