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    V1S battery Wear Problem

    Discussion in 'Asus' started by matt_h1, Aug 24, 2007.

  1. honguy

    honguy Notebook Consultant

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    How satisfied V1S A1 owners are other then the modular battery problem? Any update on the modular battery problem? Can this modular battery problem be fixed with a bios update?
     
  2. E.B.E.

    E.B.E. NBR Procrastinator

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    Well the answers seem to be mixed. Some are happy with the build quality, some aren't. Some are pi__ed off by all the problems with the battery, some aren't.

    BIOS update: an update has the potential to fix it, because it is most likely a BIOS bug, but from my experience with ASUS that fix might actually never come...
     
  3. honguy

    honguy Notebook Consultant

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    E.B.E : How happy are you with your Asus built quality?
     
  4. E.B.E.

    E.B.E. NBR Procrastinator

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    Me, I'm very happy. I don't think the V6 is built quite like a Thinkpad but it's still solid, and it's also very beautiful (actually, the most beautiful notebook I've ever seen. But I might be biased since I own it :) )

    Same goes for the M6Ne to a great extent.
     
  5. honguy

    honguy Notebook Consultant

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    After debating long enough between Sony FZ 190 and V1s B1 I finally settle down for V1s B1 till garak69 gave a bad opinion about his V1s A1. I am confused......
     
  6. matt_h1

    matt_h1 Notebook Deity NBR Reviewer

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    Got some more bad news when it comes to the battery, The modular battery does indeed seem to draw a significant ammount more power, Using the modular battery The most I could draw was a massive 70w, On the main battery the most I could drain was about 55w, On full brightness and typing while surfing I use 27w on the main battery, but 35w on modular. One possible reason for this is that the main battery is 14.8v and the modular is 11.1
     
  7. odin243

    odin243 Notebook Prophet

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    Well, wattage equals voltage times amperage, so if it's dissipating more power with a lower voltage, that implies that there's a (60%) higher current when using the modular battery. I've no idea why that is though.
     
  8. CalebSchmerge

    CalebSchmerge Woof NBR Reviewer

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    The W3j has a similar issue with the modular battery, but I don't trust the numbers at all, I think there are some problems with the way readings are. My though for this is how could the computer really be using that much more power? Also, you can test with the battery life, not just the readings from windows that claim x amount of life, make a real average of battery life.
     
  9. matt_h1

    matt_h1 Notebook Deity NBR Reviewer

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    Heya all, Just got this back from my reseller ExcaliberPC

    This is a response I received from Asus USA today. They will have someone looking into this issue tonight at the 24/7 support centre and possibly report it back to us by tomorrow. I have also spoken to the R&D director in Taiwan via Skype about some of these concerns that our customers have in terms battery usability and reliability on various noteooks. (raising the bar a little for the good) Hopefully they will make some adjustment on their end, so they can be even more competitive in every aspects. Thanks!

    _____________________________________________

    Hi *****,

    For the moment, please have those customers contact our Tech Support Department.

    I will be able to give you a more solid response tomorrow.

    Thank you.
    Best Regards,
     
  10. DTrump

    DTrump Notebook Consultant

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    Sorry I haven't chimed in on this again until now. As I posted before, I had an issue with my modular battery, where my V1S would no longer boot until I removed the modular battery or I plugged into AC power. If I left the modular battery in and unplugged from the wall, my laptop would shut off completely and not turn on again until I plugged it back in, or until I removed the modular battery.

    After numerous tests and configurations, I RMA'd the modular battery to Excaliber, and they sent it back to Asus. I just received my new modular battery, and have used it some and fully charged it after calibrating it through the BIOS utility. I have not allowed it to get fully discharged, though, for fear of running into the same problem and having to go through the process again.

    Really, I have had very few issues with my V1S. I love it, and I haven't even had a chance to try all of the features, yet. I'm sure that if I run into any problems along the way, someone on here will have some idea of things to try, if not a resolution.
     
  11. garak69

    garak69 Notebook Enthusiast

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    So now the the problem with the modular bay has reached me as well. Yesterday my main battery died after fiddling around with the modular one.
    Staying at 81% and not taking a charge. Loaded over night and battery symbol starts flashing at some time...
     
  12. andrewlu

    andrewlu Newbie

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    Hello all. I'm new and just signed up. I've been reading your discussions for a while now and want to support in any way possible. I have a V1JP, purchased in May and I've already lost about 50% of my battery time due to this "fake" wear. I was running on battery the first time I was writing this reply when it went from 30% charge and suddenly dropped to 0% and shutdown. Frustrating!

