Laptop used as a desktop possible battery damage?

Our man in Havana

Is it safe to use a laptop constantly on AC power with the battery attached. Will it cause any harm in the long run?

Oman

i do it all the time and mines fine

aidan_walsh

The battery will eventually burn out, in much the same way as if you leave a mobile phone constantly plugged in.

I know, it happened to me.

Our man in Havana

Should I simply remove the battery so?

trout

Bond-007 wrote:

Should I simply remove the battery so?

from my own experience of an IT team with 30+ laptops, i believe removing the battery when on AC power has a modest impact on the useful life

thing is ... all rechargeable batteries degrade over time ... the lifetime of the battery is impacted by the pattern of usage, but they still all degrade over time

so ... you could remove the battery, but i doubt you'll extend the useful life of the battery or laptop by a significant amount. myself, i wouldn't bother.

out of interest ... why would you have a laptop permanently connected to AC power ? would a desktop not be cheaper and more durable ?

wingnut

trout wrote:

out of interest ... why would you have a laptop permanently connected to AC power ? would a desktop not be cheaper and more durable ?

I hardly ever use my laptop on battery. I need to bring it around between work/home etc but there is always a plug! I wouldn't fancy carrying a desktop around like that.

AFAIK it makes no difference to the battery life at all. The battery degrades over time and has a finite amount of times you can charge / recharge it. You would probably do more damage taking the battery in and out all the time. A battery will rarely last beyond 3 years or so.

Our man in Havana

Thanks for your all your help.

jimmycrackcorm

Battery charging electronics have a cut-off for when the battery is full hence on constant full power there will be no charge/discharge cycle to adversely affect the battery. As other posters mentioned, batteries do have a limited lifetime in any case.

SouperComputer

Keeping them at full charge is bad. If they get too warm thats also bad. Lastly, running them to the ground is also bad for modern cells. Basically any extremes in temperature or charge for prolonged periods will reduce the life of the battery.

If you are removing it charge it to 40% and store it in a cool, dry place just like a packet of crisps

trout

SouperComputer wrote:

Keeping them at full charge is bad. If they get too warm thats also bad. Lastly, running them to the ground is also bad for modern cells. Basically any extremes in temperature or charge for prolonged periods will reduce the life of the battery.

If you are removing it charge it to 40% and store it in a cool, dry place just like a packet of crisps

and remember folks ... whatever you do ... don't leave a laptop in the boot of your car over christmas ... cold really fcuks up your battery :eek:

SouperComputer

trout wrote:

and remember folks ... whatever you do ... don't leave a laptop in the boot of your car over christmas ... cold really fcuks up your battery :eek:

Unless you have a Panasonic Toughbook (rugged type). Left mine in the boot over here for about a month with temps getting as low as -34C and it powered on 1st time.

But yea, generally extremes of temperature are bad.

trout

SouperComputer wrote:

Unless you have a Panasonic Toughbook (rugged type). Left mine in the boot over here for about a month with temps getting as low as -34C and it powered on 1st time.

But yea, generally extremes of temperature are bad.

-34 C ... damn ... that is tough ...