Ultrabook

Discussion in 'Chit-Chat' started by suetyan, Aug 20, 2014.

  1. suetyan

    suetyan Regular Member

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    I just bought a new Ultrabook. I didn't aware that the battery is in-built until I carried it home. I come to know that most of the ultrabooks have built-in battery after searching from the Internet.

    Anybody using an ultrabook with built in battery here?
    I want to know how do you take care of your battery since it is not removable.
    Do you plug in the adapter when the battery is low and remove the adapter when it is fully charged? And repeat and repeat the same steps?? Isn't troublesome?

    I read that the battery will stop charging automatically when it is full, even though the adapter is plugged in. So, it is ok the leave the adapter to remain plug in even though the battery is fully charged. But I don't know how true is the Internet.

    I need to seek your advice.
     
  2. Cheung

    Cheung Moderator

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    By the time the battery dies, it might be time for a new ultra book.

    Usually, I will keep power adaptor in if using it actively, or charging. Then disconnect if fully charged or leaving it for a while. Don't know if that is the best way or not.
     
    #2 Cheung, Aug 20, 2014
    Last edited: Aug 20, 2014
  3. nthanhhai

    nthanhhai Regular Member

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    The battery is non-removable but I think it still can be swapped, but need more technical skills than just replacing traditional battery. To remain light, the manufacturers try to remove unnecessary parts, battery cover for an example.
     
  4. suetyan

    suetyan Regular Member

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    Isn't very troublesome, Cheung? You have to disconnect the adapter when fully charge, and plug in again when battery is low. You have to repeat this every few hour (let say 4-5 hours). If Ultrabook battery died and user has to opt for a new Ultrabook, then the Ultrabook is really not user friendly.

    My current Fujitsu laptop has been with me for 7 years, still working well, no major problem. I tend to buy this new Fujitsu Ultrabook because of its weight and mobility. It's easy to carry especially when I am on business trip. However, my bad that I didn't aware the battery is non-removable.

    Some people say that, if you enable the power saving mode, the battery will stop charging even if the adapter is plugged in. But, I am not sure how reliable is this.
     
  5. suetyan

    suetyan Regular Member

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    I will not take this risk :(
     
  6. Cheung

    Cheung Moderator

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    7year old Fujitsu is very old technology. I don't find it troublesome at all to disconnect when not using the computer. A good trade off for portability. You do not need to charge so often as SSD uses much less power. If you connect spinning DVD or USB Hard drive, just leave the power supply connected. Wi-Fi will drain power quickly so I turn it off if I don't need it or if I do need it for a prolonged period, then keep power supply connected.




    Convenience of connecting power supply depends what sort of connection the power supply has with the computer. It is very convenient with the magnetic type.
     
  7. T.O.P

    T.O.P Regular Member

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    Always unplug if your battery fully charge. even that shows it will automatically stop charging when battery full. But the plug still on and voltage do the same. It might cause your battery die even fast.
    Info above from my friend who work at IT technical industry. :)
     
  8. demolidor

    demolidor Regular Member

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    I would also disconnect it when fully charged. And it is not necessary to only charge it when it's almost empty, just whenever you can. Charge cycles (apparently) only count for 1 cycle when the charge amount adds up to 100% (so if you recharge from 60% to 100% one day this only accounts for 4/10 of a charge cycle so maybe the next time you recharge it from 40% you have charged it twice but only counts as 1 cycle). Charging to 100% also not necessary iirc (bad even if leaving it at 100% consistently).

    Don't think charge cycles will be an issue, I don't recall ever having run into the maximum with any rechargeable battery (not even sure if the above is correct as to what counts as a cycle as I've just read some info regarding Lenovo/Thinkpad's with quite a different definition/measurement, provided that info is correct :D)

    Of course a removable battery doesn't mean you can treat that one differently, same logic applies. Friend of mine always left the battery in when power plugged and wrecked the battery in less than two years. Mine (different brand) still has over 80% capacity after 5-6 years ...
     
    #8 demolidor, Aug 21, 2014
    Last edited: Aug 21, 2014
  9. Cheung

    Cheung Moderator

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    Demolidor, is there anything that you don't know?:D
     
  10. visor

    visor Regular Member

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    Interesting, so does this also apply to regular portable laptops and iDevices?
     
  11. demolidor

    demolidor Regular Member

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    This applies to the lithium-ion type batteries so pretty much yeah :). I wondered the same thing years ago about how to best take care of the battery so scoured the interwebs for the answer :p.

    Here is a random article that talks about battery management software included in (many?) laptops: http://blogs.computerworld.com/20269/maximizing_the_lifespan_of_a_laptop_computer_battery
    It can automatically be set to charge up to x % only (80% mentioned) in "optimize for battery lifespan" mode

    :D;)
     
    #11 demolidor, Aug 21, 2014
    Last edited: Aug 21, 2014
  12. demolidor

    demolidor Regular Member

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    How To Take Care of Your Smartphone Battery the Right Way

    http://gizmodo.com/how-to-take-care-of-your-smartphone-battery-the-right-w-513217256

    Charge cycle:
    http://gizmodo.com/5761317/how-to-take-care-of-your-li-ion-battery from http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2011/02/ask-ars-what-is-the-best-way-to-use-an-li-ion-battery/

    In comparison I treat my cellphone battery horribly :eek: (should probably just charge it every day but mine can just about last two days on a full charge so more ofthen than not it comes to that and is drained completely quite regularly)
     
    #12 demolidor, Aug 21, 2014
    Last edited: Aug 21, 2014
  13. visor

    visor Regular Member

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    One then wonders why, with all these different apps around, someone hasn't written one for controlling the charging and discharging of the battery while it's plugged in... so that we don't have to worry about over charging...eg my laptop that's always plugged in.
     
  14. suetyan

    suetyan Regular Member

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    Haha, Demolidor is our Wikipedia. :D
     
  15. suetyan

    suetyan Regular Member

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    Thanks for the reply, Demolidor. But don't you think is troublesome to plug and unplug? Now, you are taking on additional job as you have to always remember to disconnect it when it's almost full and recharge it when it's getting low.

    But, using a laptop with removable battery, that 'additional' job is not needed. As battery is always removed from my laptop and once I turn on the power plug, my laptop can run for 24 hours without me to worry about the overcharging.
     
  16. Cheung

    Cheung Moderator

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    Don't you think it is troublesome to unplug the battery?
     
  17. demolidor

    demolidor Regular Member

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    Fortunately I do have a removable battery and indeed also take it out but it is not crucial to unplug it before it reaches 100% every time anyway, just try not to have it at a 100% charge for prolonged periods. Having it run completely empty is also not the end of the world, have been in that situation many times as well but the less you let it happen probably the better :) (there's probably a little juice left in when it automatically shuts down, just try to not let it sit in this near to empty state too long, like days/weeks).
    (For the non-removable) some kind of battery management program should be included and looks like Fujitsu also has it (called "Battery Utility"):

    [video=youtube;Lo5FQGe3nvU]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lo5FQGe3nvU[/video]
     
  18. suetyan

    suetyan Regular Member

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    what Windows are you using now? I am struggling with Windows 8.1 now. Its download speed is far more worst than my 7 years old Fujitsu laptop (Window 7)
     
  19. Cheung

    Cheung Moderator

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    What is your model ultrabook?

    I just bought a Zotac C3120 that runs on a laptop processor. It has an SSD and I put 8GB RAM (a bit of overkill). It runs win 8.1 quite well.
     
  20. suetyan

    suetyan Regular Member

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    Fujitsu Ultrabook U904. The download speed is too terrible!
     

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