    I've been in contact with ASUS regarding the problem with my battery and hopefully will help get the attention of ASUS to put in the effort to fix the problem.

    Like was posted by someone earlier, it's a shame that such a fine machine is crippled by such a simple and pathetic issue.
     
  13. E.B.E.

    E.B.E. NBR Procrastinator

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    Yes, that is what is happenning after a while.

    Good luck, but some of us have been trying to do that for nearly 2 years and didn't manage to budge them.

    Keep in mind the V1S suffers from an easier "flavor" of the battery wear problem; namely the wear can be "REset" to 0 by a simple procedure.
     
  14. Robnelle

    Robnelle Notebook Enthusiast

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    Well I wouldn't necessarily call it easier. Throw in a modular battery and your main may just flat out stop being detected altogether like mine did. Instead of just gradual reduction of capacity. Just immediately 'goodbye'. It's like paying and extra 120 bucks for a downgrade! :p
     
  15. honguy

    honguy Notebook Consultant

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    Robnelle: What if I use the laptop on just main battery. What do you think about V1S A1's quality in general?
     
  16. Robnelle

    Robnelle Notebook Enthusiast

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    Well I would hope and expect it to be as E.B.E. described above. I cannot say from personal experience that the battery would work fine. Mine seemed to work well but then again I only had it for 2 and a half days before I used the modular battery for the first time and found I could no longer use the main. 2 days is hardly enough time to see any real battery wear effects. After using the mod battery I could not even use the bios calibration tool on the main battery as the option would not present itself as long as the main was the only battery in the notebook. If the modular battery was in I could use the calibration function but it would only drain and calibrate the modular battery not the main, even with the main installed simultaneously.

    I did see some battery wear after the mod battery was introduced but I do not know if that was a side effect of the mod bug or if it would have happened anyway. Right before I shipped it off to Asus, it was showing charge of 94 percent ( and would charge no further). I watched the max charge drop by 1 % every couple of days from the time I put the mod battery in until I RMA'd the battery.

    I do not think swapping out the battery will help but Tech support wanted to try that first and then if that doesn't work, return the laptop. Sadly, I don't think that will do any good either. I think I will either wind up just working without the mod battery or returning the laptop to powernotebooks and getting something else. I really don't want to do that because, aside from this issue I really like this notebook. If I do take the former option I will try to see if I can work out a return and refund from ExcaliburPC where I bought the mod battery from. No sense in keeping a battery I cannot and in fact am actually afraid to use.

    The crazy part of it all is that the mod battery itself works perfectly fine. No unusual battery wear at all. IMHO, the machine itself just cannot figure out how to properly juggle and communicate with both batteries.
     
  17. andrewlu

    andrewlu Newbie

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    Does the V1J suffer from the same issue as the V1S when adding a modular battery?
     
  18. honguy

    honguy Notebook Consultant

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    I was almost ready to order my V1S B1 but after reading all this problem with battery, I am confused, I don’t know what to do, will this problem ever be solved. What should I do?
     
  19. Robnelle

    Robnelle Notebook Enthusiast

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    I honestly don't feel qualified to answer this question because I don't own a V1j and have no experience with it. I can say that I don't remember seeing any posts from any V1j owners complaining about it. My understanding is that the mod battery was made for the v1j but 'was compatible' with the v1s. Maybe it's not so 'compatible' after all!. Hmmmn...... Anyways all we can do is ask. Any V1j owners out there who have had problems with the mod battery causing the main battery to no longer function correctly?
     
  20. honguy

    honguy Notebook Consultant

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    How about this. I can buy V1S B1 and use Just with main battery and not use modular battery. I will buy modular battery when it is safe and all the problems are fixed. I think the standard (main) battery last just as good as of any other laptop in same catagory right.
     
  21. Robnelle

    Robnelle Notebook Enthusiast

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    Ahh! Presuming Asus does in fact fix the various battery problems! Historically this has not been the case. Cablesmerge can tell you all about that! The truth is we just don't know what Asus is going to do. They may have a fix in the works but then again they may not. Only Asus knows and they ain't talkin'.

    As for the main battery holding up, I can only hope so. Some owners say that it works ok or rather the 'fake' battery wear is reversible with regular calibration, some disagree, but keep in mind that this is a new machine and users are still analyzing it and learning new things about it.

