How to increase laptop battery life. Laptop battery life

The average laptop battery life ranges from 500 to 1000 full charge and discharge cycles, depending on the manufacturer. Almost always, original batteries last longer than copies and compatible analogues, but their price is higher. The service life of the battery is significantly reduced if it is used incorrectly: the reversible process is disrupted. chemical reaction, and the battery eventually stops holding a charge, after which it has to be replaced.

Any laptop battery consists of a metal plate placed in an acid or alkali solution. Under the influence of electromechanical processes, they give up part of their substance and then take it back. Over time, the intensity of the chemical reaction weakens, after which it stops completely. The battery life with proper use is 3-5 years, but it can be significantly reduced under the influence of the following factors:

• Long-term storage in a discharged state is fatal to the battery. In this case, the battery plates deteriorate, after which recharging is impossible.
• Intense shaking, shocks and other mechanical damage lead to short-circuiting of the plates, as a result of which the normal charging process is disrupted.
• Lithium-ion batteries, which are the most common today, do not like to operate at sub-zero temperatures. At the same time, the capacity decreases, that is, the battery begins to lose its ability to release accumulated energy.
• The service life is also shortened due to overheating. Direct influences have a negative impact sun rays, as well as location near heaters.

How to extend battery life?

Extending the life of a laptop battery requires compliance with the charging regime. The optimal level is 50-70%, so it is not recommended to keep the device constantly connected to the mains. If the laptop is used at home as a desktop computer, it is recommended to separate the battery during operation and then connect it again. However, it should not lie unloaded for a long time. At least twice a month it must be fully charged and discharged so that the capacity does not decrease.

How to extend the life of your laptop battery and increase battery life? You need to follow a few simple rules:

• The laptop must be placed on a hard surface and the cooling vents must not be blocked. Special stands with a built-in cooler will help to avoid battery overheating.
• It is not advisable to allow the battery to completely discharge. If the charge level approaches 10-20%, stop working and look for an opportunity to recharge from the network.
• To increase battery life, you must turn off all extraneous and additional features. It is worth reducing the number of programs in startup, disabling the Wi-Fi and Bluetooth modules if they are not needed right now. If work needs to be interrupted, the device must be put into sleep mode to save battery.

A special program for increasing the life of a laptop battery, for example, Battery Optimizer, will show which functions can be temporarily disabled to save money, in addition, it shows the degree of battery wear.

Any battery is consumables, and its endless use is impossible. However, following simple recommendations will significantly increase its service life and achieve long-term battery life. If you decide to change the battery, in our store you will find high-quality components for any laptop model.

The operating time of any mobile device (including a laptop) depends on two things: the quality of charging of the battery (whether it is fully charged or not dead) and the degree of load on the device during operation.

And if the battery capacity cannot be increased (unless you replace it with a new one), then optimizing the load of various applications and Windows on a laptop is quite possible! Actually, this is what this article will talk about...

How to increase laptop battery life by optimizing application and Windows load

1. Monitor brightness

Renders great influence for the duration of the laptop operation (probably this is the most important parameter). I don’t encourage anyone to squint, but in many cases high brightness is not needed (or the screen can be turned off completely): for example, you are listening to music or radio stations on the Internet, talking on Skype (without video), copying some file from the Internet, installing an application etc.

To adjust the brightness of your laptop screen, you can use:

Function keys (for example, on my Dell laptop these are the Fn+F11 or Fn+F12 buttons);

Windows Control Panel: Power Options section.

2.Turn off the display + go to sleep mode

If from time to time you do not need the image on the screen, for example, you turned on a player with a collection of music and listen to it, or even walked away from the laptop, it is recommended to set a time to turn off the display when the user is not active.

You can do this in the Windows Control Panel under Power Options. Having selected a power supply scheme, its settings window should open as in Fig. 2. Here you need to specify after what time to turn off the display (for example, after 1-2 minutes) and after what time to put the laptop into sleep mode.

Sleep mode is a laptop operating mode created specifically for minimal power consumption. In this mode, the laptop can work for a very long time (for example, a day or two) even on a half-charged battery. If you move away from your laptop and want to keep applications running and all open windows (+ save battery power) - put it into sleep mode!

