Notebook battery indicating false time value

Asked By 10 points N/A Posted on -
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I own a Toshiba Satellite laptop. When I run it on Battery I get the remaining time as 2 and half at first.

Later when I check again in about 15 minutes it indicates the remaining time as less than an hour.  

But it should be 2 and 20 minutes.

After another 15 or 20 minutes it will give the low battery warning.

why am I having this problem? 

 

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Best Answer by OliverQueen
Answered By 0 points N/A #116464

Notebook battery indicating false time value

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  • As you have not mentioned the laptop model and the OS, it is difficult to give an exact answer. However,
  • these laptops are using Lithium Ion batteries, which decay over time depending on the usage of the battery. This may helps to give a wrong value of the time
  • You follow these steps and as a solution
  •  Fully charge the battery
  • Modify the power saving profile
  • Disable the hibernation and standby mode
  • Disable the battery options which says to switch off the machine when battery  off
  • This helps to utilize the fully battery level and make it empty
  • After this, fully charge the laptop without switching on
  • Check whether the problem is sorted out
  • If this does not work for you, it is suggested to install software like ‘Power Meter Plus’ But your laptop OS should be between Windows 3.11 and Windows Vista

Thanks

Kerry

 

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Best Answer
Answered By 0 points N/A #116466

Notebook battery indicating false time value

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Laptop lithium-ion batteries lose power over time.  It is a normal occurrence.  

You operating system's battery meter measures the current charge at certain intervals, calculates how much charge is most likely remaining and shows you the approximate time.  

Before we conclude that the battery is already dying, please try these steps first:

  1. Let your battery drain fully.  You will know the battery has reached its cut off point when your computer shuts itself down automatically.  NOTE:  DO NOT attempt to turn on your laptop once it shuts down.
  2. With your laptop still OFF, plug in the AC power adaptor to your outlet and let it charge to 100%.

The 2 steps above will recalibrate the power meter of your lithium-ion battery.  The power meter is what regulates the flow of current to the battery during charging, and it is the component that reports the power status to your operating system.  

Because we tend to charge our laptops while they are only partially drained, this somehow "confuses" the power meter such that it no longer knows when the battery is really empty or full.

Because it is not recommended to let your battery drain fully before charging it every time, do this only to recalibrate your power meter after every 30 recharge cycles.

Answered By 590495 points N/A #316839

Notebook battery indicating false time value

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The battery life of your laptop or the number of operating hours of the battery depends on how you use the machine. The total operating hours of the battery as indicated by the manufacturer is just an approximate and it is usually measured when the computer is idle or not in use. Of course, the estimated operating hours will change as you use or when you use the device.

If the battery is fully charged and you play a game for about an hour, that estimated two and a half hour (2.5 hours) battery life indicated in the laptop will not be followed because the battery consumption is high when the CPU usage is high.

But if your laptop is idle and the battery dies faster than normal, it could mean the battery is nearing its end and needs to be replaced. Here’s an explanation how to prolong the life of a laptop battery. The life of a fully charged battery will depend on how you use it or how you use the device.

If you play games on your laptop, it will surely drain the battery faster than normal. But if you’re only doing some typing like in Microsoft Office Word or browsing the internet, the battery is consumed at a normal rate. But if you want to know the life of the battery in general, here’s an explanation about the lifespan of a laptop battery.

The total lifespan of a laptop’s battery or any other battery depends on how you use your computer or device. The more often you charge, the faster its lifespan will decrease. All rechargeable batteries have limited lifespan and its average lifespan is determined by the cycle count which is then equivalent to charge and discharge.

In a laptop computer, the average lifespan of a Li-Ion battery is about 700 to 800 cycles and normally lasts around two to three years (2 – 3 years). According to Apple, you can allow your laptop to be connected to the charger even when the battery is full. This will not damage the battery. In this state, the laptop will run on AC power instead of battery.

But you need to let your laptop run on battery at least once a month to allow the battery to discharge normally. The idea here is simple: when the battery is charging and it reaches the full charge capacity, there is a mechanism in the laptop’s power supply that will stop the charging of the battery and shifts to AC power.

When the laptop is running on AC power, the battery will remain at its level without discharging therefore preventing the cycle count from decreasing and prolonging its life. To extend the life of your battery, try following this method to save the cost of buying new batteries.

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