    My advice for you is to just buy what you want. No notebook is perfect. My folks told me many moons ago that nothing made by human beings will ever be perfect because humans are not perfect.If you look hard enough you can always find something wrong.

    Only you truly know what your needs and tolerances are. Find a good reseller who has a good return policy and just buy what you want. If you find your notebook to be particularly afflicted or you find that it's flaws outweigh it's benefits to you or it just leaves you underwhelmed, then return it and get something else.Now I am not in any way saying it's ok for notebook manufacturers to dish out expensive electronics with boatloads of problems or that we as consumers need to just 'deal with it' and accept it as normal but at some point you will need to make a decision and if the manufacturer or the notebook you want is not up to par then return it and take your money elsewhere.
     
  22. honguy

    honguy Notebook Consultant

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    Robnelle: I think you are absolutely right because my choice was Sony FZ 190 CTO or Asus V1S B1. In this forum I have been following the thread of FZ owners Along with V1S battery Wear Problem and V1S owner’s thread. And just like you said both have their own problems, none of them is 100 % problem free, it’s just a matter of which one has least problem. So I will finally have to decide on one of them.
     
  23. matt_h1

    matt_h1 Notebook Deity NBR Reviewer

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    Honguy youve almost been ready to buy the V1s for about 3 weeks now but you keep finding issues to stop you, Ask yourself if you really want it but stop asking us :p.
     
  24. honguy

    honguy Notebook Consultant

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    matt h1 : The whole Idea about this forum is to learn and let learn. As there are not too many V1S A1/B1 in the market I am still trying to research the pro and cons about this particular model. matt h1 you have been help full in the past but if you are tired of my questions you don’t have to answer them.
     
  25. E.B.E.

    E.B.E. NBR Procrastinator

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    honguy: at least two users have managed to reset their battery wear to 0. The others, AFAIK, didn't try or didn't report the results. Chances are you're going to be able to do it as well. So V1S is reasonably usable with the main battery (much more so than the V1J or V6J, for instance).

    I also agree that ASUS might never fix the bugs with the modular battery.

    And finally, I also agree that there is no perfect notebook :) Just choose the one that looks best at the point when you need it, and that's it.
     
  26. garak69

    garak69 Notebook Enthusiast

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    I spoke to the german Asus hotline today and they will replace my faulty main battery. I also mentioned the problem with modular+main and that some other v1s owners also suffer from this. The lady was so nice to promise to let somebody know about the issue so hopefully Asus gets to know about the problem and does something about it.


    BTW: Does anybody know where in the U.K. I can buy a new main battery (Part number 90-NGF1B1100)?
     
  27. HerrKaputt

    HerrKaputt Elite Notebook User

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    You might want to know that my father installed the BIOS update (v. 3.11 I think) from the ASUS website on his R1f and the battery wear issue was NOT solved.

    Anyone has had his/her battery wear SOLVED by the BIOS update?
     
  28. E.B.E.

    E.B.E. NBR Procrastinator

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    Not to my knowledge. (V6J, V1J, R1F)
     
  29. honguy

    honguy Notebook Consultant

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    Is there ever going to be a solution for modular battery battery on V1S ?
     
  30. E.B.E.

    E.B.E. NBR Procrastinator

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    Just a sec, let me get my crystal ball... Hmm... it doesn't show anything...

    In other words, nobody knows :)
     
  31. Jdaswat

    Jdaswat Notebook Enthusiast

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    I've suffered the same fate! Robnelle please give an update on your situation. :(

    My battery is recognized as being there, but wont power the machine or be recognized in bios...
     
  32. zoku88

    zoku88 Notebook Guru

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    I had the same problem. I contacted support and they basically told me to call for an RMA (as in, they're just going to replace it.)

    Maybe it's unfixable...
     
  33. Robnelle

    Robnelle Notebook Enthusiast

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    I RMA'd my battery and it was received by ASUS over a week ago and I have not heard anything from them since I received my RMA letter. Tech support told me that they should be shipping me a replacement part 1 to 2 days after they receive my faulty part unless the new part is backordered. I have received no updates at all from Asus. They could at least send me a quick email to explain the delay.
     
  34. E.B.E.

    E.B.E. NBR Procrastinator

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    Call them and push them a little bit. Sometimes it helps.
     
