Laptop Battery Question

[hnsn82]

is it true that if we plug the ac power when laptop battery is full it gonna screw the battery ???

thanks in advance

 

[Shalmanese]

unless you do it for a matter of months, the effect is negligible.

What happens is that the battery slowly discharges to 99.5% and the charger detects that its not at 100% and starts charging it again. After a few hundred cycles you batterey gets screwed.

 

[hnsn82]

so at what level of the battery left I should then plug my AC adaptor in ??

thanks again

 

[Jeff7]

Originally posted by: hnsn82
so at what level of the battery left I should then plug my AC adaptor in ??

thanks again

When I had a laptop, I plugged the AC in almost whenever I was going to be near an outlet for more than a few minutes.
I don't know many of the quirks of Lithium-ion batteries (most common kind of laptop battery, I assume that's what you have); MaximumPC did an article on battery technologies, I'll have to find that issue and see what they say about Li-Ion.

 

[hnsn82]

anyone know about conditioning the battery ??? what does that mean ? and what does it do to the battery ???

thanks for replying...

 

[Jeff7]

Originally posted by: hnsn82
anyone know about conditioning the battery ??? what does that mean ? and what does it do to the battery ???

thanks for replying...

Conditioning applies to Ni-cad batteries. That's when the charger completely discharges the batteries before charging them. Ni-cads have a "memory effect"; example: if you repeatedly (like maybe 50 times in a row I'm guessing?) discharge a ni-cad to only half-capacity and then charge it from there, something changes chemically inside the battery that causes crystals to form, so that that half-capacity 'mark' becomes "full capacity." Discharging the battery completely is good for it by preventing this memory effect. They say this as an illustration:
"It's like an old freezer that collects frost - the more frost there is on the interior, the harder it is to defrost the freezer. And as the frost continues to build, you'll have less capacity inside the freezer"


Just found the battery guide issue of MaxPC (I look forward to electronic formats instead of paper; sure was buried).
Ni-MH batteries also have a memory effect, but it is considerably less of a problem. Li-ion have no memory effect at all. The only bad thing that they really say about it is that if the lithium inside comes into contact with water - "boom."

 

[apoppin]

I just talked to a Dell Senior Tech.

Whenever you are using your notebook as a desktop - TAKE IT OUT - it will more than double the life of your battery.