Laptop Battery Replacement
Sooner or later, you will need to replace your laptop battery. Every battery degrades with use, even rechargeable ones. When your laptop battery no longer keeps a charge or the battery life is too short, there are several things you can do…
Laptop Batteries: Replace or Revive?
First, you can try to revitalize your laptop battery. There's a story floating around that freezing a NiCd or NiMH laptop battery overnight in a refrigerator freezer will restore its ability to absorb and hold a nearly full charge. It's important, say those who have tried this technique, to let a recently used and hot battery cool down to room temperature before putting it in the freezer in a sealed plastic bag. It is equally critical, they say, to let the battery thaw and warm up to room temperature fully before attempting to charge or use it again. After fully charging, run your laptop until the battery is drained, then repeat this cycle a few times for maximum effectiveness.
I haven't personally tried this technique, and there are those who say it's a myth. But if your battery is at the point where it will only hold a charge for a few minutes, it can't hurt to try it before buying a replacement laptop battery. Note that this applies only to the older style NiCd or NiMh batteries, and NOT the newer lithium batteries. Lithium batteries can actually be damaged by freezing, so don't leave your laptop in a cold car overnight.
I've also read stories about people who have taken apart their battery packs, and tried to replace the internal circuit board and/or the lithium cells. I can't say strongly enough what a BAD idea this is. If a lithium cell explodes, you don't want to be anywhere near it, trust me.
Buying a New Laptop Battery
Should you buy an OEM (original equipment manufacturer) battery, or a third-party aftermarket battery? OEM laptop batteries are painfully expensive. There is really nothing terribly proprietary about a battery except the shape of its case. If it supplies the right voltage and current to your laptop, any maker's laptop battery should be satisfactory. But there are unscrupulous aftermarket manufacturers who sell batteries that tend to leak, don't take a full charge, or don't last as long as they should. Aftermarket batteries are an unknown gamble but much cheaper, often half the cost of OEM batteries. Research an aftermarket brand carefully to see what customers have to say about its longevity, performance, and the vendor's service.
Also, know the difference between recycled and refurbished batteries. A recycled replacement laptop battery is one that has been salvaged from a discarded laptop. It's used, and there's no telling how much life is left in it. A refurbished replacement laptop battery has been taken apart, had its chemical cells replaced with new ones, and restored to OEM specifications. Some refurbished batteries even last longer than OEM batteries of older model laptops, because their chemical cells are of newer technology that holds more charge. Unfortunately, you can't tell a recycled battery from a refurbished one by sight; so again, check the maker's reputation with a Google search before buying.
Oh, and before you spend your money on a new battery for your laptop, check to see if your battery is still under warranty, or if there are any recalls for it. A shiny new free battery from the manufacturer beats paying for one any day of the week!
Laptop Battery Longevity Tips
You can make your laptop battery last longer by following a few simple energy conservation tips:
- Don't let your battery drain completely. Old NiCad batteries needed to be "deep discharged" now and then to maintain their capacity. But modern lithium batteries area actually harmed by deep discharge.
- Recharge your battery fully. If a battery is repeatedly only partially recharged before being used, it may never again be able to hold a full charge.
- Use appropriate power management profiles. The power management features of modern laptops and operating systems give you great control over the power consumption of a laptop's display; audio system; networking adapters; disk drives, even CPU clock speed. Become familiar with the power management features of both your operating system and the laptop's BIOS (basic input/output system). Tweak these settings to optimize performance versus battery life.
- Play DVD movies from your hard drive, or even better, a USB flash drive. It takes more battery power to spin a DVD disc drive than a hard drive, and a USB drive is more energy efficient than either. Rip your DVD discs to other media using free ripping software like Handbrake for Mac, Linux, or Windows.
Do you have a comment or question about replacing a laptop battery? Post your thoughts below...
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Posted by Bob Rankin on January 15, 2010 03:05 PM
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Article information: AskBobRankin -- Laptop Battery Replacement (Posted: January 15, 2010 03:05 PM)
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Most recent comments on "Laptop Battery Replacement"
(See all 11 comments for this article.)Posted by:
Nat Gildersleeve
15 Jan 2010
I have read that if you are running off AC power for a prolonged time, it is better for the battery to disconnect/remove it. fact or myth?
