AC Adapter Tip Sizes and Colors: What Do They Mean?

Anyone who has owned many electronic devices over the years can attest to the fact that AC adapters for recharging these devices can come in a variety of shapes and sizes. When it comes to laptops, one might think there is more of a standard, but this is often not the case. Laptop AC adapters generally come with a variety of different voltages, tip sizes, and sometimes even tip colors. Why is there so much difference between AC adapters and what do the differences mean?

First, let us look at why manufacturers choose to use differing tips and color markings for their products. For example, ASUS laptop AC adapters may use the same voltage and amperage as DELL laptop AC adapters, but they are often not compatible with each other. The first reason for this is to differentiate their products from each other and from those of other manufacturers. This can often be a safety concern, as plugging the wrong adapter into a laptop could cause damage to the adapter or the laptop. The second reason for the differentiation is that by requiring a unique tip shape or size, manufacturers require consumers to buy additional adapters exclusively from them.

When comparing tip sizes and color markings, there is very little standardization. The most common tip size is 5.5 mm in diameter and 9.5 mm in length, and is used in many laptop designs, but the size does not often correspond to specific voltages or amperages. Most manufacturers use a variety of tip sizes within their model line so that similar-looking adapters are not confused.

Color markings on the tips of adapters are most common on third-party adapters, particularly universal adapters. The colors are used to help users easily identify the correct tip for a particular device. For example, a user may remember that the blue tip should be used for their netbook, while the red tip should be used for the laptop.



Be sure to check out our online store to find a compatible AC adapter for your specific laptop model. This avoids much of the confusion when it comes to tips and color markings, and ensures you have a suitable replacement.

Troubleshooting a Laptop AC Adapter

All laptop parts have the potential to fail at one point or another. The most likely components to fail are often those with a number of moving parts, as wear and tear will eventually take their toll. A laptop AC adapter failure, however, is common. Since the adapter has no moving parts, it is much less likely to encounter mechanical problems, but failures can still occur.

When troubleshooting a laptop AC adapter, there are a few steps that can help rule out other causes and narrow down the issue that is causing the problem.

1. Ensure you have the correct AC adapter

Ensure that you have the correct adapter for your laptop. Especially in a house or office environment with multiple laptops, it can be easy to grab the wrong one by mistake. Most laptop AC adapters are incompatible with other laptop models. In many cases, the tip will not fit into an incompatible laptop, but this is not always true.

2. Check for damage

If your AC adapter seems to be failing, check for signs of visible damage. Inspect the tip which inserts into the laptop, as well as the entire cord, looking for extreme kinks or frayed wires. Also check the transformer or “brick” for any signs of wear, such as cracks or bulging. If any of these signs are present, you should replace the AC adapter immediately to avoid any risk of electrical shock or damage to the laptop.

3. Try another adapter

If you have a second adapter or can borrow a compatible adapter from someone with the same model of laptop, you can rule out the possibility that the problem is caused by another component. Often, problems with the other internal system components can cause charging issues and other symptoms that aren’t caused by the AC adapter itself.



If you have tried these steps and believe your laptop AC adapter needs to be replaced, make sure you find a compatible replacement for your model. Many online retailers offer a parts locator tool for finding replacement parts specific to your laptop model. Many reputable sellers also offer customer support by phone to help you find a suitable replacement.

Six things to know about smartphone batteries

Li-ion battery constraints go a long way toward explaining why smartphone vendors spend millions on incremental design advantages in a market that's moving with blinding speed. If you're trying to figure out what your iPhone 5 -- or your next Android device or Windows Phone -- is going to look like, here are six things you need to know about smartphone batteries.

1.Battery in a bag

A Li-ion pouch cell is a sealed bag containing carefully layered anode and cathode sheets, separators between them, and -- permeating all of these layers -- a liquid electrolyte. Although tablet batteries comprise several cells (three in the new iPad), smartphones are generally powered by single cells. Either way, at one end of the battery, a printed circuit board (PCB) is connected to the positive and negative terminals of each cell and provides active protection against short circuits, overcharge, and forced discharge. Li-ion pouch cells tend to be fragile and rely on the smartphone case for protection, and so officially are not user-replaceable.

