Battery Management Functions on Laptops
May 15, 2009 by Jason Bean
Filed under Computers
I recently got a new battery for my laptop. I’ve been working without a useful battery for quite some time now. I couldn’t even get all the way through an initial startup without getting a critical battery alert if I wasn’t plugged in. Now I’m happy to say I’ve got a new battery and can truly work wirelessly again.
After checking a variety of websites I ended up at DuracellDirect.com and purchased a replacement battery for my laptop. After receiving my battery, on the paper that was included with the packaging it gave me some tips on prolonging the life of my new battery. Among those tips were to not charge it unnecessarily. It recommended that when computing on direct power by being plugged into the wall, to remove the battery from the laptop.
I began to think that would be a great idea. That was quickly followed by asking why there wasn’t a software switch within my operating system to disconnect my battery from being charged when the computer was plugged-in. After typing that sentence I thought to myself why this couldn’t be automatic when the computer knows it’s plugged-in.
Does anybody know if this is an option at some point on some system in the future? If it really helps batteries, why wouldn’t that be a standard feature these days?
I’m not sure about software that prevents overcharging but I’m sure about the fact that heat also decreases the life of laptop batteries (specially Li-Ion) so keeping the battery attached while plugged in might damage it because of the heat generated by your laptop.
It’s likely that your power settings are configured so that your laptop uses maximum performance when plugged in, your laptop then is more likely to produce more heat while plugged in than when on battery alone.