Battery Life
This isn't going to be a tip, so much as advice about batteries. I know everyone thinks that rechargeable batteries are 'eternal'.
Well, they're not. Sorry about that. Just because you can keep recharging them over and over, doesn't mean you can do that forever instead of tossing them in the trash (or recycling). The fact is, you can only recharge a rechargeable battery so many times before they won't hold that charge, or even a portion of it.
So what does that mean to someone with a laptop or cell phone? There are only about 300-600 'cycles' in those batteries. And what does a 'cycle' mean, you may be asking? A cycle is defined as a battery that is fully charged, going to fully discharged, back to charged. Depending on the use, environment, and size, this can be anything from 10 hours down to an hour or so at a charge.
When will you know that you're battery isn't taking all of it's charge? If you notice that you're getting less than an hour, you're battery is probably your first culprit. Also, if you're getting less than half the time you were getting with the same settings, your battery is probably at fault. If, on the other hand, it won't charge at all, you'll need to take it in and have the power supply looked at for the fault. In most cases, if the problem is the power supply, you're warrantee will cover it. With Apple products, though, Apple Care does not cover the battery after the first year. There is a special deal with iPhone batteries since it's non-removable. Call Apple Care (1-800-APL-CARE) and let them know you've got an iPhone battery problem. They'll be able to tell you about the battery replacement options you have at the Genius Bar.
Some of the things you can do to get more battery life are:
- Reduce the backlighting
- Sleep the monitor/display sooner
- Turn off Bluetooth and/or WiFi when not in use
- Shut off background processes
- Manually get mail
- Remove laptop batteries if you always keep it plugged in
When your battery is finally dead, recycle it. There are collection points at most BestBuy, Radio Shack, and Staples stores. You can also take them to your local recycling center for disposal.
Back to Tips