Battery Extender
Posted on July 6, 2008
The very best extender for your notebook battery is YOU! Your computing habits may need a little tweaking but you can get several extra minutes out of a charge on your laptop computer.
There are some well known tips you should always follow to extend the life of a charge.
Like reduce the brightness of the screen. Ever notice the change in brightness when you move from battery to AC or vice versa? There’s some dimming done automatically by the manufacture. If you go on battery and increase the brightness level you cut into the charge time.
Minimize background processes. Shut down (through task manager if necessary) those processes not necessary for proper operation. You may have to do some experimenting to find out all the ones you can stop. Processes take RAM and RAM uses battery life. Though each one may be a small drain on the battery, remove multiple unneeded processes and it adds up to some minutes.Don’t use the CD/DVD any more than necessary. Continued use of a CD drive while running off battery can easily knock 20% off the usage time.
If you’re not running on wireless, turn off the wireless antenna as that is another juice eater.
Here are some lesser known things to do.
Turn off ports. Disabling unused ports and components, such as VGA, Ethernet, PCMCIA, and USB. You can do this through the Device Manager or by doing the next step.
Create Power-Saving Hardware Profiles. Configure your laptop for the various ways in which you use it (on a plane, 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.
Reduce overheating by using a cooling pad. Even if it is a passive one (meaning, no fan), just getting the notebook up and off a flat surface helps tremendously. Air circulation is critical. Ever notice how hot the computer gets when you have it resting on your lap? Restricted air flow. How about sitting on a desk. Really restricted. And the worst of all is when you have it lying on a blanket or pillow or some such. You have just smothered it. Don’t be surprised then when your computer starts running slowly or apps begin hanging up.
If you’re in the market for a new laptop, there are features and components you should consider to get the most mileage from the system’s battery.
- An ultra-low-voltage processor, such as the Intel Penryn or one from VIA’s line of ULV processors.
- A solid-state storage drive, which requires less power and, since there are no spinning parts, will suffer less wear and tear than a traditional hard drive.
- An LED display. Although pricey, LEDs use much less power than LCD.
- A smaller screen. A smaller screen means a smaller backlight, which will also save on battery drain.
- Don’t skimp on your battery. If you choose the lowest-cost battery you’ll probably get a battery that degrades quickly, and you’ll end up buying a replacement too soon anyway. So spend the money now to save expense and frustration down the road.
- Don’t buy an expired battery. A good indicator of a battery’s performance is how far into its product life it is, whether it’s used or new. If possible, look at the bottom of the battery and find the manufacture date.
So follow all these guidelines and, shoot, your battery may never run down…..
» Filed Under Devices, General
Comments
Leave a Reply