Laptop battery life

[GunsForBucks]

Got a new laptop and am using it at home.

Is it better to unplug it and use the battery? I don't want to ruin battery life by keeping it plugged in constantly if that is an issue.

Thanks for any replies!

[🦊Λℚ𝓤ΛƑΛᗯҜᔕ🦊]

CJM の投稿を引用：

🦊Λℚ𝓤ΛƑΛᗯҜᔕ🦊 の投稿を引用：

Dell XPS 13 from 2014. There is no external battery indicator but the windows battery % still shows it's at 100%. I just went out to the work room and powered it on to see. I routinely grab it and go take it around with me and often drain it to 30% to 20% and just go home and sit and plug it in. Battery always charges to 100% again.

Not charge level, the Health level. The Health level should never be at 100%.

What are you referring to with "health level" ? There is no way to read that either on the device or in windows that I can find. I looked in bios for it and there's nothing relating to that. Nothing in windows other than charge % and that's it.

[CJM]

🦊Λℚ𝓤ΛƑΛᗯҜᔕ🦊 の投稿を引用：

CJM の投稿を引用：

Not charge level, the Health level. The Health level should never be at 100%.

What are you referring to with "health level" ? There is no way to read that either on the device or in windows that I can find. I looked in bios for it and there's nothing relating to that. Nothing in windows other than charge % and that's it.

Newer laptops and phones have a Battery Health indicator in addition to the charge indicator.

Windows has a "PC Health App" which should report this number if it is supported by your device.

Lithium Ion batteries always report 100% charge, when they reach their peak current capacity, this is not necessarily the capacity they had at purchase.

My Surface Pro 4 was down to about 80% battery health from lite usage or about 7 hours, after about six years. Now approaching ten years later it is currently reporting that it is now down to 61% Battery Health, or about 2-3 hours.

It still charges to "100%" like all devices do these days, but 100% is now down to 3 hours, vs 8-9 hours at purchase. I think Windows 10 was lighter on the device at launch, the device seems slower these days overall, draining additional batter life...

[🦊Λℚ𝓤ΛƑΛᗯҜᔕ🦊]

CJM の投稿を引用：

Newer laptops and phones have a Battery Health indicator in addition to the charge indicator.

Windows has a "PC Health App" which should report this number if it is supported by your device.

Lithium Ion batteries always report 100% charge, when they reach their peak current capacity, this is not necessarily the capacity they had at purchase.

My Surface Pro 4 was down to about 80% battery health from lite usage or about 7 hours, after about six years. Now approaching ten years later it is currently reporting that it is now down to 61% Battery Health, or about 2-3 hours.

It still charges to "100%" like all devices do these days, but 100% is now down to 3 hours, vs 8-9 hours at purchase. I think Windows 10 was lighter on the device at launch, the device seems slower these days overall, draining additional batter life...

See here: https://i.imgur.com/SoI9EC8.png (You might have to copy-paste that into your browser's address bar to see it, sometimes if you click-through from Steam then Steam will block it from loading). Here's a screenshot. The only thing relating to battery is "Battery Capacity", which doesn't list a "Battery health %" that I can see anywhere.

I did some googling though and found a review of my old XPS laptop from 2014 and dell originally spec'd it at 11 hours battery life, the reviewer saw 9.5 - 10 hours typically and I'm getting about 7.5 - 8 hours on battery the last time I used it off-power a few weeks ago. So probably battery life is around 80%'ish, roughly, maybe 85%. Charging it to 100% on battery and making sure it stays plugged in to AC power after 100% doesn't seem to of effected much of anything. Maybe it degraded the battery -10% from new after 10 years but that's trivial really.

[r.linder]

🦊Λℚ𝓤ΛƑΛᗯҜᔕ🦊 の投稿を引用：

CJM の投稿を引用：

Newer laptops and phones have a Battery Health indicator in addition to the charge indicator.

