Extending Your Laptop’s Life with New Laptop Batteries
By Dan Minks
|
|
For many of us, the moment we decide we need to replace our old laptop computer is when we realize that the battery power just isn’t lasting long enough anymore. This is an inevitable part of a laptop’s life, but it’s actually no reason to replace your computer. There can be a lot of great life in it yet! Simply purchasing a new laptop battery can extend your laptop’s life for another couple of years.
Shopping for laptop batteries can seem intimidating. After all, there are tons of different batteries on the market and they all look pretty much the same at first glance. No need to worry, though. Just follow these simple tips and you’ll have your laptop powered back up in no time.
Compatibility of Laptop Batteries Laptop batteries need to be a precise match with the laptops they work in. Even though they may look identical, there can be a number of subtle but critical differences.
Battery Chemistry As the technology of batteries has evolved over the years, a variety of battery chemistry types have been developed. The newest and most advanced type of battery currently widely available is lithium-ion, also known as Li-ion. If your laptop is a newer model, it likely has this type of battery. Older laptops often work with nickel-based batteries, such as nickel metal hydride or nickel cadmium batteries.
Lithium-ion batteries provide a number of advantages over older models; they can be smaller, lighter, and more powerful than nickel-based batteries. Perhaps most importantly, lithium-based laptop batteries do not suffer from what is known as the “memory effect.” The memory effect has to do with the rule you’ve probably heard that you should never charge a battery without running it down all the way first. This rule is absolutely true for nickel-based batteries. If you give only a partial charge
repeatedly to a nickel-based battery, it will “remember” that charge level and only store that much power in the future. For lithium-based batteries, however, complete discharging can be harmful, so avoid running them down completely.
As a general rule, only one type of battery chemistry will be compatible with your laptop, so make sure that you choose the right type of battery. Consult your user’s manual or take a look at the old battery you are replacing to see what type of battery your laptop requires.
Dimensions It’s pretty obvious that a new laptop battery needs to fit into the same space on your laptop that the old battery did. All the same, it’s easy to forget to check for battery dimensions when you’re faced with all the battery options out there. If possible, measure the laptop battery that you are replacing. You can also likely find the necessary battery dimensions in your laptop’s manual. If neither of these methods works, take the measurements of the open space in your laptop.
Model and Part Numbers When all’s said and done, the easiest way to find the right laptop batteries is to have them identified as compatible with your laptop make and model. Fortunately, most retailers make this easy for you. This is where shopping for laptop batteries online can come in especially handy.
Check out an online retailer like Laptops for Less that allows you to search by your laptop’s brand and model. Make sure that you know the precise name and number of your specific model so you can find an exact match. While many laptop batteries are compatible with multiple models, you’ll want to know for certain that yours will be a good fit with the new battery you purchase.
Extending Your Laptop’s Life Giving your laptop a couple more years of good life is pretty simple. Laptop batteries are like the heart of laptop computers – keep the heart going strong and you’ll keep your laptop working, too.
About the author:
Dan Minks is an IT professional who is known among his friends as “the laptop guru.” Find all the laptop batteries you need at LapTopforLess
