Laptop Battery

[ritesh]

I have an Acer Aspire 4740 (laptop) and does the battery get damage if I leave it plugged in while am using it?

thanks

 

[CarlTR6]

Once I have the battery fully charged, I remove it while I am plugged in.

 

[MK2]

Hi,

Maybe it's better to remove it when it's fully charged but your laptop has a lithium ion battery wich can be charged even if it's not empty.

MK2

 

[pebbly]

hi ritesh , have a look at this thread and follow Barman58s' Advice http://www.sevenforums.com/chillout-room/69345-stupid-stupid-laptop-battery.html it will certainly help with battery life

 

[MacGyvr]

I recommend never leaving a laptop plugged in for long periods of time, LiOn or not. If you need to leave it plugged in, remove the battery.

 

[DeaconFrost]

There's no reason to remove the battery, as it won't charge anymore, or be used as it reaches 100%. Laptops, cell phones, etc are all smart enough to not over-charge the battery. I am absolutely convinced people overthink their battery usage. At most, I'd say to drain the battery down every so often, and then charge it back up fully, but even that is becoming less and less important, as the batteries don't usually exhibit memory functions anymore. I'm not sure why you'd think the battery would become damanged when it was plugged in. If so, most business users would damage their batteries all the time.

 

[MK2]

I agree with DeaconFrost, but opinions are divided on this.
When I had a laptop I always left the battery inside and never had a problem with it,
but if you want to be on the safe side just follow the advice on the thread pebbly gave a link to.

MK2

 

[Bill2]

I dont know whether forum members have seen the "Battery guide"? Heres an excerpt.

How long will my battery last?
Your notebook battery will deteriorate over time whether you use it or not. Although the Li-Ion industry does not publicize this fact, your battery’s clock began ticking the moment it was assembled. The elements inside your battery slowly react with each other, eventually rendering the battery unable to supply the required power to your notebook. In addition, your battery is rated to last between 300 and 800 charge/recharge cycles. It will gradually lose charge capacity rather than abruptly fail to power your notebook.
The general consensus is that notebook batteries last one to three years. While you can slow the battery’s aging and loss of capacity, you cannot stop either decline. The temperature of the battery, combined with the amount and nature of its usage contribute significantly to your battery’s lifespan. You can ease the aging process with some care and maintenance.

Temperature
Lower temperatures slow down the self-discharge (loss of charge while disconnected) and aging process of the elements within your battery. Therefore it follows that higher temperatures shorten the life of your battery. Leaving your battery connected while on AC power causes the internal temperature of the battery to rise. Removing your battery and storing it in a cool, dry place will help to slow the aging process. Keeping your notebook in a hot environment is also detrimental to your battery.

Amount of Usage
The Lithium-Ion batteries used in notebooks are rated to handle between 300 and 800 charge/discharge cycles. Some of these cycles are used when you leave your battery connected to your notebook while on AC power. On AC power, the notebook will routinely “top-off” the battery when its charge reaches predetermined levels (i.e. 95%). Removing your battery and storing it in a cool, dry place will help to preserve some of these cycles.

Nature of Usage
Li-Ion batteries do not suffer from the memory-effect (requiring complete discharge before recharging to avoid loss of capacity) like older rechargeable batteries. Regular full discharge/recharge cycles result in an increased loss of capacity per cycle. A series of partial discharge cycles are better for Li-Ion batteries than a single full discharge. You should, however, calibrate your battery routinely.

Read more...
Notebook Battery Guide

Another interesting discussion.

Will keeping my laptop plugged in hurt battery?

These are among the best battery info resources IMO.

 

[MK2]

Thanks for the information Bill2, learned a couple of things!

So it's up to each user to weigh the pro's and con's for their own situation.

Connected or Disconnected when on AC Power?

Things to consider if:

You are removing the battery while on AC power:
Pros:
• Preserves charge cycles
• Keeps the battery temperature lower thus slowing the aging process
Cons:
• Lose the battery as backup power during power outages and voltage drops
• Unsaved work will be lost and data may be corrupted without backup power
• UPS (uninterruptible power supply) needed to serve as backup power source

You are leaving the battery connected while on AC power:
Pros:
• Battery serves as backup power during power outages and voltage drops
• More convenient for “grab-and-go” use
• Battery doesn’t require sufficient warming time (as it would after being stored in the refrigerator)
Cons:
• Loss of charge cycles
• Battery’s temperature is higher on AC power resulting in accelerated aging

Quote also from: Notebook Battery Guide

MK2

 

[mitchell65]

Ever so slightly off topic but if you remove the battery whilst using the AC then it does increase the airflow to the laptop. Standing said laptop up on a wire cake tray or a couple of struts to give a gap underneath also helps to keep the CP cooler hence more efficient. (BTW eat the cakes before using cake tray!)

 

[DeaconFrost]

Ever so slightly off topic but if you remove the battery whilst using the AC then it does increase the airflow to the laptop. Standing said laptop up on a wire cake tray or a couple of struts to give a gap underneath also helps to keep the CP cooler hence more efficient. (BTW eat the cakes before using cake tray!)