Posted by:
Joan Milke Flores
15 Jan 2010
My laptop battery is dead, but I only use it using AC power. Will the laptop be harmed if I don't replace the battery and continue to run the computer just on AC?
EDITOR'S NOTE: No, that's not a problem.
Posted by:
Andy Pensavalle
15 Jan 2010
I too use AC power for my laptop 97% of the time. I have heard that it is a good idea to remove the battery and let it partially drain down now and then to get the maximum life from the battery. Any truth in that?
Posted by:
Wayne Cloughley
16 Jan 2010
Like many people, I am often wary of doing business on the Web. How can I check the reliabily / reputation of those who operate 'on line.' Who's 'legit' and who isn't? Are there organizations,for example, that are akin to the Better Business Bureau, etc.?
Posted by:
Balthazar
16 Jan 2010
There’s not much technology to batteries. For the adventures, I would recommend re-making your own battery. Take a flat-head screwdriver, wedge it in-between the plastic seam on any battery case and gently pry in open. Break the solder holding the individual small batteries and replace with new. Re-solder and close battery case.
Really quite simple! I’ve done it dozens of times.
Total cost: $20 to $40 smackers.
http://www.metacafe.com/watch/479447/laptop_battery_hack_dont_buy_a_new_one/
Posted by:
Michael Dutton
21 Jan 2010
I run my laptop on AC power 98% of the time. Should/can I remove the battery to extend its' life and charge it only when I need to? Thanks.
Posted by:
TanMan
21 Jan 2010
In answer to those asking if running on AC most of the time will shorten the life of their battery, the answer is yes. On the other hand, as Bob correctly pointed out, letting the battery run all the way down is also bad for the battery. So taking the battery out while running on AC is only a good idea if you remember to put the battery back every couple of weeks.
My VAIO laptop has a SONY battery manager that allows me to tell it to charge the battery to no more than 50% (the percentage is somewhat configurable). This significantly extends the life of the battery, but I have to remember to fully charge it before I disconnect if I want any significant battery time. And sometimes I don't have enough lead time before I disconnect to get a full charge.
With all this said, though, buy your replacement batteries from ebay. You can buy cheap knock-offs that work just as well (or better) than the originals for a fraction of the cost, typically well under $50. With a cheap battery, extending the life of your battery becomes much less important.
Posted by:
gjtokyo
21 Jan 2010
For older style batteries I was advised by a techie to remove the battery when using a wall power source. Until I started doing this my batteries were not lasting much more than 2 years. Since then I have one notebook PC battery that started out with 12 hours max and still gives me 8 hrs use after 7 years.
I was wondering if this trick still holds true for the new lithium batteries?
Posted by:
SarahL
21 Jan 2010
Our daughter became fascinated by the science behind rechargeable batteries while still in grade school, and decided to do (what turned into a series of) science fair experiments regarding batteries. One of the first projects she did was regarding the operating temperature of the battery pack. She discovered that batteries will dishcharge *slightly* faster when either extremely hot or extremely cold, however, overall the extreme temperature zones that she recorded her results in did not seem to effect the batteries - over a series of three cycles. NOTE: She DID NOT use lithium-based batteries.
Having used notebooks/laptops for years, the primary thing is to never store a battery either fully charged, or fully discharged. The ideal "storage point" is between 50 and 80% charged. Also, most new battery packs (in the last three or so years) now have internal circuitry that will monitor the "health" of the pack, and alerts the system when the pack begins to fail.
Battery life can be extended on nearly any portable by using common sense - dimming the screen, turning off WiFi and/or Bluetooth when not in use, and unplugging USB devices when not in use. Also, turn off system speakers (use the "mute" function, not just turning down the volume) when not listening to audio can help. It all adds up.
Posted by:
Judy Redman
25 Jan 2010
I am wondering how old your computer needs to be before it has a NiCD or NiMH battery. I thought this might work with the battery in what to me was an old laptop - getting on for six years old - a Dell Inspiron 5150. I just checked and it has a Lithium battery, so can't try the freezer trick and report back. :-(