2.Squeezing in run-time

The energy density of a Li-ion pouch cell determines how much run-time you can pack into a given size (volumetric) or weight (gravimetric). Li-ion technology hit the market in 1991. Since then, processor transistor count has increased more than a thousand-fold, Li-ion energy density only threefold. Denser electronics are what make dazzling features possible, but they draw ever more power. Unfortunately, battery manufacturers are having a harder and harder time increasing energy density. This is why non-replaceable Li-ion pouch batteries are popular with smartphone and tablet designers. Without the protective case needed to make a battery safe for consumers to handle -- which does nothing for energy capacity -- they are thinner and pack more run-time into a smaller space.

3.The XYZ of cells

Energy density is affected by the thickness and the ratio between width (X) and length (Y) of a Li-ion pouch cell. Volumetric energy density falls off as the pouch gets thinner because the packaging takes up a higher percentage of battery volume. The optimal X-Y ratio arises because when the PCB is installed on the short edge of a narrow battery, there's more room for the active materials (anode and cathode) that actually store energy. All other things being equal, a narrow, thicker battery will deliver better volumetric energy density than a more square one. (An interesting Apple patent reveals ways to mold batteries in more complex shapes to fit into places like the bezel that are presently impossible to use.)

4.The necessity of keeping cool

Li-ion pouch cells don't like it hot -- a common condition for smartphones, as anyone who's ever had to wait out the "cool down" message knows. The standard Li-ion chemistry depends on an electrolyte that reacts with residual moisture to create hydrofluoric acid, the most corrosive of all chemical compounds. Like all chemical reactions, this process doubles in speed with every increase in temperature of 10 degrees Celsius. The result is reduced calendar and cycle life: not only does run-time degrade with simple age, but each charge and discharge further reduces it, until the battery just doesn't last long enough between charges. Worse, Li-ion cells generate heat themselves during charge and discharge: the more power your smartphone calls for or the faster you charge it, the hotter the battery gets.

5.Building a smartphone

Three-layer or "carve-out"? The Motorola Droid Razr line (both Razr and Razr Maxx) is an example of the three-layer approach to smartphone design: screen, circuitry, and battery. The iPhone 4 comprises two layers -- screen and electronics -- with a space carved out of the PCB for the battery. In either case, a bigger screen means room for a bigger battery. Regardless of the other advantages of each approach, the narrower, thicker battery possible with the carve-out approach will offer higher energy density. In a three-layer approach, it's also more difficult to shield the battery from components that generate heat and thus shorten battery life.

6.Chemistry: Wild card of the pack

Improvements in Li-ion chemistry may offer dramatic improvements in energy density, giving smartphone designers more choices in the feature vs. run-time battle. There's a lot of promising research into new active materials and some new solutions already on the market. One of these uses a new Li-imide electrolyte that doesn't generate hydrofluoric acid and thus delivers a dramatic improvement in thermal stability and battery life. It also permits effectively thinner batteries by eliminating most of the swelling in thickness characteristic of current Li-ion pouch cells over their useful life, which forces designers to sacrifice cavity space to accommodate the swelling.

How to Improve Your Cell Phone Battery Life

One of the most common complaints for all mobile users is the battery never seems to last as long as promised. Just when you need to send that critical email or make that important call, you get an obnoxious low battery warning. If you don't want to succumb to walking around with an adapter and looking for an outlet to recharge, try some of these tips to prolong your phone's battery life and combat the biggest causes of cell phone battery life drain.

01 Turn Off Features You Don't Use, Especially: Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and GPS

Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and GPS are some of the biggest battery killers on cell phones, because they are constantly looking for possible connections, networks, or information. Turn off these features (look in your phone's settings) except when you need them to save power. Some phones--for example, Android smartphones, have widgets that offer toggles to quickly turn these features on or off so you can switch on Bluetooth when you're in the car for hands-free driving or GPS navigation and then turn it off to save your phone's battery life.

02 Turn on Wi-Fi When You Can Connect to a Wi-Fi Network

Having Wi-Fi on drains your battery--if you're not using it. But if you're on a wireless network, it's much more power-efficient to use Wi-Fi than to use cellular data, so switch to Wi-Fi instead of 3G or 4G when you can, to save your phone's battery life. (E.g., when you're at your house, use Wi-Fi but when you aren't near any Wi-Fi networks, turn Wi-Fi off to keep your phone running longer.)