Windows has a "PC Health App" which should report this number if it is supported by your device.

Lithium Ion batteries always report 100% charge, when they reach their peak current capacity, this is not necessarily the capacity they had at purchase.

My Surface Pro 4 was down to about 80% battery health from lite usage or about 7 hours, after about six years. Now approaching ten years later it is currently reporting that it is now down to 61% Battery Health, or about 2-3 hours.

It still charges to "100%" like all devices do these days, but 100% is now down to 3 hours, vs 8-9 hours at purchase. I think Windows 10 was lighter on the device at launch, the device seems slower these days overall, draining additional batter life...

See here: https://i.imgur.com/SoI9EC8.png (You might have to copy-paste that into your browser's address bar to see it, sometimes if you click-through from Steam then Steam will block it from loading). Here's a screenshot. The only thing relating to battery is "Battery Capacity", which doesn't list a "Battery health %" that I can see anywhere.

I did some googling though and found a review of my old XPS laptop from 2014 and dell originally spec'd it at 11 hours battery life, the reviewer saw 9.5 - 10 hours typically and I'm getting about 7.5 - 8 hours on battery the last time I used it off-power a few weeks ago. So probably battery life is around 80%'ish, roughly, maybe 85%. Charging it to 100% on battery and making sure it stays plugged in to AC power after 100% doesn't seem to of effected much of anything. Maybe it degraded the battery -10% from new after 10 years but that's trivial really.

It would've been closer to 90% if you hadn't been keeping it at 100% charge, taking proper care of lithium type batteries when charging can give you upwards of an extra year or more of lifespan compared to the alternative. That might seem trivial to you, but to others who might keep their laptop for years longer than you would, that can be a bigger deal.

[Bad 💀 Motha]

CJM の投稿を引用：

🦊Λℚ𝓤ΛƑΛᗯҜᔕ🦊 の投稿を引用：

What are you referring to with "health level" ? There is no way to read that either on the device or in windows that I can find. I looked in bios for it and there's nothing relating to that. Nothing in windows other than charge % and that's it.

Newer laptops and phones have a Battery Health indicator in addition to the charge indicator.

Windows has a "PC Health App" which should report this number if it is supported by your device.

Lithium Ion batteries always report 100% charge, when they reach their peak current capacity, this is not necessarily the capacity they had at purchase.

My Surface Pro 4 was down to about 80% battery health from lite usage or about 7 hours, after about six years. Now approaching ten years later it is currently reporting that it is now down to 61% Battery Health, or about 2-3 hours.

It still charges to "100%" like all devices do these days, but 100% is now down to 3 hours, vs 8-9 hours at purchase. I think Windows 10 was lighter on the device at launch, the device seems slower these days overall, draining additional batter life...

Even on Laptops that were from around 2009 onward I could check the Battery Health with CPUID HWMonitor. Most support this type of a feature its just that the OS' didn't have a readily available feature and most of the OEM software suites were way behind the times as far as features. Now it's been pretty standard ever since UEFI become the norm in Laptops.

[🦊Λℚ𝓤ΛƑΛᗯҜᔕ🦊]

r.linder の投稿を引用：

It would've been closer to 90% if you hadn't been keeping it at 100% charge, taking proper care of lithium type batteries when charging can give you upwards of an extra year or more of lifespan compared to the alternative. That might seem trivial to you, but to others who might keep their laptop for years longer than you would, that can be a bigger deal.

-10% after 10 years of life is nothing. As I said above: Most people wouldn't own a technology device (laptop, smart phone, etc) with batteries beyond 5 years. By the time "Charging a battery to 100%" becomes an issue or even a concern most people will of replaced the device with a newer model LONG ago. It's not even worth mentioning. Just charge batteries to 100% and enjoy full battery charge when we need to use em and have a happy life.

NO ONE is keeping a laptop or computer for active daily usage longer than 10 years. That's not something to even discuss. That's way way way outside of the typical usable lifespan of a mobile device.

