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 Laptop Battery Test

By Bobby George

If you use a laptop, as many people do, you undoubtedly rely on its battery to give you portability and power when working away from the desk. Even if you keep the laptop ac adapter plugged in the majority of the time, there are still those instances when you need to work wirelessly and use the battery power. If you've had your laptop for a long time (2 years or more on average), you may notice that your battery life is nothing like it was when the laptop was originally purchased. For example, users with a battery rated at 2.5 to 3 hours may feel lucky to squeeze an hour out of the battery while using the computer. If this is the case, you may need a new replacement battery for your laptop computer. However, there are instances when the battery is still in relatively good condition and the problem lies in the configuration of the notebook computer. In these instances, a change in the settings or the running programs on the computer may bring the battery life close to its full potential. If you feel your battery is not running as long as it should be, here is how you can test to see if the problem lies with the battery or the computer.

 The first, and easiest, thing you can do is look at the battery indicator in your operating system. This is usually a small battery icon in the task or status bar and will indicate the charge percentage if you hover over or click it with your mouse. The first test is to see if this indicator, after the computer has been plugged in to the ac adapter for quite some time, shows a 100% charge. If it does not, you should unplug the ac adapter, allow the computer to completely discharge until it turns itself off, charge it for 6-8 hours, and check the indicator again. If it still does not show a 100% charge, the problem is probably with the battery itself and it may need to be replaced.

 If you do get a 100% charge indication, but still feel you battery could perform better than it is currently, there is another test you should perform. Some batteries die quickly simply because they are put under a lot of strain by the computer. If the notebook is running many programs simultaneously or has many processes running in the background, the battery may die quickly from the load. However, it may be hard to determine this because background processes, by definition, are designed to run without the user being always aware that they are running. If you want to see if these processes are to blame for the diminished runtime, you can run the computer in safe mode. You can enter safe mode when starting your computer. Most models require the user to press the F5 key or the F8 key before the operating system logo appears. If this doesn't work, refer to your owner’s manual or contact the manufacturer to learn the correct steps for entering safe mode. Safe mode disables all unnecessary processes and programs that are not essential for running the laptop. You should use the laptop in safe mode and see what kind of battery life you get. If it is a lot better, then your programs and processes may be to blame and you can then begin the process of narrowing down the suspects until you are able to kill of the battery-hungry culprits.

Notebook batteries that lose their runtime are not always at the point of no return. However, if they are, it is a good idea to find a laptop battery sale and purchase a replacement.