03 Adjust Your Display Screen Brightness and Screen Timeout

As with laptops and TVs, the screen on your cell phone drains a lot of its battery life. Your phone probably auto-adjusts its brightness level, but if your battery starts dipping to levels that make you anxious, you can adjust the screen brightness even lower to conserve more battery life. If you like, you can go to your phone's display settings and set the brightness to as low as you are comfortable with. The lower the better for your phone's battery.

Another setting to look at is the screen timeout. That's the setting for when your phone's screen automatically goes to sleep (1 minute, for example or 15 seconds after not getting any input from you). The lower the timeframe, the better the battery life. Adjust to your level of patience.

04 Turn Off Push Notifications and Data-Fetching

One of the conveniences of modern technology is having everything delivered to us instantly, as they happen. Emails, news, the weather, celebrity tweets--we are constantly being updated. Besides being bad for our sanity, the constant data checking keeps our phones from lasting very long. Adjust your data-fetching intervals and push notifications in your phone's settings and in individual apps themselves (news apps, for example, and social apps are notorious for constantly checking in the background for new information. Set those to checking manually or hourly if you must). If you don't need to know the second every email comes in, changing your email push notifications to manual can make a huge difference in your phone's battery life.

05 Don't Waste Battery Life Searching for a Signal

Your poor phone is dying and it's trying to find a signal. If you're in an area with a weak 4G signal, turn the 4G off and go with 3G to extend the battery life. If there's no cellular coverage at all, turn cellular data off altogether by going into Airplane mode (look in your phone's settings). Airplane mode will turn the cellular and data radio off but leave Wi-Fi access on, for most devices.

06 Buy Apps Instead of the Free, Ad-Supported Android Versions

If battery life is really important to you and you're an Android smartphone owner, shelling out a couple of bucks for apps you use may be worth it, since research suggests free, ad-supported apps drain battery life. In one case, 75% of an app's energy consumption was used just to power the ads! (Yes, even in the case of beloved Angry Birds, only 20% of the app's energy use may go to actual gameplay.)

07 Keep Your Phone Cool

Heat is the enemy of all batteries, whether your phone's battery or your laptop's. You might be able to eke out a bit more life out of your phone if you take it out of a hot case or your pocket, don't leave it overheating in a hot car, and can manage to find other ways to keep it cool.

Of course, as a last resort, turning your phone off when not in use can also cool it down and conserve the battery.

8 Tips for Longer Laptop Battery Life

We've all been there. You're in a meeting, or on the road, or in a classroom, and you find, to your horror, that your laptop is nearly dead. Maybe you forgot your power adapter, maybe there isn't an available outlet. For whatever reason, your battery power is dwindling, and you still have stuff to get done. Hope is not lost, however. There are some things you can do to buy more time on that almost-dead battery so you can meet a deadline or respond to an important email before it's too late.

Some of these techniques are for when you need to stretch your battery at that very moment, while others are preventative measures, best implemented before your battery life comes up short. There is some of overlap between the short- and long-term strategies we'll outline below, but even when the actions are the same, the reasons behind them may be different.

Short-Term Battery-Stretching Strategies
If you're in a tough spot right now, there are things you can do to extend the battery life immediately. None of these actions will actually increase the amount of power left in the battery, but instead will reduce the amount of power the laptop is using, letting you squeeze in a few more precious minutes before the battery goes kaput. The name of the game in these instances is power consumption, and you need to reduce yours to as little as possible.

1. Activate Your Laptop's Battery Saver or Eco Mode
Designed with these sorts of circumstances in mind, most Battery Saver or Eco modes will engage a number of automatic changes to lengthen usable battery life—many of the same changes we'll be making here. This saved profile will adjust your laptop's settings and shift components into low-power states to help you ration your remaining juice a bit longer.

2. Disable Unused Devices and Ports
The easiest way to reduce power consumption is to simply turn stuff off. Every component in your laptop needs power to function, but that doesn't mean you need to power all of those components all of the time. Start by disconnecting any unneeded peripherals (like a USB mouse or external drive) and turning off the biggest power hogs, like Wi-Fi and Bluetooth radios, graphics processors, and unused optical drives.

