Laptop Batteries

As anyone who uses laptops for any extensive amount of time can tell you, laptop batteries can very well become the bane of your existence.

So what am I really posting about? Possibly just a rant-and-vent show on laptop battery quality motivated by an article in PC World magazine's April issue (Downsize Your Tech Budget) describing ways one can get better value out of the tech investment. This article included a very simple (doh!-style) suggestion to not overcharge your laptop battery. Yes, this falls along rule #1 of totally basic computer troubleshooting (like checking whether it's plugged into the wall)--but whaddya know, just like that old funny standby, it makes sense and, yes, it works! Not only do you nix the energy drain but also extend your battery life. At least a wee-bit more beyond the usual shelling-out-for-a-new-battery landmark.

I have used Toshiba, Dell, Sony VAIO, and Gateway, and let me tell you, batteries can really be just that much of a pain. After some weeks or months of use, you can't reliably assume anymore whether unplugging the laptop will leave you pulling your hair, or if the battery will be charged at least a portion of the way. What about an often-times overheated shut-down laptop--having lost most if not all of your work? Fun times.

But here's the clincher. What happens to those folks who leave their battery in the laptop as it charges day in and day out? Never giving it a second thought? Well those folks end up with an even shorter battery life, or worse, overheating the (faulty, recalled) batteries to a possible extreme of a fire. Have you ever been the victim of a scalded lap? I certainly have, particularly during the summer of '99 when I wore out a Dell laptop. And my scalded lap. I had to resort to icing thick Architectural Digest magazines in the freezer, then slip them underneath the laptop to chill it out a wee bit...granted this was outside-the-box thinking to say the least. You do what you can to circumvent unusual circumstances.

And let me say to those who eye longingly at the Mac AirBook, ready to drop their current laptop by the way side... you need only take the battery out of you laptop (if not for the reasons above) to realize some considerable weight difference.