3. Selecting the optimal power supply scheme

In the same Power Options section of the Windows Control Panel, there are several power plans (see Figure 3): High Performance, Balanced, and Energy Saver. Choose Energy Saver if you want to increase the battery life of your laptop (as a rule, the preset settings are optimal for most users).

4. Disabling unnecessary devices

If an optical mouse is connected to the laptop, an external hard drive, scanner, printer and other devices - it is highly advisable to turn off everything that you will not use. For example, turning off external hard drive can extend laptop operating time by 15-30 minutes. (in some cases more).

In addition, pay attention to Bluetooth and Wi-fi. If you don't need them, turn them off as well. It is very convenient to use the tray for this (and you can immediately see what works and what doesn’t + you can disable what is not needed). By the way, even if you do not have Bluetooth devices connected, the radio module itself can work and have energy (see Fig. 4)!

Rice. 4. Bluetooth on (left), Bluetooth off (right). Windows 8.

5. Applications and background tasks, CPU load (central processing unit)

Very often the computer processor is loaded with processes and tasks that the user does not need. Needless to say, CPU load greatly affects the battery life of a laptop?!

6. CD-Rom drive

The CD drive can drain the battery significantly. Therefore, if you know in advance which disc you will listen to or watch, I recommend copying it to your hard drive (for example, using image creation programs - http://pcpro100.info/virtualnyiy-disk-i-diskovod/) and then working from the battery to open the image from the HDD.

7. Windows appearance

And the last thing I wanted to dwell on. Many users install all sorts of add-ons: all sorts of gadgets, spinners, calendars and other “garbage”, which can seriously affect the laptop’s operating time. I recommend turning off everything unnecessary and leaving it light (even slightly ascetic) appearance Windows (you can even choose a classic theme).

Checking the battery charge

If the laptop discharges too quickly, it is possible that the battery is dead and settings and application optimization alone will not help.

In general, the typical battery life of a laptop is as follows (average figures*):

With heavy load (games, HD videos, etc.) - 1-1.5 hours;

For light loading (office applications, listening to music, etc.) - 2-4 chacha.

To check the battery charge, I like to use the AIDA 64 multifunctional utility (in the power section, see Fig. 6). If the current capacity is 100%, then everything is in order, if the capacity is less than 80%, there is reason to think about changing the battery.

Many users who choose a decent laptop on the mobile market are interested in the lifespan of the device along with ergonomics and performance. Yes, this sounds quite strange, because this parameter entirely depends on the owner and the conditions of use.

This article will take a detailed look at the laptop. The user is invited to familiarize himself with all sorts of methods that can extend the “life” of a mobile device. The information will affect not only the built-in components of the gadget, but will also tell the owner how to prevent the failure of accessories and batteries.

To be or not to be?

When purchasing a new laptop, many owners rush to unpack the battery and quickly connect it to the device. Only constantly working in the office or at home, near electrical outlet, users day after day reduce the life of the laptop, or rather, the battery, eliminating one of the basic parameters of the device - mobility. There are only two options to solve this problem:

1. If you prefer to work indoors, you should not remove the battery from the box at all. A battery in a preserved state can be stored for many years. At any time, if necessary, it can be connected to a laptop and made the device mobile.
2. The second option requires the user to work offline. Two or three times a week, the laptop owner must unplug the mobile device from the outlet and discharge the battery to 3-5%, performing a full battery charging cycle. This is the only way to extend the life of batteries.

Proper use of the display

Yes, the LCD screen also falls into the risk zone. Average term Laptop service is directly proportional to the performance of the screen. After all, this is almost half of a mobile device. There are many factors influencing the display, and the reader will have to get acquainted with them all.

The LCD screen is connected to the base of the laptop with a special cable (many small-section wires). And the hinges are only needed to open the lid and set the angle of inclination. Naturally, frequent movements of this cover at large angles contribute to the fracture of the cables over time. The problem can be easily solved. When carrying out annual maintenance of a laptop, it is necessary to check the cable. If it is jammed in one place, then you need to move it up or down, securing it with adhesive tape to the laptop body.

Those who like to work with a mobile device in nature should take care that direct sunlight does not fall on the matrix. In just one year of improper use you can burn out the display. The laptop will not break, but the color rendition will change dramatically for the worse.

