Windows 7 battery (Consider replacing)

[Som]

[FONT=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Hi, I keep getting a message saying 'Consider Replacing Battery'. I'm running Windows 7 on a Toshiba A300. I've read that this is a problem with Windows 7. I'm wondering if Toshiba has a fix for this such as a fix for the BIOS.etc or maybe a driver? I can't really find much help as far as a solution. It looks like I should downgrade to XP..

Help me out
[/FONT]

 

[Jonathan_King]

Welcome!

Are you having problems with low battery capacity?

 

[Som]

Welcome!

Are you having problems with low battery capacity?

Yes. I ran a command to show the Power Charge and it showed that there was 39% of the full charge. I've read that this is a bug with Windows 7 and that the 'Consider replacing your battery' shows up when it's below 40

 

[The Howling Wolves]

Might be as simple as changing your settings. See tutorial.

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/778-power-plan-settings-change.html

 

[Som]

Might be as simple as changing your settings. See tutorial.

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/778-power-plan-settings-change.html

I've changed the power settings earlier but the red X is still there with the message

 

[Jonathan_King]

When did the message start appearing?

I know there was a bug in the release candidate about that, but it should have been fixed in RTM.

 

[The Howling Wolves]

Have you done this recently in order to get a full charge?

UNTILL CHARGED/RAN DOWN - THREE TIMES. If you set at least one day to do this... you can charge-rundown and recharge at least 3 times in 9 to 12 hours. I also usually run down in the dvd usage to FULL erase and record on a DVD RW- wow that does take the power. Set the ERASE to FULL ERASE not FAST.
PS: you might also retest the old BATTERY, this way....depends on how old your battery is.. it is suppost to be NO BRAIN so this erronous info does not happen.

 

[Som]

When did the message start appearing?

I know there was a bug in the release candidate about that, but it should have been fixed in RTM.

The message started appearing yesterday

Have you done this recently in order to get a full charge?

UNTILL CHARGED/RAN DOWN - THREE TIMES. If you set at least one day to do this... you can charge-rundown and recharge at least 3 times in 9 to 12 hours. I also usually run down in the dvd usage to FULL erase and record on a DVD RW- wow that does take the power. Set the ERASE to FULL ERASE not FAST.
PS: you might also retest the old BATTERY, this way....depends on how old your battery is.. it is suppost to be NO BRAIN so this erronous info does not happen.

So should I just wait until the remaining battery goes to 0% and then recharge back to 100 three times?


This is the message

 

[Som]

The battery is about 1 year old

 

[Petey7]

How old is your computer? It looks like Toshiba does not sell them any more. When a laptop battery starts to reach the end of its usable life the message can appear. Several people claim it is a bug or some other error with the OS because XP did not have the programming necessary to determine how healthy a laptop battery is. My battery has gotten to the point that the light on my computer is red all the time when not plugged in and the battery icon claims no battery is installed. I'm going to try to get a new one in October or talk to my parents about getting one for me, if the battery stops holding any charge at all. Right now it will run on battery power for 15 minutes. I know that it is not just 7 causing this as it shows the same thing in the BIOS and Ubuntu.

 

[Som]

How old is your computer? It looks like Toshiba does not sell them any more. When a laptop battery starts to reach the end of its usable life the message can appear. Several people claim it is a bug or some other error with the OS because XP did not have the programming necessary to determine how healthy a laptop battery is. My battery has gotten to the point that the light on my computer is red all the time when not plugged in and the battery icon claims no battery is installed. I'm going to try to get a new one in October or talk to my parents about getting one for me, if the battery stops holding any charge at all. Right now it will run on battery power for 15 minutes. I know that it is not just 7 causing this as it shows the same thing in the BIOS and Ubuntu.

I don't think it is the computer because it used to run for hours on XP. It seems as if Win7 has sucked the battery life clean

 

[The Howling Wolves]

Do you have other item in the background running which will drain battery also.
I doubt that it is Win 7 fault but again, I am not there to see what else is going on.

 

[Petey7]

From the Wikipedia article on lithium ion batteries:
"Shelf life
Charging forms deposits inside the electrolyte that inhibit ion transport. Over time, the cell's capacity diminishes. The increase in internal resistance reduces the cell's ability to deliver current. This problem is more pronounced in high-current applications. The decrease means that older batteries do not charge as much as new ones (charging time required decreases proportionally).
High charge levels and elevated temperatures (whether from charging or ambient air) hasten capacity loss. Charging heat is caused by the carbon anode (typically replaced with lithium titanate which drastically reduces damage from charging, including expansion and other factors).
A unit that is full most of the time at 25 °C (77 °F) irreversibly loses approximately 20% capacity per year. Poor ventilation may increase temperatures, further shortening battery life. Loss rates vary by temperature: 6% loss at 0 °C (32 °F), 20% at 25 °C (77 °F), and 35% at 40 °C (104 °F). When stored at 40%–60% charge level, the capacity loss is reduced to 2%, 4%, and 15%, respectively."

Lithium-ion battery - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[Petey7]

BTW, I know it sucks. I'm pissed my warranty with Dell that I payed so much for does not cover this. I was expecting all hardware to be replaced when a problem happened. Now I have to pay out of pocket a new battery, when I didn't think I would have to for two more years.

 

[The Howling Wolves]

BTW, I know it sucks. I'm pissed my warranty with Dell that I payed so much for does not cover this. I was expecting all hardware to be replaced when a problem happened. Now I have to pay out of pocket a new battery, when I didn't think I would have to for two more years.

Petey,
Been there and done that.
Made me boiling mad!:mad2::mad2:

 

[Petey7]

Hey Howling Wolves. I like the new avatar. Didn't realize it was you at first.

Som, until your battery reaches the state mine it in, you should be okay. It if it last over an hour, don't worry about it. I saw you said it is about a year old. Which side of a year is it on. If its under a year old you may be able to get it replaced for free. Be warned, the battery usually has a separate warranty from the rest of the computer, so you may need to look that up.

Also, atbatt.com has a 9-cell battery for your laptop for 57USD, if you decide you need to go that route in the future.

 

[The Howling Wolves]

If it were my system, AND IT'S NOT), I would drain it, charge it overnight and see what the meter says.
Like Petey states the cost of batteries are not that expensive.
Anyway Som, hang in there and keep us posted as to the final outcome.

 

[Petey7]

i think I'm going to try that too just to see. I've drained plenty of times, but never recharged it without also starting the computer. I recommend trying it too, som.

 

[Brink]

Hello Som, and welcome to Seven Forums.

In addition, you might run a Power Efficiency Diagnostics Report to see what the results say. It has a "Battery analysis" section to help you get more information about your battery.

Hope this helps,
Shawn

 

[The Howling Wolves]

Hello Som, and welcome to Seven Forums.

In addition, you might run a Power Efficiency Diagnostics Report to see what the results say. It has a "Battery analysis" section to help you get more information about your battery.

Hope this helps,
Shawn

Good catch Shawn.
I forgot about that one.