[Bad 💀 Motha]

You should consider yourself lucky if your laptop battery is still working properly after 8-10 years and only lost 10% of it's capacity. I've seen many laptop battery lose that much or more within 3 years.

And with most Laptop brands, while they might cover the whole laptop for 1-4 years depending on your coverage plan, they still will only cover the battery for 1 year.

[CJM]

🦊Λℚ𝓤ΛƑΛᗯҜᔕ🦊 の投稿を引用：

-10% after 10 years of life is nothing. As I said above: Most people wouldn't own a technology device (laptop, smart phone, etc) with batteries beyond 5 years. By the time "Charging a battery to 100%" becomes an issue or even a concern most people will of replaced the device with a newer model LONG ago. It's not even worth mentioning. Just charge batteries to 100% and enjoy full battery charge when we need to use em and have a happy life.

NO ONE is keeping a laptop or computer for active daily usage longer than 10 years. That's not something to even discuss. That's way way way outside of the typical usable lifespan of a mobile device.

This is the behavior we want to see. This is the functionality that we want to preserve. This is normal usage.

Going by your other statements, you do not actually leave it plugged in constantly, as if it was a Desktop device without a battery. A "Home Console", like some may use the Nintendo Switch.

🦊Λℚ𝓤ΛƑΛᗯҜᔕ🦊 の投稿を引用：

Sometimes it sits there for a few months plugged into AC power and at 100% battery

🦊Λℚ𝓤ΛƑΛᗯҜᔕ🦊 の投稿を引用：

I routinely grab it and go take it around with me and often drain it to 30% to 20% and just go home and sit and plug it in.

[r.linder]

🦊Λℚ𝓤ΛƑΛᗯҜᔕ🦊 の投稿を引用：

r.linder の投稿を引用：

It would've been closer to 90% if you hadn't been keeping it at 100% charge, taking proper care of lithium type batteries when charging can give you upwards of an extra year or more of lifespan compared to the alternative. That might seem trivial to you, but to others who might keep their laptop for years longer than you would, that can be a bigger deal.

-10% after 10 years of life is nothing. As I said above: Most people wouldn't own a technology device (laptop, smart phone, etc) with batteries beyond 5 years. By the time "Charging a battery to 100%" becomes an issue or even a concern most people will of replaced the device with a newer model LONG ago. It's not even worth mentioning. Just charge batteries to 100% and enjoy full battery charge when we need to use em and have a happy life.

NO ONE is keeping a laptop or computer for active daily usage longer than 10 years. That's not something to even discuss. That's way way way outside of the typical usable lifespan of a mobile device.

That's pure luck that the battery even lasted that long to begin with, because most either die or have lower health within half that time period.

There are literally millions of people who are using systems that are 10+ years old, who are you trying to fool? I still have an i5-3470.

[Bad 💀 Motha]

CJM の投稿を引用：

🦊Λℚ𝓤ΛƑΛᗯҜᔕ🦊 の投稿を引用：

-10% after 10 years of life is nothing. As I said above: Most people wouldn't own a technology device (laptop, smart phone, etc) with batteries beyond 5 years. By the time "Charging a battery to 100%" becomes an issue or even a concern most people will of replaced the device with a newer model LONG ago. It's not even worth mentioning. Just charge batteries to 100% and enjoy full battery charge when we need to use em and have a happy life.

NO ONE is keeping a laptop or computer for active daily usage longer than 10 years. That's not something to even discuss. That's way way way outside of the typical usable lifespan of a mobile device.

This is the behavior we want to see. This is the functionality that we want to preserve. This is normal usage.

Going by your other statements, you do not actually leave it plugged in constantly, as if it was a Desktop device without a battery. A "Home Console", like some may use the Nintendo Switch.

