Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Laptop Battery Problem/Question

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Posted by Michael Coate (Member # 757) on 11-20-2007, 11:47 AM:

Question for those with a lot of experience with laptops/notebooks...

Today I experienced for the first time a situation where my battery pack no longer appears to be recharging itself while I'm using AC power. At the moment the battery power is down to 0%.

Can the battery be recharged, or is it time to purchase a new battery? Could the problem be something else, such as the AC connection?

If it helps to diagnose the problem, my laptop is a Toshiba Satellite M55. The battery pack is Toshiba model PA3399U-1BRS. I've had this laptop since late 2005 and is the first one I've owned, so I have no previous experiences to compare to. I'm on my second AC power adapter.

Anyone have a similar experience or suggestions?

Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 11-20-2007, 11:58 AM:

Rechargeable batteries do have a finite lifetime, even if that life is 1,000's of recharge/discharge cycles they will eventually wear out.

Looks like it's time to get a new battery.

If you know somebody with a similar computer who can temporarily swap batteries with you, it would be a simple matter to verify whether it's the battery or the power management firmware inside the computer.

It probably is the battery but it's worth your time to check.

Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 11-20-2007, 12:02 PM:

Notebook computer batteries are only good for a few hundred charge cycles. If you compute completely wireless frequently, then you'll have to count on replacing the notebook battery perhaps once every two years or even once a year.

The issue with the AC adapter sounds more odd. Those things shouldn't fail.

Another critical piece of hardware where having a spare is a great idea: the hard disc. Notebook computer hard drive designs come and go at a rapid pace. It can be especially difficult to get a replacement hard disc for a notebook more than 3 or 4 years old. A hard drive failure in an old notebook could turn it into a worthless paper weight.

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 11-21-2007, 12:32 AM:

Unless Michael wants to try this hack to get his battery pak working again and same some dough - like my Dell Inspirion here needs a new battery since it pooped out during the summer and have been running on AC since..(too lazy to buy a battery for now since the danged thing runs $125.00 new..)

Issues that I've heard about PS is that of the AC input cord going in and shorting out at the neck of the plug - in which the DC out cable can do the same thing.

My trick is to secure the AC end into the PS block so the neck doesn't have a chance to short out in as well as the DC output side. It's all that movement of plugging and unplugging is what raises havoc with these things..

-Monte

Posted by Mark Lensenmayer (Member # 134) on 11-21-2007, 11:36 AM:

You probably need a new battery.

Check the suppport site for the computer. I had a laptop that had a piece of reset software for the battery that I had to run every few months. You might google around a bit to see if such a piece of software exists for your machine.

Posted by Joshua Waaland (Member # 287) on 11-21-2007, 02:29 PM:

I have a Dell Latitude D620 here at work and after it was about 6 months old a window popped up and said that my battery had reached it's useful life. I wondered if that was true and the battery was being monitored or if Dell just had a setting in the computer to pop up so they could sell more batteries. I wanted a bigger battery anyways so I bought a 9 cell instead of the standard 6 cell. It sticks out in the front of the keyboard like a wrist rest. It lasts twice as long especially when I am using my mobile broadband card.

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 11-22-2007, 10:52 AM:

Dell replaced the battery in my XPS under warranty once and 6 months later its already starting to show signs of shorter life after re-charge. The battery in my 15 year old old Toshiba 90mhz mhz P-1 still holds a better charge than the Dell does. Dell uses some Sony batteries and some of another manufacturer whose name excspes me at the moment. Overall the Dell runs really well but the case is a hunk of junk and I would never buy another Dell laptop because of that.

Mark

Posted by Robert W. Jones (Member # 4228) on 11-22-2007, 12:18 PM:

I replaced two batteries on two older laptops a couple of months ago. Both Toshiba Sattellite models. OEM price was about 125-130.00 on each, which I wasn't going to spend on those old computers. Found replacement non-OEM's on eBay for 1/4 of the price. Made in China, but so far holding up well.

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 11-22-2007, 02:17 PM:

quote: Mark Gulbrandsen
The battery in my 15 year old old Toshiba 90mhz mhz P-1 still holds a better charge than the Dell does

Course, that's the big secret: Processor - how much juice does it take to run a processor. Prob could run 12 "AA" batteries in that laptop for a decent time.

Now, with dual core versions, you almost gonna have to have a car battery to get your duration of power with these processors..

Posted by Bill Enos (Member # 440) on 11-24-2007, 12:33 PM:

A friend who had a 3 year old Toshiba that had the battery expire opened the battery case and wired in several (don't know how many)
nickel metal hydride AA cells in series and parallel configurations to equal the necessary voltage out and ended up with a battery pack that powered the computer for a hour and a half, recharged normally with the charger for a little over $20. The original battery would last about 2 hrs. and the replacement was more than a hundred bucks. The NMH cells go down at rest in 2 to 4 weeks though.

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 11-24-2007, 06:25 PM:

Course, the rotten thing about NMH cells is of the "memory" thing that these are prone to be stuck with.

After awhile, they "know" when to drain and how much current to put out after a charge. That's why at occasional times, to let the NMH cell(s) drain completely cold dead before recharging in helping eliminate the "memory" syndrome that these batteries are known for.

LiON batteries doesn't have this problem with "memory syndrome",but are prone to die when they want to and not hold a charge.

-Monte

Posted by Leo Enticknap (Member # 534) on 11-28-2007, 02:36 PM:

If Michael has gone through two AC adaptors, could this indicate a problem with the charging circuitry inside the laptop? I've never known a laptop transformer to fail (I'm on my third laptop in seven years). In fact, I still use the transformer from laptop #2 as a backup for #3, because the voltage and amperage are identical (laptop #2 got stolen, but the morons responsible forgot to nick the AC adapter/transformer along with it). After 5 years of reasonably regular use, it still works fine.

Just a thought. As Bobby says, NiMH and LIon batteries do wear out with intensive use, but to go through two transformers during the life of one battery ... something seems not quite right there.