Laptop Battery Issue

LFC5Times

Hi,

I have a Dell Vostro 1510, its over 2 years old anyway maybe more than 3.

Anyway for the last while it has been telling me to replace the battery and the battery life has been terrible on it, but i generally just kept the laptop plugged into the socket anyway.

However now the battery level is at 3% and was at 4% yesterday and the laptop is plugged in.

The message on the battery icon is (plugged in,not charging)

So it is basically not charging at all and potentially if it drops another couple of % it won't turn on at all.

Any solutions apart from having to get a new battery?

Thanks

Willbbz

If your laptop works plugged in without the battery I can't see why it wouldn't turn on at all if it drops 1 or 2 more %

Also is charging it really necessary if you'll only get 3% out of it?

I had the not charging problem a while back with a laptop but had to just keep plugging it in and out. May not be the case with your laptop

LFC5Times

WilliamOC wrote: »

If your laptop works plugged in without the battery I can't see why it wouldn't turn on at all if it drops 1 or 2 more %

Also is charging it really necessary if you'll only get 3% out of it?

I had the not charging problem a while back with a laptop but had to just keep plugging it in and out. May not be the case with your laptop

Thanks for your reply mate.

I am not the most technical by any means, so are you saying I could take the battery out of the laptop and still have the laptop plugged into the socket and it will work?

Alanstrainor

LFC5Times wrote: »

Thanks for your reply mate.

I am not the most technical by any means, so are you saying I could take the battery out of the laptop and still have the laptop plugged into the socket and it will work?

The laptop will run fine with no battery inserted. Although even though the battery is more or less dead i would leave it in, as it'd give you a few seconds to play with just in case you kicked out the power adapter.

LFC5Times

Alanstrainor wrote: »

The laptop will run fine with no battery inserted. Although even though the battery is more or less dead i would leave it in, as it'd give you a few seconds to play with just in case you kicked out the power adapter.

Any idea how much a new battery from Dell would cost?

I'm sure you can get them on eBay, but I have heard of them being hit & miss.

Alanstrainor

LFC5Times wrote: »

Any idea how much a new battery from Dell would cost?

I'm sure you can get them on eBay, but I have heard of them being hit & miss.

At a guess. 100/120 quid. Crazy money.

granturismo

LFC5Times wrote: »

...
I'm sure you can get them on eBay, but I have heard of them being hit & miss.

I know of 2 people in work who bought alternatives to Dell on ebay from China. Cost was approx 25eu and both got caught by customs and excise for duty and vat. Overall much cheaper than Dell and in both cases the batteries are working (2 months later)

Alanstrainor

You can buy genuine batteries on ebay. They'll probably be around 60 quid at a guess. Just be sure to do your research.

Halo Kitty

I Have purchased a battery yesterday from amazon.co.uk..the price dell quoted me was nearly 5 times the price....so have paid £32 for battery with good feedback from customers on the site....

Jackovarian

Just so you know, and everyone does it, in fact i'm doing it right now!, dont leave your laptop plugged in when the battery is full!!!!!!!!!


Its the worst thing you can do for your battery.

Basically it wears down your battery and doesn't let it cycle as it normally would.

You'll notice over a short period of time that your battery life isn't what it used to be.
Its seems logical that actually using the battery all the time would have a more detremental effect, but actually leaving it charging after its fully charged really messes it up.




ANOTHER OPTION:

Reset your battery.

Leave the laptop running in high performace mode and let it run itself out then rechanre and do it again. you could gain a lot of time back on the battery!

Alanstrainor

Jackovarian wrote: »

Just so you know, and everyone does it, in fact i'm doing it right now!, dont leave your laptop plugged in when the battery is full!!!!!!!!!


Its the worst thing you can do for your battery.

Basically it wears down your battery and doesn't let it cycle as it normally would.

You'll notice over a short period of time that your battery life isn't what it used to be.
Its seems logical that actually using the battery all the time would have a more detremental effect, but actually leaving it charging after its fully charged really messes it up.

I have to say that, although i used to think this was true, i'm now not so sure. My current laptop, which is quite old is left plugged in quite a lot of the time, and i have yet to see any drastic reduction in it's battery life, i still get 5 plus hours out of a charge. Some batteries are just worse than others, i think the leaving a laptop plugged in for extended periods only plays a small part in this.

Voodu Child

Jackovarian wrote: »

Just so you know, and everyone does it, in fact i'm doing it right now!, dont leave your laptop plugged in when the battery is full!!!!!!!!!


Its the worst thing you can do for your battery.

Basically it wears down your battery and doesn't let it cycle as it normally would.

That's a popular misconception - laptops don't 'keep charging' a battery once its full. Li-ion batteries can't be overcharged or trickle charged, it would be dangerous. So they charge til they're full and then they stop.

Batteries are a consumeable, they will lose all their capacity eventually whether you use them or not. You can get really obsessed about prolonging their life - taking it out, storing it somewhere cool, never discharging it... But it will still die in the end, and if all that effort is affecting your use or enjoyment of the laptop then its not worth it imo.

I know of 2 people in work who bought alternatives to Dell on ebay from China. Cost was approx 25eu and both got caught by customs and excise for duty and vat. Overall much cheaper than Dell and in both cases the batteries are working (2 months later)

Generic or fake-branded batteries from China can be dodgy. I have seen cheap ones off ebay do some pretty funky things, including one where the cells just swelled right up and split the seams of the casing.

Laptop batteries have their own charging circuit built in, which regulates various aspects of the charging, prevents overcharging etc. 'Fake' batteries can have cruder circuit boards or none at all. It may affect the life of the battery or even the safety of it. The cells themselves may use cheaper materials, it plays a big part in how quickly the battery degrades from charge cycles.

Even a genuine battery can pose a safety hazard due to design or manufacture flaws. There have been several high-profile recalls. So what hope is there for counterfeit ones - the 'CE' on the sticker might be just that, a sticker, you have no idea if the internals actually comply with safety regulations. And you can be sure there will be no recalls even if it turns out they have a major issue.

Personally I would avoid them.