How much will BitLocker eat my battery? [more inside]
posted by @homer on Aug 31, 2009 - 3 answers

Aging MacBook Pro not recognizing its battery. Not under warranty. Is resetting the PMU my next step? [more inside]
posted by kalapierson on Aug 6, 2009 - 12 answers

My HP Pavillion dv6000 laptop works fine...except for one little battery related thing. [more inside]
posted by Neonshock on Apr 11, 2009 - 4 answers

Is my iBook G4 dying? [more inside]
posted by Brachiosaurus on Apr 2, 2009 - 7 answers

I'm about to purchase an aftermarket Li-ion laptop battery on eBay. However, I'm quite confused about the differences in specs for mAh and number of battery cells. Which is more important and how are they related? [more inside]
posted by iamisaid on Feb 16, 2009 - 7 answers

Battery For Aging Laptop: OEM or 3rd Party? I need a new battery for my four year old Mac powerbook (old one discharges within 60 mins). Like the original, it lost its endurance after 2 years and currently discharges after 60 mins of use. There are few OEM batteries still around for this thing (though I did find one on eBay). But it occurs to me that while no Apple battery could possibly be fresh at this point, the 3rd party replacement ones MIGHT be more recently made. Though I'd usually hesitate to go with a 3rd party manufacturer on something like this. Any advice? FWIW, it's a Powerbook G4 15", and battery is A1045/A1078/A1148
posted by jimmyjimjim on Feb 9, 2009 - 11 answers

How do I find out which battery is compatible with my laptop? (Toshiba Satellite L300-1A8) [more inside]
posted by bostonhill on Jan 12, 2009 - 2 answers

Are there ever any other reputable vendors for laptop batteries other than the laptop manufacturer? [more inside]
posted by oflinkey on Dec 21, 2008 - 11 answers

Backing up an HP laptop for the ignorant. Halp? [more inside]
posted by CwgrlUp on Dec 6, 2008 - 7 answers

Help me figure out this strange laptop battery behavior. [more inside]
posted by wfrgms on Nov 23, 2008 - 10 answers

Should I buy a new laptop battery or a new laptop? [more inside]
posted by bluefly on Nov 15, 2008 - 15 answers

Powerbook G4 (hardware?) woes, followed by death of battery LEDs. [more inside]
posted by Monstrous Moonshine on Nov 4, 2008 - 4 answers

My computer is flaking out on me (perhaps due to my NVIDIA driver?). I can't get it to a tech support place until Thanksgiving! Help! [more inside]
posted by karyotypical on Oct 11, 2008 - 9 answers

Dell battery may be dead, or maybe it's software. I'm stumped. [more inside]
posted by yazi on Sep 19, 2008 - 8 answers

I need to buy a new battery for my Dell Inspiron 6000, and I've found two options: A and B. Obviously A is more expensive, but it has a higher mAH. I by default prefer the longest battery life possible, but I also don't know jack about laptop batteries. Searching the google has given me only whiffs and bits of information. Tell me hive, is 8000mAH better than 6600mAH enough to warrant $20 more? What can I expect from each, very roughly, in terms of hours of continuous use between charges? Also, feel free to inform me that A and/or B are terrible sites I should not buy from.
posted by ictow on Jul 28, 2008 - 4 answers

My laptop gives a "system timer error" and so I probably need some guidance in replacing my laptop's CMOS battery [more inside]
posted by daksya on Jun 3, 2008 - 9 answers

Help my buy a new laptop battery! [more inside]
posted by kingjoeshmoe on May 10, 2008 - 7 answers

My new off-brand laptop battery (Dell Latitude X1) suddenly stopped working after about three weeks of use. The BIOS says "The system could not communicate with this battery," and Windows says "No battery detected." Is there anything I can do besides shell out for an OEM battery? Is there any way to reset the internal electronics in the battery itself? [more inside]
posted by stopgap on Apr 7, 2008 - 2 answers

My laptop battery drains even when the computer is turned off. [more inside]
posted by oddman on Dec 30, 2007 - 8 answers

My girlfriend has a Dell Inspiron, and the battery light won't stop flashing. [more inside]
posted by synecdoche on Dec 9, 2007 - 16 answers

Did my cat fry my laptop battery? Either way, what can I do about it? [more inside]
posted by shallowcenter on Nov 29, 2007 - 7 answers

Help point me towards the best laptop for taking into the backcountry... [more inside]
posted by wavejumper on Nov 13, 2007 - 2 answers

Where to buy a laptop battery? [more inside]
posted by trim17 on Oct 3, 2007 - 9 answers

My new off-brand battery for my ibook G4 won't charge past 49%. Help! [more inside]
posted by ilyanassa on Sep 27, 2007 - 5 answers

My laptop tells me that my battery is Critical, then it lasts for a further half hour! What is going on? [more inside]
posted by cholly on Jun 7, 2007 - 8 answers

Help me diagnose my laptop battery problems... [more inside]
posted by drpynchon on May 28, 2007 - 10 answers

The tip (inside stem) of my power adapter broke off in my wife's computer (White iBook G4). Thus, its unable to recharge. How do I get it out? What are these parts called so I can look it up at an appropriate place? [more inside]
posted by GPF on Apr 24, 2007 - 16 answers