Integrated approach

For many users interested in how to increase the life of a laptop, store salespeople recommend using additional cooling for the mobile device. This solution looks quite simple, which causes distrust among potential buyers. A regular stand 3-5 centimeters high and 1-2 fans that blow upward. This solution may look strange, but for two decades now all laptop manufacturers have not been able to solve the problem of cooling their products. Therefore, such a stand is the best thing that can be recommended to the user to increase the life of the mobile device.

Modern style dictates terms

Many buyers have already noticed the emergence of a new style that affects all mobile devices. We are talking about color and monochrome vinyl stickers on the body of the gadget. Yes, to some this will seem like just another youth stupidity, but most users will benefit from covering their laptops. The fact is that the vinyl coating increases the rigidity of the case.

The main thing here is to correctly apply the texture to the plastic of the mobile device. As practice shows, the service life of a laptop increases thanks to such modifications. After all, if you drop the device on the ground, even from a height of half a meter, it will remain safe and sound.

Cleanliness is the key to health

The owner also needs to take care of the constant presence of debris and dust that collects inside the device thanks to the cooling system. Experts recommend performing maintenance 1-2 times a year, depending on operating conditions. If there are pets in the room or renovations are underway, frequent cleaning is required, otherwise the device can be serviced less frequently.

As for the cleaning itself, the user himself makes the decision - to give the gadget to a service center or to service it himself. The first option is preferable, because it involves complete disassembly of the mobile device, and only it can extend the life of the laptop.

Power elements of a mobile device

Here we will not talk about the mobile device itself, but about an accessory that is an integral part of any laptop. It would seem that what could happen to a regular charger that comes with a gadget, but there are still problems. For example, the life of an HP laptop can be significantly extended by using just one safety measure in everyday life - disconnecting the accessory from the power supply when not using the mobile device.

The problem is that the branded charger very sensitive to voltage drops, since it was created for the American market. In domestic electrical networks There is no stability, the voltage is constantly changing (90-250 volts). It is these surges that damage the power supply. And then the real lottery - the accessory will either burn out on its own, or take the laptop’s power management board with it.

Meal in front of laptop display

The lifespan of a laptop can be reduced in a completely unusual way. Those who like to eat or drink some kind of drink in front of the device display always think that they are careful and prudent. But, as practice shows, 50% of users have drunk tea, coffee or beer at least once in their lives. These disappointing statistics suggest that eating in front of a laptop screen does not lead to anything good.

It’s good if the gadget has a rubberized keyboard and the liquid simply drains through the drain holes, but not all users have such expensive devices at hand. In most cases, one mug of hot coffee can destroy in a few seconds motherboard laptop and render the keyboard unusable.

In pursuit of high performance

Trying to save money, many gamers buy low-power laptops. Such users believe the baseless recommendations of enthusiasts that any laptop can be overclocked without problems. Yes, this is true, but few people know that such overclocking for a mobile device could be the first and last. After all, all the components inside the device body are soldered, and it is impossible for a worker to simply replace a burnt-out element.

For example, the class service life is set by the manufacturer at five years. This is the officially announced figure. However, the Taiwanese manufacturer, in its operating requirements, prohibits the user from increasing the device’s performance using software or hardware. In fact, the service life depends only on the user, or rather, on his actions.

There are more questions than answers

Still, what is the service life of a laptop? As practice shows, with proper operation recommended by the manufacturer, a mobile device can operate for 7-10 years without breakdowns. Here everything directly depends on the installed components. For example, the “life” of a hard magnetic drive is 7 years of active use, and the processor will work for 15 years without problems. Don’t forget about the battery, which has an official service life of only 3 years, but in practice, with the correct charging cycle, this period can be safely doubled.

In conclusion

When trying to figure out the lifespan of a laptop, many potential buyers and users overlook another factor that they will have to deal with. We are talking about the obsolescence of a mobile device. On at this stage technical development there is such a thing as “product actualization”. Here the manufacturer is already trying to impose on users the fact that the service life of a mobile device cannot exceed 5 years, forcing the buyer to abandon old technologies and purchase new gadgets.

Sooner or later, many owners think about increasing the battery life of their laptop. Of course, the easiest way to achieve this goal is to buy a new battery with a larger capacity. But what to do if the budget does not allow you to allocate a separate amount for such purchases? Fortunately, in the vast majority of cases you can do without purchasing new battery. It is enough to carry out a few simple manipulations to significantly increase the operating time of the laptop. It is these simple methods that our review today will focus on.