3. Adjust Your Settings
While you'll still have to use the display and the keyboard, you can adjust the settings for each to reduce power consumption. One often overlooked power drain is keyboard backlighting. Unless you're in the dark and need the backlight just to make out each key, turn off the backlight entirely. You can typically assign a hotkey for this function.

4. Turn Off Apps and Processes
It's not just the hardware that's stealing your battery juice. Multiple apps and processes running on your system will also chew through battery life more quickly. As with the hardware, start by turning off anything that isn't being used.

5. Simplify
You can also stretch your battery life by simplifying your own activities. Multitasking is nice when you have full power, but running several programs at once puts a greater load on the processor and draws more power. Adjust your computer use by sticking to one application at a time and avoiding resource-intensive programs.

6. Care and Feeding of Batteries
It starts with taking care of the battery itself. If your system has a removable battery, take care not to damage the battery contacts. They connect the laptop to the battery, and if the contacts get dirty or damaged, it can reduce and disrupt the flow of power. You can clean the contacts with a cotton swab and rubbing alcohol, but damaged contacts might need to be professionally repaired. This doesn't apply to laptops that seal the battery into the chassis.

7. Upgrade Components
Another option is to ditch the hard drive entirely, and upgrade to an SSD. These use flash memory to store data instead of a spinning disk, so there are no moving parts; this automatically makes them more energy efficient. In addition to improving your laptop's battery life, SSDs also deliver faster performance and boot times than their traditional counterparts, and remove the problems associated with fragmentation.

8. Battery Backup
Finally, the easiest way to ensure that you always have enough battery power is to bring along an extra; either a spare battery or an external battery pack. For laptops with a removable battery, the simplest option is a second battery. These can either be ordered directly from the manufacturer, or purchased from a third-party company, usually for less than $100. Simply swap the old battery for the new once in a while when charging, and bring along the charged-up spare whenever you expect to be away from a power outlet.

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HOW TO CARE FOR YOUR LAPTOP’S BATTERY

Who doesn’t have a love/hate relationship with their laptop battery? It lets us be mobile, but it also chains us to that little battery life gauge and the dreaded decay of performance as time goes on. But by following certain best practices, you can move the relationship more firmly toward the “love” side. Here’s how.

Save cycles, save your battery

All laptop batteries are built to handle a certain number of charge cycles, usually somewhere around 500 full cycles and sometimes more. Essentially, a charge cycle equals one full discharge down to zero percent and then a recharge back up to 100 percent. A discharge down to 50 percent and then back to 100 percent would equal half a cycle. Over time, each charge cycle decreases a battery’s capacity from its design specifications, meaning that the fewer times you drain it, the longer the battery last — all other things being equal.

And so, where do you start? You can begin by visiting the power settings corner of your laptop. Many computers offer the ability to switch to an “eco mode” that automatically adjusts the way power is used (such as automatically dimming your screen brightness) to conserve battery energy. You can also manually reduce the amount of power you’re using by shutting off Wi-Fi and Bluetooth when you’re not using them, turning off optional features such as keyboard backlighting, and generally reducing the number of components burning power.

Also, pay attention to hibernation modes. Ideally, you want your laptop to enter into hibernation before the battery is totally drained – as well as during downtime when you won’t be using the laptop for a while. Hibernation is typically a power state where everything in working memory has been written to the hard drive or SSD and then the laptop is turned completely off. Hibernation uses no power, as opposed to various sleep states available with modern laptops that use at least some power over time.

To save even more power, take a tour of your apps and quit any that are running in the background and steadily eating into your battery life. In Windows computers, you can look at your System Tray, your Task Manager, and your Processes tab to see which of those little icons really aren’t necessary. In macOS, you can see what apps are using the most power by clicking on the battery icon in the taskbar to the upper right and by opening the Activity Monitor and selecting the Energy section. Cloud storage services or video players that you aren’t using can be safely shut down. Both Microsoft and Apple have guides explaining the process further.

And, of course, there’s the best solution of all — don’t use your laptop on battery power, if you don’t have to. In today’s era of long battery life, it’s easy to forget to plug in when you come back to your desk. But that will, eventually, shorten your battery’s lifespan.

