1530 Battery Life

Hi,

Ive always gotten, well, not so much battery life out of my machine. However, today Ive realized it might be a problem with it, rather than how it is meant to work. Today I put a DVD (AC/DC live!), plugged an hdmi cable into my tv, and it died half way the 2 hour concert. All my laptop was doing was working as a dvd, so, I figure something must be wrong. What do you people think? TIA!

 

I don't know that specific machine, but it sounds reasonable.
Laptops with dedicated graphics cards doesn't run for long, unless they're idling or browsing the web.

 

Playing a DVD draws a very large amount of power, not to mention the increased CPU usage. How long does the battery life last if the machine just idles?

 

like 1h 30m

 

1.5hrs while idling isn't normal. I would check Vista's power settings, defrag the HD, and clean out the laptop for dust using compressed air and a vacuum cleaner.

 

How do you clean it? Just through the air exits?

 

Use a can of compressed air to dislodge caked dust from the fan blades; then apply the vacuum directly to the fan vent to draw out that dislodged dust.

 

Great. Thanks a lot for the help!

 

Definitely change the power settings to 'Power Saver' when doing stuff like that.. Also close the lid, as you prob have no use for the LCD if you have it hooked up to the TV.

 

when outputing hdmi it EATS the battery like crazy to my 42" plasma, I always plug it in. I have the led screen and get 2.5-3 hrs with normal tasks, browsing, word processing etc...dvd, prob 1.5 hrs on battery. If you have you brightness up it will kill the battery too. I do wish I ordered a 9 cell, but I could not wait that long for the computer.

 

My XPS is just four months old. I don't use it on battery often; but it's seemed the last few times I have, the battery has lasted less than two hours. I know during the first two months it lasted longer. Any thoughts? The computer is clean. I just switched it to power saver from Dell recommended.

Is the battery issue something I need to take up with tech or customer service; or have all of you only been getting a few hours out of your batteries?

 

Check battery wear using a 3rd party utility like NHC or Battery Tracker .. If it's lost more than 5-10% capacity in 4 months, it's abnormal, and should be replaced under warranty..

 

What are the specs of your XPS M1530? More powerful processors and a dedicated graphic card will definitely drain your battery out a lot faster. Also, I'm guessing you're running on a 6-cell, not a 9-cell? Try checking the Dell Battery Meter "Battery Health" tab and see if it indicates any fault with your battery. I myself have a 6-cell and I can say mine lasts a good 2hrs, 30mins when watching movies (on T9300, GeForce 8600GT).

 

i have t8100 without undervolting i get 3 hours to 3 hours and 15 mins, this is doing word processing and taking notes and web browsing

 

Can you tell me where the battery meter is. My computer is less than six months old and the battery is only lasting 1 1/2 hours when I'm in the recommended power option and only browsing.

 

Have you undervolted the T8100? Care to share the resulting battery life after UVing?