PC TECH: HOT How to extend the life of your laptop battery

[Raji-Baba]

Batteries don't last forever. Like
everything except diamonds and viral
tweets, they eventually wear out. But
with proper care, a laptop battery can
still carry a sufficient charge until you're
ready to move on to a better laptop.
But it's a tradeoff. Taking the best care
of your laptop battery just may be more
of a hassle than it's worth.
So let me start with a less effective, but
more practical approach:
When you're at home, running the
laptop on AC power, and you believe that
it will stay plugged in for a week or
more, shut down the PC and remove the
battery.
Then, when you need the battery, plug it
back in. If it's been more than two
months since you last used the battery,
check it and charge it before taking it on
the road.
Of course, you should never remove or
insert a laptop battery while the laptop
is running. Always shut it down first.
That's the practical approach. Here's the
extreme care method:
For the absolute best results, never
charge it past 80 percent or let it drop
below 20 percent. When you're working
on AC power, keep an eye on the
battery's charging. When it hits or passes
80 percent, shut down your computer,
remove the battery, then reboot. When
it's time to take the laptop on the road,
shut it down again and reinsert the
battery.
And when you're using the laptop on
battery power, shut it down before the
battery drops below 20 percent, and
don't start it up again until you have AC
power.
As I said, probably more of a hassle than
it's worth.
One more thing: The hotter the battery,
the quicker it degrades. So keep your
laptop cool.