If so, that's probably a very poorly designed laptop. I'd agree, to some extent, with older laptops that raising them up helps, but the battery chamber never has any vents inside of it. What good would a vent be if the battery covered it? That means if you were running on battery, the laptop would be hotter, running the fans more, and hurting the overall battery life (time). Leaving the battery in has no effect on airflow, unless it is an extended battery designed to lift the back of the laptop up, such as some of the smaller HP business laptops.

I'm absolutely convinced people are overthinking and over analyzing battery usage, etc. Just simplify your thinking, use common sense, and that's it.

 

[mitchell65]

Ever so slightly off topic but if you remove the battery whilst using the AC then it does increase the airflow to the laptop. Standing said laptop up on a wire cake tray or a couple of struts to give a gap underneath also helps to keep the CP cooler hence more efficient. (BTW eat the cakes before using cake tray!)

If so, that's probably a very poorly designed laptop. I'd agree, to some extent, with older laptops that raising them up helps, but the battery chamber never has any vents inside of it. What good would a vent be if the battery covered it? That means if you were running on battery, the laptop would be hotter, running the fans more, and hurting the overall battery life (time). Leaving the battery in has no effect on airflow, unless it is an extended battery designed to lift the back of the laptop up, such as some of the smaller HP business laptops.

I'm absolutely convinced people are overthinking and over analyzing battery usage, etc. Just simplify your thinking, use common sense, and that's it.

I do take your point, DeaconFrost but I have to say that I have been running a small computer help club for "mature" users for a number of years and the most queries I have had regarding laptops have been overheating problems when used for extended periods. In practically every case the removal of the battery and improving airflow underneath the machine has improved the situation. I have found that removing the battery and leaving the battery cover removed has effectively increased the exposed surface area of the underside of the laptop thereby assisting in heat dissipation. It may weel be that I have only been compensating for poor design but I found it has worked on numerous occasions. This seems to me a fairly common sense approach.

 

[DeaconFrost]

This seems to me a fairly common sense approach.

Check in the slots where the batteries were removed from, and tell me if there are any vents. You won't find them, because the battery is meant to be in the laptop, which would block such vents when needed most. You're resolutions to the over heating were due to lifting up the back of the laptop, letting more air flow underneath. That was a problem with older laptops and any recent poorly designed ones. In fact, if a recent laptop is over-heating at all, it is a sign of another issue, like dust in the fans, hardware error (see HP's problems), etc.

If you take apart a somewhat recent laptop, such as a Dell Latitude D series, you'll be able to see how the air flow was designed. You'll quickly realize why removing a battery does not help with heat issues.

On another note, if the battery is getting too hot, it is soon time to replace it. A sign of a poor quality battery (either a knock off, or a failing one) is that it overheats when trying to charge. It draws more of a charge to compensate for the lack of power passing through. If you complain to any major OEM that your battery is not holding a charge, it is one of the first things they will ask you in the diagnosis. The same goes for cell phone batteries as well.

 

[mitchell65]

Check in the slots where the batteries were removed from, and tell me if there are any vents.

I am well aware of that fact. You will see that I didn't mention vents in the battery compartment, what I did refer to was increasing the exposed surface area thereby dissipating heat more efficiently.
It really has worked for me on a number of occasions. Perhaps I should add that I am talking about users who buy a laptop in preference to a Desktop just for the smaller footprint with no intention of using a laptop for it's prime purpose, ie. Portability!
Shall we just amicably agree to disagree?

 

[DeaconFrost]

I hope I didn't come across as being not amicable, but I guess we can agree to disagree. What I posted was from my own personal experiences as well. If removing the battery helps a laptop performance cooler and better, that may very well work in a pinch, but you have another issue going on, such as dust, failing fans, failing hard drive, etc. Laptops are designed to run with the battery snapped in. In the cases you've mentioned above, I've often found that shooting compressed air into the vents and fans often helps as well. If the laptop is in a dusty environment, it can suck in a lot of dust that effectively insultates the components inside, keeping them warmer.

 

[mitchell65]

I've often found that shooting compressed air into the vents and fans often helps as well. If the laptop is in a dusty environment, it can suck in a lot of dust that effectively insultates the components inside, keeping them warmer.

I could not agree more although I have found at times that the vents are so bunged up that blasting from the outside can compact the fluff. Often I have had to remove the keyboard and blow from the inside especially those makes that have the processor in the most difficult to get at place!

 

[DeaconFrost]

Absolutely. I forgot to type that part in. Blowing into the laptop only shuffles the dust around, so it can resettle back in place. It should be blown out of the laptop instead. I've already blown out what I can best describe as a small carpet from a laptop.

 

[mitchell65]

Absolutely. I forgot to type that part in. Blowing into the laptop only shuffles the dust around, so it can resettle back in place. It should be blown out of the laptop instead. I've already blown out what I can best describe as a small carpet from a laptop.

You should see what a hairy dog can do to a laptop! See here:
View attachment 87609

 

[pebbly]

Absolutely. I forgot to type that part in. Blowing into the laptop only shuffles the dust around, so it can resettle back in place. It should be blown out of the laptop instead. I've already blown out what I can best describe as a small carpet from a laptop.

You should see what a hairy dog can do to a laptop! See here:
View attachment 87609

OT she's a beauty John