Aspire 9410 battery issue

I have a refurbished Acer Aspire 9411 AWSMi Laptop, purchased in December of 2006. It arrived with a Panasonic battery, part number CGR-B/8B5. It says on the battery that it is a 14.8V Lithium ion.

Problem: every time I boot up the computer it posts a battery error. It reads, "Warning! Incorrect battery used! Using incorrect battery can cause system damage. Please remove the battery and insert the correct one. The system will shut down in a few seconds."

Can anyone tell me what the original battery is supposed to be? Or what can I do to make the system recognize this battery? Acer won't help since it is a refurbished system.

Thank you so much for any insight...

 

According to this site (just Googled it; can't vouch for accuracy) the battery is a 6 cell (44W) Li-Ion. I have no idea how to make your machine recognize your current battery - sorry.

Acer's attitude seems odd to me. Can't understand why the make of the battery matters, if the specs match the requirements for the machine. The batteries in my cars, motorcycles, phones and flashlights have all been changed without issue.

 

It is strange that acer wouldn't help you on this issue (even though the notebook is refurbished is the warranty finished?) especially as Lithium-ion battery packs are nothing to mess with . If you have the wrong battery anything could happen like a shortcircuit which could cause damage to your notebook or you .

It might be difficult to actually track down which battery manufacturer acer uses on the 9410, AFAIK they can sometimes use different manufacturers even though it is the same notebook series. If you aren't comfortable with the battery then you can contact acer again explain your situation in full (what the system is saying on boot) and kindly ask them for information about the battery that is supposed to be used in your notebook. If in fact you have the wrong battery then acer should replace it!

 

Well after hours of searching on the Internet, I think I figured out what the issue is. The battery that came with my laptop was the correct battery, however was rated at 4400mAhr. The computer specifications require 4800mAhr.

What is mAhr?

 

There are two ratings on every battery: volts and amp-hours (AH). The AH rating may also be given as milliamp-hours (mAH), which are one-thousandth of an amp-hour (for example, 1AH is 1000mAH) therefore it is a measure of a battery's total capacity. Hi-Capacity batteries will have higher amp-hour ratings this is indicative of a longer run-time (higher capacity).

However capacity shouldn't matter to the notebook. What you should check is the voltage to see if the voltage of the battery matches the notebook's spec as the voltage is what has to match at all times.

 

If the battery is the correct form-factor and fits, then the only thing possibly going on is that that there is code embedded in the battery (a-la newer toner cartridges and inkjet cartridges). The notebook must be reading it, and ralphing when it discovers that the battery is "incorrect."

My guess is that the battery the refurb people installed is actually for an older notebook series. Manufactuers keep improving battery technology, so capacities go up. But improving a battery and making a whole new form-factor are two different things. If I were in the battery business (and the laptop business), I would not reinvent the wheel every time I had a new model or capacity improvment. So last year's notebook used a 4400 mAH battery, and this year's is 4800 mAH in the very same form factor. They may fit, but they're not exactly interchaneable.

Refurb service tech fixes broken notebook, recertifies it. Repack clerk discovers that this "other battery" fits just fine and includes it, but never actually tests anything, because the tech already did it. But the notebook barfs each time it looks at the battery. Make sense?

I would get hold of Acer and ask for the correct battery. If they won't do anything, I think you're stuck with the message until you change that battery out.

-Pink

 

Its possible that the battery on the unit has suffered from some type of failure, the batteries for these units aren't thin on the ground. I know that there is some circuitry in the battery that reports to the laptop its condition, charge status etc... i'm thinking that this circuitry has failed and is reporting bad information to the unit.

Getting in contact with acer is the best bet, however anything that comes directly from them seems to cost an arm and a leg.