When might you need to increase laptop operating time?

The need to extend the battery life of a laptop may arise in three cases:

1. Initially, a model with a low battery capacity was purchased. As a rule, many people save on purchases, even in the case of appliances. The cheapest laptops usually have weak batteries, designed for a maximum of 4-5 hours of battery life (and this is with an average system load). It is clear that there may not be money to purchase another device or a better battery. This is where various tricks come to the rescue, which we will talk about a little later.
2. A person often has to work on a laptop without a network connection. As a rule, this applies to those who often go on business trips, but even while traveling are forced to stay in touch with their superiors. Of course, trains may have sockets with which you can charge a working gadget, but often there are not many functioning sockets, and a lot of time is spent replenishing energy reserves. Therefore, it is better to immediately provide your device with optimal autonomy.
3. The battery has worn out due to prolonged use. It's probably no secret that laptop batteries don't last forever. Over time, they lose their original capacity and gadgets run out much faster. In such situations, the most optimal solution is to replace the battery, but if it is not possible to do it right away, you can use other methods.

Let's say right away that the methods described below are only suitable for increasing the battery life of a laptop for simple tasks. They will not help gamers in any way, because when you start a game (even an old one), the gadget begins to use a huge amount of its resources (processor, video card, RAM, downloading files from the hard drive). All this will cause the device to consume energy resources in an hour and a half. Even if you put a capacitive battery on a model with average hardware, autonomy in game mode will not exceed 2.5–3 hours.

How to increase laptop battery life: basic methods

There are three main ways to extend the life of a device on a single charge. These methods are as simple as possible, so even an inexperienced user can handle them.

1. Decrease display brightness. The fundamental method for solving the problem at hand and the best place to start. If you work with word processors, view email, or surf the web, you simply don't need high brightness. It can be reduced to 40–50% (or even lower). The readability of letters and numbers will not be affected, but energy consumption will be significantly reduced. On many laptops, you can change the display brightness in two ways: using function keys (for example, Fn+F11/F12) or through the control panel. To lower the brightness using the second method, you need to go to the “power supply” section. There will be a brightness slider that you can move left and right using your mouse or touchpad.
2. Turn off the monitor and sleep. It often happens that a person working on a laptop gets distracted. For example, you need to answer a call, go out for a smoke break, or go get coffee. When the device is not in use, it continues to consume energy to maintain the display. And if the brightness is set almost to maximum, the waste becomes colossal. That is why it is recommended to configure the screen to automatically turn off if the gadget is not actively used for some time. The optimal shutdown time is considered to be 1–2 minutes. You can also configure the transition to sleep mode. Here it is better to set a little more time (for example, 5 minutes). To carry out these manipulations, you must again go to the control panel and select the “power supply” category. There will be an item “Setting the power supply scheme”. By clicking on the button with this name, the user will be taken to a menu where there will be two items of interest to us: turn off the display and put the computer into sleep mode. Opposite each item there will be a block in which you can select a specific transition time. Set the parameters recommended above. After this, you can safely go away on business. The device itself will turn off the monitor and, if necessary, go into sleep mode.
3. Changing the optimal power supply scheme. The above methods are quite simple, but this one is even easier. You need to go to the “power options” section in the control panel again. The central menu will give you three operating options to choose from: balanced, high performance and energy saving. When selecting the last item, the system itself will reduce energy consumption as much as possible. In particular, the performance of the device will be reduced. It follows that the latter method is good, but is only suitable for those cases when the laptop needs to perform simple work operations.

When answering the question of how to increase the battery life of a laptop, it is worth highlighting an energy saving mode such as hibernation. It is available on almost all new and relatively new laptop models. The key difference between hibernation and simple sleep is that in the first case, the gadget almost completely stops consuming energy (that is, it seems to turn off completely), and in the second, the system still spends some of the energy to maintain operation RAM. Why RAM? Because it is precisely this resource that stores all the working data that was used at the time of the transition to sleep. In the case of hibernation, information is temporarily stored on the hard drive, that is, it takes up physical space, and this does not require the use of energy (your programs are not deleted every time you turn off the device). Thus, the laptop turns off almost completely, and energy consumption becomes imperceptible.