  35. Ev0lutionz

    Ev0lutionz Notebook Consultant

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    I just rmaed my battery, but that doesnt help anyway. I think i am gonna tell them its a software problem/firmware problem.
     
  36. Jdaswat

    Jdaswat Notebook Enthusiast

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    If I RMA my main battery and receive a new one, I don't see why that one wont fail to work too. Could it be safe to conclude that for the V1S modular + main = bye bye main?
     
  37. E.B.E.

    E.B.E. NBR Procrastinator

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    I think that's the safe (worstcase) assumption, indeed, until (and if) ASUS solves the issue.
     
  38. Jdaswat

    Jdaswat Notebook Enthusiast

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    So I have a $120 paperweight and less battery life overall... awesome.
     
  39. E.B.E.

    E.B.E. NBR Procrastinator

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    I agree it's not pretty... The ideal way in which ASUS should behave is solve the bugs ASAP.

    A less ideal way but good for the individual user is to try get a refund for the modular (since it kills the main, it can't be used), exchange the main battery, and just settle for using the main battery only...
     
  40. Jdaswat

    Jdaswat Notebook Enthusiast

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    I don't know if trying to get a refund from the reseller would be the best course of action as it's Asus's problem. Should I expect them to take the hit on a product when Asus should resolve this?
     
  41. E.B.E.

    E.B.E. NBR Procrastinator

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    No, you could try to get a refund from ASUS. The battery has a serial number which makes it an ASUS product, so it should be supported by ASUS.

    This is probably not written in any contract, it's just a "common sense" course of action that you might appeal to when talking to the RMA guys.
     
  42. maati

    maati Notebook Evangelist

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    I think nobody has recieved their replacement battery yet, so we dont't know.

    Either it is a manufacturing error of the first batteries or it is a general problem with all batteries.

    RMA it like the others did and see what happens when you plug the replacement battery. Or try to get a refund if you don't want the risk of having the problem again.
     
  43. E.B.E.

    E.B.E. NBR Procrastinator

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    Like I said, worst-case assumption is that it will kill the second battery as well. :) But that's only the worst-case assumption (and the one I would make given ASUS' batteries track record).
     
  44. Jdaswat

    Jdaswat Notebook Enthusiast

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    I just got an e-mail back from Asus and they just want me to RMA like everybody else. Hopefully when I call them I can get some more concrete info about the situation.
     
  45. jourabchid

    jourabchid Notebook Geek

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    I rma'd my notebook a month ago havent got it back yet, they called me last week and asked i send in the modular battery...sent that in friday got a replacement back tuesday, im still waiting on my frickin notebook though its killing me...had it for a month and its been in repair for a month...

    ill keep you updated once i get my notebook back to see how things worked out..
     
  46. Robnelle

    Robnelle Notebook Enthusiast

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    I called Asus today to check on my battery RMA and was told they did not have any in stock and had to order it from Taiwan. The lady told me the E.T.A. on the new battery was.. two weeks! :eek: What!?!? That's crap!That's a basic replacement item! :mad: How do you run out? There would have to be a lot of people needing new batteries! I wonder why...

    Well at least I can warn the rest of you...If you RMA be prepared to wait.
     
  47. Insane

    Insane Notebook Evangelist

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    i think you hi the nail on the head there... they are trying to keep the battery issues as quiet as possible. but when they run out... then something major must be wrong. this needs more public attention...
     
  48. dcronin

    dcronin Notebook Enthusiast

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    I've had my V1S for about a week, and have been running it purely on AC. Yet Battery icon has been showing declining "available" power, down to 96% and doesn't charge. Anyone have advice? I haven't even touched the modular battery, and won't until there's a way to make it work correctly.
     
  49. user1234

    user1234 Notebook Enthusiast

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    Mine does the exact same thing. It is at 99% right now, but I have seen it as low as 94% I think. I have also seen it at 100% after the fact.
     
  50. MilestonePC.com

    MilestonePC.com Company Representative

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    When and if your battery shows under 100% but you know you have left it to charge for a long time, then all you need to do is remove the battery. Then place the battery back into the laptop. You will see your charge to be accurately read as 100%.

    From my testing, when the battery doesn't charge to 100% that is wear percentage that is isn't being calculated into the charge.

    For exmaple if my battery charges to 99%...this means 1% battery wear, remove it and place it back into the laptop, and you will see via NHC the battery will now have 1% of battery wear. (this is from my testing, but may not be true for all cases).
     
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