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    battery management software

    Discussion in 'Dell' started by hunter3, Apr 30, 2008.

  1. hunter3

    hunter3 Newbie

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    Hi all,

    I was wondering if anyone knows of battery management software available for Dell. I'm looking for the ability to customize the charge threshold. Maintaining a lithium-ion battery between 30% and 70% charge would greatly increase its useful lifespan, if your notebook spends most of its time plugged in.

    I've looked all over and I realize there's probably no solution available. Lenovo has a program that does this, but that only works for Thinkpads. [​IMG]
     
    hunter3, Apr 30, 2008
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  2. hunter3

    hunter3 Newbie

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    The inspiration comes from an article I came across about the Toyota Prius. The NiMH battery has problems with a degradation of capacity throughout its life, especially at high temperatures and voltage extremes. The engineers solved this problem by keeping the battery between 40% and 70% charged, extending the useful battery life to eight years and beyond, matching the life of the other car components (indeed, no Prius produced has yet needed a new battery).

    The lithium-ion batteries in our laptops shares the same degradation of capacity, albeit more markedly so. Yet the methods of extending battery life are remarkably similar, mainly keeping batteries away from heat, maintaining average voltage, and keeping them at 40% charge. My 9-cell batteries get 5-6 hours of life, yet I rarely use them more than two hours away from an outlet. A battery management program maintaining a charge level between 30% and 60% could practically eliminate our problem. And should you ever forsee the need for a day away from an outlet, simply charge it to full the night before, as this will calibrate the fuel meter as well.
     
    hunter3, Apr 30, 2008
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  3. kamehame

    kamehame Notebook Evangelist

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    Interesting, I've never thought about it in that way. In the spirit of being inspired by a Prius, I recommend turning off your fan and underclocking your laptop for minimum performance. But at least you feel good about it! Mmm ...warm and fuzzy feelings!!
     
    kamehame, Apr 30, 2008
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  4. bulik

    bulik Notebook Consultant

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    hunter, we are having the same thought. I really like to have this kind of software for charging and discharging the battery. I was thinking of using a timer so that i can turn on and turn off my charger at a specified interval. This is hardware based but software based is the best. or i am thinking of buying a ups then i can program it when my battery charge goes to the recharge trigger level.
     
    bulik, Apr 30, 2008
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  5. millermagic

    millermagic Rockin the pinktop

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    That feature is pretty much specific to the Thinkpads - it is a very handy feature too.

    Dell doesn't support anything like this as far as I know.
     
    millermagic, Apr 30, 2008
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