The battery in my IBM/Lenovo Thinkpad Z60t went out of warranty 4/29/07. When I woke up today, the machine says "Irreparable damage to the battery has been detected. Replace the battery with a new one." Is it really damaged? Could it be a broken sensor? Some kind of software glitch? Is this typical? Is there a better alternative to the $159 replacement?
posted by fourstar on Apr 1, 2007 - 15 answers

How much exactly will using my laptop on AC destroy my battery? [more inside]
posted by qvantamon on Nov 25, 2006 - 15 answers

I spilt Top Ramen on my laptop - is it gone for good? [more inside]
posted by brittanyq on Nov 17, 2006 - 6 answers

Help me understand/explain anomalous laptop power adapter and/or battery behaviour. Why would it be dead, then fine? Why would the system crash when it should hibernate? [more inside]
posted by tiamat on Oct 27, 2006 - 6 answers

Why won't my Thinkpad battery charge fully when it's plugged into the wall? [more inside]
posted by escabeche on Oct 24, 2006 - 10 answers

My laptop isn't getting along with it's power supply. I thought it was the power supply, but apparently not. Help please! [more inside]
posted by JonahBlack on Oct 17, 2006 - 11 answers

Probablynotfilter: Is there a way I can keep usb on during standby mode on my laptop, so I can charge my mp3 player? [more inside]
posted by kingjoeshmoe on Sep 27, 2006 - 9 answers

Battery confusingness! Yesterday my Dell Inspiron 5150 laptop got caught in a loop of my bad programming. I finally got it stopped, but it had drained the battery. Plugging the charger in made the battery light start flashing... [more inside]
posted by JonahBlack on Aug 15, 2006 - 9 answers

I'm looking to purchase a "new" battery for my laptop... a simple google search brings up a ton of possibilities, while a froogle search brings up some more realistic prices. I'm looking for anyone that has experience with buying laptop batteries online. [more inside]
posted by hatsix on Jun 20, 2006 - 6 answers

Can I recondition a dead laptop battery? [more inside]
posted by jclovebrew on Jun 16, 2006 - 7 answers

I have an old portable solar panel setup rattling around, and I'd like to put it to use. [more inside]
posted by pullayup on Mar 2, 2006 - 4 answers

WindowsXPFilter: How can I make the power meter icon on my new laptop display the time remaining in addition to the percent of battery power left? [more inside]
posted by richardhay on Jan 28, 2006 - 8 answers

Laptop battery solutions: Should out-of-the-box battery life be the deciding factor in which laptop to purchase? Or are there reasonable workarounds? [more inside]
posted by poweredbybeard on Dec 26, 2005 - 17 answers

My laptop won't boot with the battery in, even when it's plugged in. Is it dead? [more inside]
posted by miniape on Dec 21, 2005 - 9 answers

Battery power cycling - it's offered as advice for poor battery life on pretty much anything, from cell phones to laptops. Heck, T-Mobile told me to do it today after I switched phones and the same battery dropped from 50 hours of standby time to 9 hours. However, I've only ever cycled one thing - a laptop battery - and that dropped its capacity from 4 hours to 30 minutes. Because of that I'm a bit wary, so my question is, what's the logic behind power cycling a battery, and has anyone actually seen any benefits from it?
posted by philulrich on Nov 11, 2005 - 9 answers

How do I extend the life of my new laptop battery? I'm not talking about per-charge capacity, but long-term reusability - maximizing the amount of time before this battery becomes a useless brick like the last one. [more inside]
posted by Caviar on Oct 27, 2005 - 18 answers

Can I replace my lousy laptop battery with a better one? I just bought an Acer Aspire 3000 series laptop and didn't realize how terrible the battery-life was until I got it home. The battery only lasts about an hour. Is there an aftermarket battery I can swap my battery for that lasts longer? [more inside]
posted by JuliaKM on Oct 14, 2005 - 5 answers

Laptop power management. [more inside]
posted by jimmy on Aug 30, 2005 - 6 answers

BatteryFilter: I've got a Dell Latitude C800 that I've been nothing but happy with, until recently. Of late, the power seems to be iffy at best, switching at random between AC power and battery power... [more inside]
posted by yellowcandy on Apr 29, 2005 - 4 answers

My battery acts funny. It always says I have over three hours when it first gets charged. Then after just a few minutes it says much less, like an hour or so. Then within minutes it is off. I have charged it completely and let it drain to completely of which I have been told resets the power manager. Do I need a new battery? If I do, are any of the after market batteries better than the Apple battery? The computer is two and a half years old.
posted by snowjoe on Apr 27, 2005 - 8 answers

I recently replaced the battery in my old Dell Inspiron 4000. Today I noticed that the led on the power adapter goes off if the battery is in the machine and the machine says it is running on batteries. If I unplug the battery the computer turns off. I am able to boot on AC power but the moment I insert the battery the adapter stops working. I think this is new otherwise the battery would've drained days ago. Has anyone encountered this before? Any ideas? Also, if the computer is off and I plug the adapter into it while the battery is also present, the led on the adapter goes out. If I then remove the battery and attempt to boot the machine, nothing happens. This is very weird. [more inside]
posted by Grod on Nov 20, 2004 - 2 answers

Is there anything I can do to make my laptop battery last longer? I've had two HP laptops, and within months the batteries in both of them stopped holding a full charge. Presently, the icon indicates a fully charged battery, but when I unplug the laptop the battery dies within 30 minutes. Is this an HP specific problem? Is there a "better" kind of battery I can buy?
posted by Harvey Birdman on Aug 12, 2004 - 10 answers