The hibernation mode is somewhat inferior to the sleep mode in terms of the speed of return to the working state. Usually the device wakes up from sleep in a matter of seconds; in the case of hibernation, you will have to wait longer (from 30 seconds to a couple of minutes). This is because it takes longer for the computer to download all the saved files. However, the second method guarantees amazing battery savings and data security (even if the laptop is left for a long time and the battery is depleted, previously unsaved information will still remain the next time you turn it on). A separate storage file is provided for all data - hiberfil.sys.

Despite its obvious superiority, hibernation still has a couple of flaws:

1. To use this mode, you must have a large amount of free space on your hard drive, otherwise the transition will not take place.
2. Not all video cards support this mode. Sometimes updating drivers can help, but this method does not always work.

How to increase laptop battery life: auxiliary methods

You can proceed to the methods discussed below if the 3 main ones turned out to be ineffective.

1. Disabling devices that are not currently in use. For example, you can turn off your mouse, scanner or printer, or external hard drive. As for the last element among those listed, it uses battery energy the most. So, turning it off can extend autonomous functioning by half an hour (and sometimes more).
2. Disable wireless networks. Wi-Fi and Bluetooth drain the battery a lot. Therefore, if you only work with text or other files stored on your hard drive, turn off these modules.
3. Minimal optical drive usage. Of course, many modern laptop models do not have DVD drives at all, but if the developers have equipped your device with this component, use it as rarely as possible. And if you have written down some information from a disk, remove it immediately, because if there is optical media, the drive will continue to operate and consume energy.
4. Stopping processes and background tasks. There are almost always a huge number of background programs running on your computer. With good hardware, they do not affect the performance of the laptop in any way, but if the device runs only on its battery, a lot of energy is wasted. And all because many background programs load the processor, which, in turn, takes energy from the battery to process a significant number of processes. Also, some applications may remain in the background even after closing (for example, Google Chrome is guilty of this). A “hanging” browser not only loads the processor, but also takes up part of the RAM. To close programs that are not in use at a particular moment, you must simultaneously hold down the Alt+Ctrl+Del or Shift+Ctrl+Esc keys. The task manager will appear and display all work processes. Close unnecessary background programs, thereby reducing the load on the system and battery. And here are the processes Windows is better do not touch if you are an inexperienced user. Fortunately, they are at the very bottom of the list, so you won’t accidentally turn off some important process.
5. Disable Windows Auxiliary Appearance. Of course, every user wants his computer desktop to look beautiful and have several additional elements. Typically, these elements include calendars, beautifully designed clocks, a system load indicator, and so on. All this looks really beautiful and modern, but it is better to use these add-ons when operating from the mains, as they will draw a large amount of energy from the battery.
6. Defragment the disk. Many laptop owners neglect this action, and in vain. The fact is that some pieces of data are stored in different areas of memory. When these fragments need to be used together, the system puts them together, wasting energy resources. After defragmentation, the scattered parts will merge. As a result, the laptop will begin to execute commands faster, and the load on the system and battery will decrease.
7. Reduce screen resolution- a very simple but effective method of extending autonomy. With a lower resolution, the system needs to spend less resources on building a picture, which means the battery is consumed more slowly.
8. Disable the program responsible for automatically checking mail. This application is very useful, but it requires a lot of energy for its benefits. It’s better to periodically check your e-mail yourself, but it will work much longer without recharging.
9. Disable screensavers. These additional decorations are rarely used today, but if you do use them, remember to turn them off when the laptop is running on battery power.

The battery life of a laptop can be increased in the most obvious way - by cleaning it from dust and dirt. Often, a battery performs worse if dust particles accumulate on its contacts. In addition, it is necessary to ensure that the contacts do not oxidize.

Another point concerns the extension of battery life, but we will mention it anyway. The fact is that the battery will last a long time if you give it periodic “practice”. In other words, if the device is most often connected to the network, do not forget to turn it off and work only on the battery (until it is completely discharged). It is recommended to carry out this action at least once a week.

In general, if you correctly apply all the above methods, you can extend the battery life by an hour and a half (or maybe more).

How do you know when it's time to change your laptop battery?