🦊Λℚ𝓤ΛƑΛᗯҜᔕ🦊 の投稿を引用：

Sometimes it sits there for a few months plugged into AC power and at 100% battery

🦊Λℚ𝓤ΛƑΛᗯҜᔕ🦊 の投稿を引用：

I routinely grab it and go take it around with me and often drain it to 30% to 20% and just go home and sit and plug it in.

But again folks need to understand how the hardware works a bit too.

Keep in mind that devices such as Phone, Tablet, Handhelds (such as ones from Nintendo, ASUS, MSI, Valve) are designed in a manner in which the battery is the primary power source. The external power is secondary and must run through the battery to reach the device. Laptops are NOT that way and are driven by the wall power adapter first, battery second. Much like would be the case if you were using a Desktop connected via UPS battery backup, where the wall power comes first.

[CJM]

Bad 💀 Motha の投稿を引用：

But again folks need to understand how the hardware works a bit too.

Keep in mind that devices such as Phone, Tablet, Handhelds (such as ones from Nintendo, ASUS, MSI, Valve) are designed in a manner in which the battery is the primary power source. The external power is secondary and must run through the battery to reach the device. Laptops are NOT that way and are driven by the wall power adapter first, battery second.

Which is where Lenovo allowing you to set the battery at 50%, and then stop charging it, preserves the lifespan of the battery.

The issue is that leaving it at 100%, ALL of the time, regardless of whether or not it is being actively charged, is bad for the health of the Lithium Ion battery.

Either holding it at a 50% charge while plugged in, or using it routinely enough so that the time spent at 100% is minuscule, extends the life of the battery.

When using the battery as it was intended to be used, you mainly have to worry about not letting it drop below 30%, which is where Lithium Ion batteries typically lose most of their capacity.

[🦊Λℚ𝓤ΛƑΛᗯҜᔕ🦊]

Bad 💀 Motha の投稿を引用：

Going by your other statements, you do not actually leave it plugged in constantly, as if it was a Desktop device without a battery. A "Home Console", like some may use the Nintendo Switch.

Pretty much yes. I would say today 90% of it's life is spent plugged into AC as a random computer in my storage shed in the back yard where my workshop is. It also runs my CNC router and I use it to look up stuff on google, etc. But definitely not actively using it daily as a portable anymore after 10 years.

r.linder の投稿を引用：

That's pure luck that the battery even lasted that long to begin with, because most either die or have lower health within half that time period.

No. It's not luck at all. My experience is perfectly normal and to be expected. I have a newer Dell XPS 13 laptop (2019 edition) that I actively use for daily work. I also always charge that one to 100% (and leave it plugged into the wall for 1-2 days after 100%) and it hasn't shown any degradation at all yet in the 5 years I've owned it.

I'm with that shaggin person: You're making up random crap just to argue for nothing. We can all see you're baiting people into arguments. The things you write don't even actually make sense to anyone but you.

Bad 💀 Motha の投稿を引用：

There are literally millions of people who are using systems that are 10+ years old, who are you trying to fool? I still have an i5-3470.

LOLOL nice one. No they don't. Not for their main computer they use daily. That's completely effing laughable. I had a nice laugh at that comment. I'm sure you don't daily-drive your 3470. That's a terribly slow potato computer to even try to use for anything modern today. Nice try there bud. But I can see right through your lies and BS.

[CJM]

🦊Λℚ𝓤ΛƑΛᗯҜᔕ🦊 の投稿を引用：

CJM の投稿を引用：

Going by your other statements, you do not actually leave it plugged in constantly, as if it was a Desktop device without a battery. A "Home Console", like some may use the Nintendo Switch.

Pretty much yes. I would say today 90% of it's life is spent plugged into AC as a random computer in my storage shed in the back yard where my workshop is. It also runs my CNC router and I use it to look up stuff on google, etc. But definitely not actively using it daily as a portable anymore after 10 years.

