Maximize Your Laptop Battery
One of the downsides of owning a notebook PC is battery life. Despite the claims of the marketing people, it always seems that you have to recharge more often than you expect. And not only that, but the actual lifespan of a battery before it needs replacing isn’t always up to scratch. Like all rechargeable batteries, the one in a notebook has a finite number of recharges before its performance degrades and eventually it will stop holding a charge. Although some unlucky people find their battery goes to that great landfill in the sky within a year – somehow, it always seems to be just when the warranty has expired – generally the battery in a notebook can last anywhere from 18 to 36 months, without any intervention. With some extra care, though, you can increase the longevity of the battery and at the same time stretch the time between recharges, giving you more time to do your work.
In this feature we’ll give you hints and tips on how you can prolong the running time of your notebook’s battery. On many netbooks, there may be fewer options to tweak, but you can still follow our tips to make your battery last longer.
Keep your computer cool, and it will operate more efficiently. As well as keeping it away from sunlight, clean air vents with a cloth to minimize dust, which can clog internal fans.
Prioritise your work; if you don’t have to multi task don’t. Consider switching off the autosave functions in MS Word or other applications. They are great but as they keep saving at regular intervals, they make your hard disk work harder, eating up battery power. That said, we should add a word of warning: when your battery is low switch autosave back on so you don’t lose work if the computer unexpectedly switches off when the battery goes flat.
Unplug unnecessary devices such as additional speakers, or things like DVD and hard disks that take power via USB from the laptop. Consider changing your screen resolution and brightness. The brighter the screen appears, the more electricity it is consuming. Work from your hard disk rather than the CD or DVD drive. On some laptops, you can even remove the optical drive.
If you’re using a very old laptop, you may well have a Ni-Cad rather than a Lithium Ion battery. If so you will want to prevent the ‘memory effect’ and keep the battery healthy by fully charging and then fully discharging it at least once every two to three weeks.
Protect your laptop and netbook with a stylish and personal laptop sleeve.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kristie_Haller
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