how to store laptop

[baseballplayer217]

with work and school there are times were my laptop sits for days sometimes weeks i was wondering how i should store it when im not using it. i heard it is hard on the battery to let it sit unplugged with a full charge for long periods of time any suggestions would be great

 

[BrandonL]

i think you should leave it turned on but also plugged into the wall... then it's always running but also getting a charge from the adapter. it's basically the same as using a desktop computer. if you leave it on and u leave it plugged in, then it's fine

 

[TUMMYPONY86]

Make sure the battery is fully charged before storing.

 

[BrandonL]

o0o yeh i forgot about that... it's the same thing with a digital camera... you always want a full battery on it no matter what you're doing whether it be filming or just luggin it around with you

 

[shupola]

i think you should leave it turned on but also plugged into the wall... then it's always running but also getting a charge from the adapter. it's basically the same as using a desktop computer. if you leave it on and u leave it plugged in, then it's fine

actually, this will shorten the battery life. if your notebook is plugged in with the battery in, it is constanly running juice through the battery, thus shortening the life of the battery. if you want to store your laptop, i reccomend getting a padded laptop case and putting it in a safe place, away from moisture and such.

 

[BrandonL]

really... keeping the battery charged constantly drains the life of it? what about cases with cell phones and such... does that apply to them as well?

 

[shupola]

really... keeping the battery charged constantly drains the life of it? what about cases with cell phones and such... does that apply to them as well?

not sure, but probably the same concept.

 

[spamdos]

actually, this will shorten the battery life. if your notebook is plugged in with the battery in, it is constanly running juice through the battery, thus shortening the life of the battery. if you want to store your laptop, i reccomend getting a padded laptop case and putting it in a safe place, away from moisture and such.

i agree, that is correct, maybe even take the battery out if its going to be stored

 

[BrandonL]

i was thinking about that... and doing the same that as with the laptop itself... putting it in a soft type of case and letting it sit there. try to keep as much dust and particles away from both of them as you can

 

[TUMMYPONY86]

What is probably hardest on the battery is when you are unplugged for a short time (whether using the laptop or not) because the battery will immediately begin to discharge. Then plugging in later, causes the battery to charge again. This creates more wear on the battery. If your not using the battery removing it is probably the best thing to do, especially if your not going to need the battery for an extended period. It is not a good idea to go for more than a couple of weeks without recharging your battery. If the battery becomes overly discharged ,it could damage the battery. The battery discharges by itself. "Stand loss" is a term used to describe the "amount of charge" a fully charged battery will lose per day when the battery is left in an unplugged but powered off computer or when the battery is charged and then removed from the computer and allowed to discharge on it's own. If you run your computer without the battery you will not have the benefit of battery backup in case of a power failure.

 

[shupola]

What is probably hardest on the battery is when you are unplugged for a short time (whether using the laptop or not) because the battery will immediately begin to discharge. Then plugging in later, causes the battery to charge again. This creates more wear on the battery. If your not using the battery removing it is probably the best thing to do, especially if your not going to need the battery for an extended period. It is not a good idea to go for more than a couple of weeks without recharging your battery. If the battery becomes overly discharged ,it could damage the battery. The battery discharges by itself. "Stand loss" is a term used to describe the "amount of charge" a fully charged battery will lose per day when the battery is left in an unplugged but powered off computer or when the battery is charged and then removed from the computer and allowed to discharge on it's own. If you run your computer without the battery you will not have the benefit of battery backup in case of a power failure.

that is a good point, but remember that a battery has only so many cycles it can go through in its lifetime. with that being said, there is also something called the memory effect which bascially means that if you let your battery run halfway down, then fully charge it, some times the battery will "remember" what its lowest charged point was and when it reaches this point, it will "think" that it is dead. note that this is mostly with older batteries, not the ones you see in laptops today. so in shorter terms it is better to let the battery run completely down and recharge it fully than to constantly recharge it when it gets drained a little bit.

one other thing. i have ran my lappy without the battery before for like a week and when i put it back in, it was still at full capacity.

 

[BrandonL]

is there anyway that you can run a laptop with a straight connection to an outlet so that a battery wouldn't be needed or no?

 

[shupola]

is there anyway that you can run a laptop with a straight connection to an outlet so that a battery wouldn't be needed or no?

well i have heard that on some you can and some you cant.......so i decided to try it. it works on mine, i just took out the battery. it was annoying though because the battery indicator light on mine kept repeatedly flashing.

i dont think it would hurt to try though. just take out the battery and boot up and see if it works.

if you want to do this to extend your battery life thats cool, but like i said earlier i have had mine in with the power cord plugged in for the better part of two years and i have seen little to no change in battery performance.

 

[BrandonL]

yeh... that's what i thought... i didn't think that it mattered if u left the battery in while u charged it... but idk... i guess time will tell

however, environment has alot to do with it. you want to keep your computer away from cold, damp environments as well as very hot ones and u want to make sure it's not covered in dust.