Leave the battery in?

Qdos

Qdos

Qdos

Associate
Joined
29 Feb 2008
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One thing I'm wondering about my laptop - do I leave the battery in when it's on my desk and therefore on charge for long periods?

I seem to recall a while ago that it was bad to have the battery in when it was on charge all the time as it messes with the battery life- is this still the case? (if it ever was)

It's a Dell Vostro 1510, if that makes any difference.
 
beermonster said:
it will be lithium ion and has no memory effect so its fine to leave in.
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Whilst this is true, the heat from the laptop will damage the battery to a far larger extent than anything else. This will show as a permanent loss of capacity. Unlike older nickel based batteries, once some capacity in a lithium ion/polymer battery has been lost, it can never be regained.

As such, when running the laptop on mains, it is better for the battery and will increase its life if removed from the laptop.

In addition, many laptops will run their CPUs (etc.) at higher clock speeds when running on mains, thus generating more heat which in turn causes a drop in battery life.

Jon
 
Out.
I used to leave my battery in my Thinkpad in, even though it was sat in a dock all the time. After 4 months, the battery went from an average of 2 hours of life to around 10mins! :eek:
 
If you going to be connected to the mains, leave the battery out. As others have already stated, heat generated from the laptop will shorten the life of the battery.

If you're not going to use battery, make sure it has around 40% charge left in it and then store it somewhere cool. Sticking it in a food bag and then the fridge is a good idea.
 
Is it ok to remove the battery when the laptop is switched on as long as it's connected to the mains and using the mains power? Or is it best to just switch off and then remove the battery?
 
Your laptop is designed for you to leave the battery in ALL the time. The circuitry inside the machine, the power supply, even the battery itself. It should be left in whether you've got it plugged in to a power conditioner or not.

And you should know that the battery acts as a power conditioner itself - all the power from the power supply goes through the battery, if it's in place.

Actually, a power conditioner, or UPS, is nothing more than a big battery with an alarm on it.

So. leave the battery in. Discharge it all the way once a month (pull the plug a few hours before you have to go to bed, let it completely die and then plug it back in). And use the computer manufacturer's recommended conditioning software every so often to keep your battery fresh.

As to whether a battery will discharge over time if not in the machine, yes, it will. Left for months or years, it will discharge. So, it's a good idea to bicycle your batteries if you have more than one, rotating them every few weeks.
 
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drusus said:
Your laptop is designed for you to leave the battery in ALL the time. The circuitry inside the machine, the power supply, even the battery itself. It should be left in whether you've got it plugged in to a power conditioner or not.

And you should know that the battery acts as a power conditioner itself - all the power from the power supply goes through the battery, if it's in place.
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Wrong, and wrong.
 
BoomAM said:
Wrong, and wrong.
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On the first count, what proof exactly do you have to suggest otherwise?

And on the second count, yes mains power will go through the battery circuit first, simply because if the mains power fails it can take over immediately.
 
norm said:
On the first count, what proof exactly do you have to suggest otherwise?

And on the second count, yes mains power will go through the battery circuit first, simply because if the mains power fails it can take over immediately.
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What proof does HE, or you, have that either are correct?

Laptop batterys arnt designed to be in all the time when its plugged in the mains. It just damages them.
What proof do i have? Hows about 50+ laptops at work where staff members leave them plugged in all the time and wonder why the battery life is rubbish? Proof enough? I think so, moving on...

The second point, old laptops have the power go through the battery before the system. But modern day ones dont.
If your viewpoint was true, then explain how a battery can be removed when the system is on and it keeps running? Because if it went through the battery first, then the power would just cut out.
 
when you remove the battery it switches so it doesnt go through it

what hes saying is right.

he even tells you why your staff at works batterys do get worse gradually.
 
"andy" said:
when you remove the battery it switches so it doesnt go through it
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I disagree.

he even tells you why your staff at works batterys do get worse gradually.
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So the laptop/laptop being plugged in constantly for 3-6 months, on 6 month old laptop is just common battery degradation? No, thats the battery getting damaged from being plugged in.

Ive repaired enough laptops in my time and taken apart latitudes to fix their power connectors enough times to know how it gets its power.

Even if we take all that out of the equation, explain how my Thinkpad, in the space of 2-3months worth of being plugged in constantly, saw its battery life drop by 70%+? Or the same scenario and similar timescales on my iBook?
Or everyone else's experiances in this thread?

Im sorry, but im not willing to conceed either point.
I work with laptops as part of my job, i have to repair them enough times, and see enough different scenarios of usage to judge what is and isnt good for doing to a laptop and its parts.
 
take it out. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithium_ion#disadvantages High temperature at full charge makes the battery lose capacity faster. EDIT: it pretty much says remove the battery if constantly running from the mains.
When using a notebook computer running from fixed line power over extended periods, the battery should be removed,[37] and stored in a cool place so that it is not affected by the heat produced by the computer.
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