Keeping your battery in zone

In ancient, less enlightened times, there was a problem called “battery memory” that caused nickel-metal hydride (NiMH) batteries to “forget” their full charge capacity and start charging at lower and lower levels. This problem doesn’t exist any longer thanks to modern lithium-ion batteries, but it has led to a lot of poor advice and arguments about battery care based on outdated information. It’s time to clear the air.

Contrary to some recommendations, you don’t need to completely discharge a lithium-ion battery and then recharge it to somehow reboot or calibrate it – this is a destructive practice that’s very hard on your battery. Whether or not it’s a smart idea to perform a complete discharge a couple of times a year remains an unanswered question. Generally, the consensus seems to be that letting your battery discharge (without bottoming it out — aim for around 20 percent) and then charge it when possible is the best practice.

Next, there was a time when users were advised to refrain from keeping their devices plugged in, based on the idea that letting a battery charge to 100 percent could wear the battery out more quickly. Today, however, modern devices are designed to stop charging at 100 percent and thus keeping them plugged in doesn’t impact the battery’s lifespan, according to Battery University.

As with many battery-related questions, the issue of keeping your laptop plugged in when it’s reached full capacity is hotly debated, and so there’s nothing wrong with turning your machine off and unplugging it. If you’re going to store your laptop for an extended time without using it, then discharge or charge it to 50 percent before putting it away.

Generally speaking, the best thing you can do for your lithium-ion battery is to avoid letting it discharge below 20 percent. Plug it in and charge it when you can, and then rinse and repeat. The good news is that with modern batteries and systems there’s really not much else you need to do — except perhaps reasonably expect that your battery will eventually start losing its overall capacity.

It’s getting hot in here, so hide your batteries

Today’s lithium-ion batteries are durable, but they can only take so much heat. High temperatures can damage your laptop battery permanently, or reduce its useful lifespan.

This leads to some common sense suggestions. For example, if you are charging your battery and it starts to get overly warm, perhaps because the CPU or graphics processor is working hard or the environment is overly hot, then shut the device down and pop the battery out if possible. Give it a break so that it can cool down or you can move to someplace with a lower temperature. Of course, many modern laptops have sealed batteries, in which case shutting the machine down and letting it cool is highly recommended if maximizing the battery’s lifespan is your concern.

Likewise, keep the laptop off of your lap. If testicular damage and discomfort weren’t good enough reasons, then with many machines you’re also making the problem worse by blocking vents. You’ll want to make sure that both vents that pull in cool air and those that expel hot air are able to do their jobs.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, you should avoid placing your laptop anywhere it might become hot. That includes your car on a hot summer day, beneath a window that gets direct sunlight, or near a space heater. Unusual conditions such as these can do a lot of damage to a battery in a short period of time, though you may not realize it immediately.

Cold temperatures usually aren’t a problem down to a certain point, and storing a battery in a cool place is recommended, but don’t leave your laptop in freezing temperatures. Too much cold can also kill the battery permanently or reduce its lifespan.

If you want to watch temperature even more closely (say, you live in a particularly hot climate), then there are a number of apps you can run that will monitor laptop heat. This includes CoreTemp and Real Temp for Windows, which you can download for free.

Giving your laptop some TLC

Most people just let their laptop battery sit, snug inside the laptop, doing its job. But it’s a good idea to take your battery out from time to time and show it a little love. Every few months, detach your battery and give it a careful wipe with a soft cloth – get rid of any dust, and make sure the contact points are especially clean.

Note that this only replies to models with removable batteries. As laptops have become thinner and lighter, removable batteries have become something of a luxury. If your laptop has a sealed battery, then there’s little for you to worry about.

Things to avoid

Want the best battery? Here’s a quick list of bad practices.

§   Full discharges: As mentioned, when a laptop battery discharges fully – forcing a shutdown – the battery uses up a full charge cycle. The more charge cycles consumed, the more quickly a battery will give up the ghost. Even when running a discharge cycle, don’t let the battery drop to zero percent. Instead, stop when your operating system warns you the battery is getting low.

§   Reliance on hibernation modes: This is a similar point to the first. If you are constantly forcing your laptop to hibernate in order to save the battery, then you aren’t keeping your battery at the ideal percentages. Rethink your laptop habits, or at least accept that your usage patterns will result in a battery that won’t last quite so long.

