Top Ways to Increase the Battery Life of Your Laptop Posted by Stranger on 6:05 AM Digg it Bookmark it Stumble it Email to friend

Few days back i purchased my Dell Studio 1558 laptop and everything is working fine with my system. Now the thing which comes in most of the laptop user's mind is, about the Battery life and performance of their system. So the same thing comes in my mind too. So i Google and found these simple, short and easy steps to increase the battery life of your Laptop.

Following ways will increase the productivity and efficiency of your system.

1. Defrag regularly - The faster your hard drive rotates, the faster it can handle input/output operations. Thus managing your disk space by defragmenting your hard drive will increase your laptop's battery life. Make your hard drive as efficient as possible by defragging it regularly. (but not while it’s on battery of course!)

2. Close running programs in the background - Shut down everything that isn’t crucial when you’re on battery.

3. Cut down external devices(USB/TV Cards) – USB devices (including your mouse) & WiFi drain down your laptop battery. Remove or shut them down when not in use. USB devices if plugged in they suck up energy even when not in use (those shiny lights take electricity which gets sucked from your laptops battery).

4. Increase RAM - This will allow you to process more with the memory your laptop has, rather than relying on virtual memory.

5. Keep the battery contacts clean

6. Take care of your battery – Do not leave a charged battery for long periods of time. Once charged, you should at least use the battery at least once every two to three weeks. Also, do not let a Li-On battery completely discharge.

7. Hibernate rather than Standby – Hibernating a PC will actually save your PC’s state as it is, and completely shut itself down.

8. Keep operating temperature down - Your laptop operates more efficiently when it’s cooler. Clean out your air vents with a cloth or keyboard cleaner.

9. Set up and optimize your power options – Go to ‘Power Options’ in your windows control panel and set it up so that power usage is optimized (Select the ‘max battery’ for maximum effect).

10. Don’t multitask – Do one thing at a time when you’re on battery. Rather than working on a spreadsheet, letting your email client run in the background and listening to your latest set of MP3′s, set your mind to one thing only. If you don’t you’ll only drain out your batteries before anything gets completed!

11. Go easy on the PC demands – The more you demand from your PC. Passive activities like email and word processing consume much less power than gaming or playing a DVD. If you’ve got a single battery charge – pick your priorities wisely.

12. Get yourself a more efficient laptop

13. Prevent the Memory Effect - If you’re using a very old laptop, you’ll want to prevent the ‘memory effect’ – Keep the battery healthy by fully charging and then fully discharging it at least once every two to three weeks. Exceptions to the rule are Li-Ion batteries (which most laptops have) which do not suffer from the memory effect.

14. Dim your screen – Most laptops come with the ability to dim your laptop screen. Some even come with ways to modify CPU and cooling performance. Cut them down to the lowest level you can tolerate to squeeze out some extra battery juice.