Which Dell has best battery life?

Considering processor ability to conserve power and the size and quality of the battery that comes with the laptop, including options for getting a larger battery - which laptop has the most power or potential power to spare? I find that many manufacturers are skimping in this area and not providing enough space for a large enough battery and opting for slim design instead.

Does Dell or any manufacturer still provide the option for using 2 batteries on a laptop as Dell did with the swappable bays in the past? Do they still make laptops like that? Thanks!

 

In general, up to 15.4" the Dell's with extended batteries have similar battery life - about 4.5 to 5 hours.

Bigger screens and AMDs will have much shorter battery life.

The Dell Latitudes have a modular optical which can be exchanged with a 6 cell battery.

IBM Thinkpads also have capabilities for modular batteries.

 

Which Dell 15.4 computers have the extended battery option or come with an extended battery? Also, is an extended battery considered to be 6 cells or more than that? I really appreciate the help! I want a Dell but want the most bang, so to speak, for the buck.

 

The Dell Latitude D620 and D820 can pack the most battery capacity at one time. The D620 is a smaller 14" so should be a bit more frugal with power and last longer on battery when similarly configured.

Both can hold a 85Wh 9-cell battery and then a 48Wh modular bay battery in place of the optical drive. The 9-cell sticks out the front on the D620 while it's flush on the D820. The main battery should last 4 - 5 hours and the modular bay will add another 2.5 - 3 hours.

If you're looking at max battery life, checkout the Thinkpad X60s. There's a review at LaptopLogic. It can take an extended 75Wh 8-cell plus you can add a 28Wh 4-cell 'Extended Life Battery'. More details on how that would work over at LaptopLogic. You could expect 9-10 hours with that combination of batteries.

 

Thanks Lazybum131! This is the kind of information that is generally unavailable to the general public and why people are disappointed everyday with laptop battery performance.