§   Long periods of inactivity: If you must leave your battery unused for long periods of time, then make sure it has around 50 percent charge remaining. A depleted battery can die forever if not recharged soon enough. Generally speaking, though, keep using and properly charging your battery as long as you have it.

§   Hot summer days: Obviously you can’t always avoid hot summers, but you know what this means: keep your laptop cool. Store it indoors, avoid direct sunlight, and keep it out of hot cars during the warmest days.

Software and your battery

Finally, a note about your software — keep it updated! Companies work hard to improve the way that programs use power via software updates. The same operating system on a later patch could use significantly less battery power, giving your battery a longer lifespan without changing anything else. And so, review your OS and keep your machine — and its battery — on a healthy diet of updates.

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How do I remove the battery from my laptop computer?

Read First: All laptops are different, however, they usually share similarities when it comes to taking out the main battery. That being said, all of the newer MacBooks from Apple use integrated batteries that generally require service to remove.

If you are using a Windows or Linux based laptop, this page provides a general idea on how to remove the laptop battery. If you are replacing a laptop battery, you can insert the new battery after removing the old battery.

Note: Many ultrabook laptops have batteries that are not accessible from the outside of the laptop. Removing the battery will require the help of a repair technician to open the laptop.

Removing the battery

1.      If your laptop is plugged in, either unplug it or disconnect the power cable.

2.      Turn your laptop over so the bottom is facing up.

3.      Locate the battery latch on the bottom of the computer. The image to the right shows some of the more common battery latches found on laptops.

4.      To remove the battery, slide the latch switch to the opposite side and hold it in that position until the battery is released.

5.      On some laptops, the battery pops out on its own. On others, you'll need to pull it out gently with the tips of your fingers.

Other situations

Although most laptops only have one latch, there are some that require you to slide two latches to remove the battery. On these laptops, the latches will still look similar to the examples above, but require you to move both at the same time, usually towards each other.

Finally, there are also some older laptops (IBM laptops) that require the latch to be pulled out and then pushed towards the battery.

No battery latch found

If you cannot find any battery latches or buttons for releasing the battery on the bottom of the laptop, it is possible the laptop utilizes a different mechanism to release the battery. The laptop may also need to be serviced by a licensed repair facility to have the battery removed through partial or full disassembly.

We recommend referring to the laptop documentation or check the manufacturer's website for steps on how to remove the battery or if servicing is required to remove the battery.

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Tips and help with maximizing your laptop battery life

Below are suggestions and tips that can be followed to help improve and maximize the overall life of your laptop computers battery.

Full initial charge

After purchasing a new laptop computer or battery for your laptop, we recommend that the battery be charged for no less than 24-hours. A 24-hour charge makes sure the battery is fully charged and helps with the batteries life expectancy. Once it is fully charged, you should not discharge it fully, if possible.

Remove battery if not in use for a long period

If you are mostly using the laptop computer while it is plugged into a wall outlet keep the battery out of the computer.

If you do not plan on using your laptop for more than a month the battery should be removed from the computer, even if it is kept off.

After putting the battery back in after it has not been used we suggest fully charging it before letting it run off the battery again.

Fully discharge and recharge

If your battery is not a Li-ion battery it is always recommended to fully discharge and recharge your battery at least once every month.

Avoid extreme temperatures

Not only is it good for your battery but it is also for your laptop to keep it out of extreme hot or cold temperatures. For example, do not leave your laptop in your car during a hot summer day.

Clean the contacts

Clean your laptop battery contacts with a cotton swab and alcohol every few months.

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AC Adaptors and Power Adaptors

Always check your computer manual for the correct ratings and the type

of Adaptor that your machine requires. Adaptors are usually rated by

Watts/Wattage(W). You can calculate the Wattage by multiplying

Volts(V) with Amps(A). This information is found on the label on the

underside of the notebook computer.

It is always best to match the wattage of the notebook and the AC

adaptor. An AC adaptor with a higher wattage can be used with a

notebook with a lower wattage rating. However, an AC adaptor with a

lower wattage rating cannot be used with a notebook with a higer

rating. The notebook will be underpowered and may not boot up

properly.

The AC adapter will get hot whilst it is plugged in and being used.

This is normal. Any device that gets hot will require ventilation. Good

ventilation prolongs the life of the device and avoids any accidental

damage.