90% of its life is spent plugged in, when you, supposedly,still have 90% Battery Health, that seems absolutely absurd. Sell the laptop and gust get a mini PC. Your uptime can't be that critical, and if it is I would imagine replacing a surge protector would be more trivial that an internal battery.

[🦊Λℚ𝓤ΛƑΛᗯҜᔕ🦊]

CJM の投稿を引用：

90% of its life is spent plugged in, when you, supposedly,still have 90% Battery Health, that seems absolutely absurd.

Do note that I said "TODAY", you even highlighted it. I used it actively as a daily driver from 2014 -> 2019 (off power on battery almost daily) and now it's retired to the shop computer. It wasn't plugged in for 90% of it's life, probably the first half or so. It's just today I leave it plugged in most of the time, now.

CJM の投稿を引用：

Sell the laptop and gust get a mini PC. Your uptime can't be that critical, and if it is I would imagine replacing a surge protector would be more trivial that an internal battery.

I'm not going to spend money to buy something I don't need. The old XPS laptop is perfectly fine for what I use it for, I already own it. Sometimes I have cars to do work on and need to take it under the lift to look at something while working underneath cars, so I still need a working battery in it. It has nothing to do with uptime.

I've always charged this thing to 100% intentionally. It would never go back on battery until it charged up to 100% again, exactly like I do all of my portable / mobile devices. Anything with a battery always gets a full charge to 100% before it's used again. I've never had any problems with battery life on any device.

[r.linder]

🦊Λℚ𝓤ΛƑΛᗯҜᔕ🦊 の投稿を引用：

No. It's not luck at all. My experience is perfectly normal and to be expected. I have a newer Dell XPS 13 laptop (2019 edition) that I actively use for daily work. I also always charge that one to 100% (and leave it plugged into the wall for 1-2 days after 100%) and it hasn't shown any degradation at all yet in the 5 years I've owned it.

I'm with that shaggin person: You're making up random crap just to argue for nothing. We can all see you're baiting people into arguments. The things you write don't even actually make sense to anyone but you.

You're not even listening, the implications were not that the difference is severe, but that there is a noticeable difference, it takes years for batteries to degrade.

I'm not making things up, I linked multiple sources involving qualified experts, and both of you literally came into this thread swinging at people who have a different opinion from you, and doing nothing but fighting with us when neither of you even fully understand the technology yourselves. Neither of you are qualified to make any determinations that people should just ignore the advice of experts that are only trying to help people make the most out of the batteries in their devices.

🦊Λℚ𝓤ΛƑΛᗯҜᔕ🦊 の投稿を引用：

LOLOL nice one. No they don't. Not for their main computer they use daily. That's completely effing laughable. I had a nice laugh at that comment. I'm sure you don't daily-drive your 3470. That's a terribly slow potato computer to even try to use for anything modern today. Nice try there bud. But I can see right through your lies and BS.

You're wrong, many people still do use 10+ year old hardware because they can't afford to get better systems, that was literally part of the argument against Windows 7 being axed from Steam because the people here that were and still are using 7 are using older machines mainly and don't like the newer versions of Windows.

Millions of people are still using older systems daily because they work, not everyone is going to upgrade their crap every few years when they don't need to, you definitely don't need a brand new 6+ core CPU just to watch videos, do word processing, light gaming, etc.

You're right, I don't daily drive my i5-3470, but I still use it daily as an HTPC and I have tested it in games with an RTX 2080 and it was doing well in spite of it "being a potato."
A lot of people use old hardware configurations for whatever they need a machine for, you can't honestly sit there and believe that absolutely nobody is still daily driving that level of hardware... I guess that's an American philosophy, because Sandy Bridge and Ivy Bridge era hardware is still very prevalent in Russia, China, etc. and they even do hackjobs those old boards so they can run server CPUs on standard desktop chipsets with custom BIOS. I think you need to check your privilege.

There's no reason for you to even be here fighting about this, you weren't even interested until you saw a battle to fight.