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    XPS 14 Wifi kills battery

    Discussion in 'Dell XPS and Studio XPS' started by Snapdragon, Nov 15, 2010.

  1. Snapdragon

    Snapdragon Notebook Geek

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    Hi all, quick question..

    With the wifi card disabled my XPS 14 gets 7 hours battery. With the wifi enabled it gets under 4 hours. Surely this about of battery life loss is a bit excessive, or is it normal?

    Thanks.
     
    Snapdragon, Nov 15, 2010
    #1
  2. machiz7888

    machiz7888 Notebook Consultant

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    that does seem a bit high, id expect it to make it to 5 maybe. how many internet using background programs do you have running in the background
     
    machiz7888, Nov 15, 2010
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  3. Snapdragon

    Snapdragon Notebook Geek

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    Nothing in the background, I test it on a fresh Windows 7 install.

    Using the Intel Centrino 6300 btw.
     
    Snapdragon, Nov 15, 2010
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  4. dkwhite

    dkwhite Notebook Deity

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    Could just be a power management issue. Perhaps it will be fixed with a future driver update.
     
    dkwhite, Nov 15, 2010
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  5. WhosTheBosch

    WhosTheBosch Notebook Enthusiast

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    This really sucks! I got the 6300, but wasn't sure if it would use extra power or not. Wonder if it uses more than the 6200 due to the extra antenna use which causes extra power drain?
     
    WhosTheBosch, Nov 16, 2010
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  6. Karamazovmm

    Karamazovmm Overthinking? Always!

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    it all boils down to what you are surfing in da webs, if you are looking flash intense sites, the battery life is going to be lower.

    remember that flash destroys battery life no matter if you re steve or just plain bill
     
    Karamazovmm, Nov 16, 2010
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  7. dkwhite

    dkwhite Notebook Deity

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    I have the 6200 and haven't noticed battery life to be abnormally short. I'm sure it eats up more power than the stock wifi card. It has better range and is capable of faster speeds.
     
    dkwhite, Nov 16, 2010
    #7