No matter how carefully you treat your device, sooner or later the moment will come when the battery begins to deteriorate. No, the battery will not break suddenly, but its capacity will gradually begin to fall. If you notice that your gadget has started to run down faster than usual, try using the AIDA 64 utility. It has a “Power Options” section. When you open this section, you will find a variety of information about the battery you are using. But the most important of them is the line “Current capacity”. It displays the digital capacity value (for example, 4000 mWh), as well as the percentage of available volume. If the value is 100%, then the battery is fine. If the utility displays 80–90% in the line, then the battery is slightly worn out, but can still provide good battery life. If the indicator drops below 80%, it’s time to think about purchasing a new battery, because the current one is too worn out, and therefore the described methods will not solve the problem of autonomy. The price of a laptop battery in Russia starts from 1890 rubles. The exact cost depends on the model of the device itself, the type and capacity of the new battery.

Well, so we found out how to increase the operating time of a laptop. As you can see, all the methods mentioned are quite simple. They can be used by people of any level of experience. The main thing is to treat your device with care, and it will serve you for many years.

Has your laptop battery often died when you needed to complete an important task? After reading this article, you will find out how to increase battery life, and you can avoid similar situations in the future.

The previous generation of laptops used nickel cadmium batteries, which were not only ineffective, but also dangerous for environment. Subsequently appeared nickel metal hydride batteries, which were used to power laptops, were more efficient than nickel-cadmium. Today, most laptops run on lithium-ion batteries, which are the most energy efficient of all. These batteries have a lower discharge rate, which gives them the longest battery life. But still, the battery life of a laptop running autonomously depends on the applications that you use on it. Let's find out what the average laptop battery life is and how you can increase it.

Average laptop battery life.

The battery life declared by most laptop manufacturers is about five hours, but this is only possible in ideal conditions. This means that you should start the screensaver with a blank screen and touch it as little as possible. In practice, it is not possible to use a laptop in such conditions. Therefore, you can expect the battery to last between two and four hours. Even a laptop with a long battery life can rarely run more than four hours continuously. Again, a lot depends on the type of applications you are running.

Games and videos quickly drain battery life, while simple word processing applications consume much less power. If you plan to be on the road for a long time, make sure your laptop battery is fully charged. Bring a few extra batteries or get yourself a laptop with plug-in battery options. Lithium-ion batteries should never be completely discharged if you want them to last a long time. If you're not using a long-lasting battery, then you might find our tips for extending the life of your laptop battery useful.

How to increase the lifespan of your laptop battery.

Defragment regularly
Hard drive performance greatly affects the life of your laptop's battery. The faster a hard drive runs, the less energy it requires. The speed of the hard drive can be increased by regularly defragmenting the information stored on it. This technology will make your hard drive faster and more energy efficient.

Reduce brightness
Almost every laptop has a brightness setting option. Some are even equipped with devices for changing processor parameters and adjusting the cooling system. Therefore, by setting the screen brightness to minimum, you will be able to extract quite a lot of available energy. Also, instead of using standby mode, choose sleep mode to save energy.

Minimize tasks
If possible, only run programs that are important to you at the moment. We often keep several applications running that we don't really need. Prioritize and close any programs that may be running at another time. This way, your processor will be less stressed and will therefore work more efficiently, even while consuming less power.

Disable peripherals
All external devices, including USB devices, should be disconnected when your laptop is running on battery power. Do not charge an iPod or other USB device while the laptop is running offline.

Increase your RAM
Increasing the amount of RAM will allow your laptop to run using free memory instead of virtual memory. Because virtual memory uses the hard drive, its use often results in higher power consumption. However, increasing the amount of RAM at the same time leads to an increase in energy consumption, so you should resort to this remedy only if you intend to use programs that require a significant amount of memory.

Avoid using CDs and DVDs
Whenever possible, run programs from your hard drive instead of running them from a CD or DVD. CD and DVD drives consume a lot of power even when they are not running and the discs are simply sitting in the drive. Their engine is responsible for irrational energy consumption.

Take care of your batteries
Finally, it’s worth adding that taking care of your batteries will extend their life. Wipe the battery terminals frequently with a soft cloth and do not store them for a long time in a fully charged state.

We hope this article helps you extend the life of your laptop batteries. With proper care and optimal use, they will last you a full lifetime.