Battery care

Laptop Battery handling Instructions

A new battery comes in a part charged condition and should be discharged before use (refer to your computer manual for charging instruction). Upon initial use (or after a prolonged storage period) the battery may require two or four charge/discharge cycles before achieving maximum capacity.
When charging the battery for the first time your computer may indicate that charging is complete after just 10 – 15 minutes. This is a normal phenomenon for rechargeable batteries. Simply remove the battery from the computer and repeat the charging procedure.
If the battery will not be in use for a month or longer, it is recommended that it be removed from the device and stored in a cool, dry place.
It is normal for a battery to become warm during charging and discharging.
A charged battery will eventually lose its charge if unused. It may therefore be necessary to recharge the battery after a storage period.
A Li-Ion Laptop battery voltage rating is 10.8V or 14.4V; actually they are the same as 11.1V or 14.8V respectively.

How long will a New Battery Power a Laptop?

This is difficult to determine. Actual battery run-time depends upon the power demands made by the equipment. In the case of notebook computers, the use of the monitor, the hard drive and other peripherals result in an additional drain upon the battery, and effectively reduce the battery’s runtime. The total run-time of the battery is also heavily dependent on the design of the equipment.

Generally our new high capacity battery will last as long (and most usually 20-50% longer) as your old battery did when it was new.

What is the Life Span of a New Battery?

The life of a rechargeable Lithium ion Rechargeable battery under normal conditions is generally about 500 charge/discharge cycles. This means one and a half to three years of battery life for the average user. As the rechargeable battery begins to die, the user will notice a decline in the running time of the battery. When a battery that originally operated the notebook for three hours is only supplying the user with an hour’s worth of use, it’s time for a new one.

How are batteries rated? (What are Volts and Amps)

There are two rating on every battery: volts and Amp-hours (AH or mAH). The voltage of a new battery should match the voltage of it original unless the batteries are different chemistries (NI-MH and Li-Ion batteries have different voltage ratings, even if they are for the same laptop). Most of our batteries have a higher amp-hour rating than the original battery found in the device. This is indicative of a longer run-time (higher capacity) and will not cause any incompatibilities.

How can I maximize battery performance?

• Break in new battery – new batteries come in a half charged condition and must be fully discharged and then fully charged before use. It recommended that you fully charge and discharge your new battery two or four times to allow it to reach its maximum capacity.
• Keep your battery clean - it’s a good idea to clean dirty battery contacts with a cotton swab and alcohol. This helps maintain a good connection between your battery and laptop.
• Exercise your battery – Do not leave your battery dormant for long periods of time. We recommend using the battery at least once every two to three weeks. if a battery has not been used for a long period of time, perform the new battery break in procedure described above.
• Condition your battery – Complete discharge it and then recharge it completely. This will help the battery maintain maximum life. When running on AC power unit only leave the battery in the battery bay when it needs to be charged.
• Battery storage – If you don’t plan on using the battery for a month or more, we recommend storing it in a clean, dry, cool place at room temperature but away from heat and metal objects. Li-Ion will self discharge during storage (but have no memory effect); remember to break them in before use.

For laptop users

To get maximum performance from your battery, fully optimize the notebook’s power management features prior to use. Power management is a tradeoff: better power conservation in exchange for lesser computer performance. The power management system conserves battery power by setting the processor to run at a slower speed, dimming the screen, spinning down the hard drive when it's not in use and causing the machine to go into sleep mode when inactive. Your notebook user’s guide will provide information relating to specific power management features.