Some points to consider:

The led light, on most AC adaptors should stay constant when plugged in

to the wall socket or AC power supply and switched on and plugged into

the notebook computer. If the light flickers or blinks then check all

connections and check the power lead. It may also turn out that the

adaptor is simply faulty.

The AC adapter will get hot whilst it is plugged in and being used.

This is normal. Any device that gets hot will require ventilation. Good

ventilation prolongs the life of the device and avoids any accidental

damage.


If you have several different notebooks, all of which are different

types and made by different manufacturers, you can still use one

charger. Universal AC adaptors are supplied with different tips which

enables you to plug it into different notebook computers. However, you

cant charge more than one notebook at a time.

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Can I upgrade my laptop battery to a newer chemistry?

A question recently asked was, "Can I upgrade my Laptop Battery to a

newer chemistry?"

If the laptop has been pre-configured by the manufacturer to accept

more than one type of rechargeable battery, then the answer is yes.

The different types of batteries requires a different charging patterns

to be properly recharged and used in the laptop. Always refer to your

laptop computer manual or contact your manufacturer to find out which

battery types can be used in your laptop.


Nickel Cadmium (NiCad,NiCd), Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH) and Lithium

Ion (LiIon, Li-Ion) are the three major types. Due to health and safety

and inefficencies, Nickel Cadmium and Nickel Metal Hydride batteries

are either discontinued or in the process of being discontinued.

Lithium Ion is relatively new and popular type. There is an even newer

type, Litium Polymer Ion or Lithium Polymer. This is much more

efficient and offers better power to weight ratio.

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Tips and Care Instructions

• Tips to ensure optimal battery life
• Use the AC adapter whenever possible, but not all the time. Use the battery on its own as well.
• Set the Windows Power Management settings to maximum savings.
• Lower the brightness setting on the screen backlight.
• Disconnect any unused devices (e.g., modems, wireless LAN cards) when not needed.
• Disable Auto Insert Notification on the CD-ROM.
• Turn off Autosave features.
• Disable automatic formatters, spell checkers, and autorecalculate features.
• Add RAM to lower disk access time.
• If you have a backup battery, use it in rotation with the current battery.
• Use the Suspend or Hibernate feature when taking a break.
• Fully drain and recharge the battery every couple of months, this helps to recalibrate the smart electronics even if the cells are fine.
• Minimize the number of programs running at the same time.
• Check the power save settings under the BIOS. If this is not enabled then the Windows Power Management settings may not work properly.
• If you are taking the battery out to store it, make sure it has atleast 40 - 50% charge. DO NOT fully charge it or discharge it before storage.
• Use smaller programs when possible (e.g., WordPad versus Word).
• Minimize game play and DVD viewing.
• See Duracell's page on general battery care.
• Tips for battery care and use
• A new battery comes in a discharged condition and must be charged before use. Upon initial use (or after prolonged storage period) the battery may require two to three charge/discharge cycles before achieving maximum capacity.
• If the battery is not going to be used for more than a month, it is recommended that it be removed from the device and stored in a cool, dry, clean place.
• A battery will eventually lose its charge if unused. It may therefore be necessary to recharge the battery after a storage period.
• 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 do not suffer from the memory effect.
• It's a good idea to clean dirty battery contacts with a cotton swab and alcohol. This helps maintain a good connection between the battery and the portable device.
• Do not leave the 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. See Apple's Battery Care page.
• Battery Dont's
• Do not short-circuit a battery. A short-circuit may cause damage to the battery.
• Do not drop, hit or otherwise abuse the battery as this may result in the exposure of the cell contents, which are corrosive.
• Do not expose the battery to moisture or rain.
• Keep the battery away from fire or other sources of extreme heat. Do not incinerate. Exposure of batteries to extreme heat may result in an explosion.
• Do not throw away or dispose of your battery with household waste. Please recycle all batteries, as they contain chemicals which are harmful to the environment. See our recycling links.
• Do not carry loose batteries in a pocket or purse with metal objects like coins, paper clips and hair pins, etc. This may short circuit the battery, generating high heat.
• Do not mix old and new batteries, or mix different types of batteries. This can cause rupture or leakage, resulting in personal injury or property damage.