5 tips to Increase runtime of your laptop and batteries

Oftentimes for laptops, prospective buyers can be more interested in the battery life of the product than the actual specifications and hardware that lie under the hood. After all, what good is a portable computer if it cannot run on batteries for as long as the user requires? here is some novice tips and buying guides that any current or future laptop owner can take advantage of.

1. Use Windows Power Manager

If a laptop will be running on batteries often, then the settings on the software end should be configured to reflect that kind of usage. Thus, the built-in Power Management utility for Windows 7 is a useful and user-friendly tool for optimizing battery life by manipulating laptop performance and behavior. The tool can be reached under Power Options in the Control Panel or just by typing in ‘powercfg.cpl’ in the Run Command window.

With the power manager tool, users are given direct access to a variety of power options. Windows includes a couple of pre-built battery plans such as power over performance, performance over power, and balanced. Of course, if you want more control over a power plan, you’d have to customize one yourself.

The Advanced settings window will let users do just that by allowing direct access to set behavioral commands for different computer components. For example,USB ports can be disabled and CPUs can be underclocked to conserve battery life. These are powerful and easily adaptable options that should be adjusted to fit the needs of the user.

2. Disable Wireless/Bluetooth

Occasionally, wireless settings such as Wi-Fi and Bluetooth are enabled by default. This is sometimes unwanted especially since some users will rarely use the Bluetooth functionality on the laptop. We suggest disabling Bluetooth when not in use.

If the laptop is not going to connect to a network for any reason (such as working outdoors or on a train), then the wireless connection should be turned off. Otherwise, the laptop will continuously search for available local networks and drain valuable battery life in the process.

3.Reduce the Brightness of the Display

Adjusting the display brightness is one of the quickest methods to conserving battery life. Usually, the brightness settings are directly on the laptop keyboard and are often associated with the fn (function) key. A lower brightness level will mean that more time can be squeezed out of the battery.

If short on battery life, we suggest toning down the brightness to a level that will still allow for optimal working conditions. Brightness levels that are too low or high, however, can cause eyestrain and make reading text a chore. To prevent this, a higher brightness setting is suggested for working outdoors under sunny conditions while lower settings can be used for working indoors or in classrooms. In general, good modern displays can produce a brightness of over 200cd/m2, but such levels are not necessary for everyday office use. Play around with the brightness settings to optimize battery life and to see which levels are most comfortable for the eyes.

On a similar note, most new laptops are equipped with LED backlighting instead of the traditional fluorescent tubes. LED has the potential to produce a more even light throughout the screen while maintaining superior power efficiency compared to fluorescent lighting. Therefore, LED backlit screens are preferable if purchasing a new laptop with battery life in mind.

4. Purchase a New/Larger Battery

If buying a laptop online, especially from a brand name company like Dell, HP, Sony, or Lenovo, the buyer will usually be given the option to choose between a 6-cell, 8-cell, or 12-cell Lithium-ion battery module. A cell refers to one of the many independent, often cylindrical, lithium ion-based batteries that make up the entire laptop battery module itself.

Generally, a battery with more cells will last longer than a battery with less. This also scales quite nicely, as a 12-cell battery will last roughly twice as long as a 6-cell battery, assuming all else equal. Therefore, it might be worth considering a battery with more cells right from the get-go when purchasing a new laptop.

Be aware, however, that the larger the number of cells, the larger and heavier the battery module will be in general. Many laptops and notbooks nowadays dedicate almost the entire backside just for the battery. A module with a lower number of cells may fit snugly on the back, but a larger module will have some volume protruding outwards behind the laptop due to the increased cell count. Additionally, larger battery modules will demand more from your wallet, so make sure the extra weight and size will be worth the investment.

If the current laptop is more than a few years old, it is advisable to purchase a new battery if a new laptop is not yet worth the investment. All Li-ion batteries degrade overtime, so a battery that once provided 4 hours of use two years ago may only provide 1 to 2 hours today and will ultimately continue to provide less overtime. At this point, a new battery will aid laptop runtime much more significantly than many of the suggestions on this list.

While on the subject of batteries, certain new laptops allow for up to 2 batteries to be attached 
simultaneously for up to double the runtime. Thus, these laptops can be favorable options for future battery-conscious laptop owners. Examples include the Sony Vaio S Series and Lenovo’s updated ThinkPad series for 2011. With dual batteries, reaching double-digit hours when off the power grid should be easily reachable.

5. Block Flash Ads and Close Unnecessary Processes

One of the easiest ways to increase runtime is to simply close and shut down unwanted programs and background activities. This will reduce hard drive access, free up RAM, and decrease CPU activity, all of which will directly benefit battery life.

A good example is the number of active windows and icons on the Windows task bar. Programs that automatically run on startup can be disabled if they are never actively used in order to reduce clutter, while excess browser tabs and graphic-heavy websites can be closed if no longer needed to save RAM and CPU cycles.

Additionally, many Flash-based ads around the web are notorious not just for their impracticality, but also for occupying more CPU power and are thus needless battery drains. To save battery power, users should install Flash-blocking programs or extensions for their browsers. The most popular free extension for this purpose is Adblock, which is currently available for Firefox, Safari, and Chrome. For Internet Explorer, users can disable Flash under the Tools and Manage Add-Ons menu, where the Shockwave Flash Object can be found. While incremental, these steps can make a difference in battery runtime during long sessions.