How much battery life do you really need?

I know this isn't strictly a what notebook should I buy thread, but there isn't really a general thread for these questions. I'm deciding between the m14x and Sager NP8150...at this point it seems like the better battery on the m14x makes up for the lack of power (compared to the NP8150). Although in classes I should for the most part have plug ins, I will probably use my ipad 2 a lot for just simple notes. However, if I do any traveling (vacation, etc) it seems like 2 hours of battery life from the Sager would be an absolute pain in the butt. At this point it seems like maybe the Sager is meant to be plugged in at a desk with limited portability, where as the m14x is portable because of its great battery life. This is the last factor for me on determining which laptop I choose. So looking for some help on this please.

 

if you're going to be gaming, there isnt a laptop that will last more than 2 hours anyway. you'll be lucky to get over an hour under that kind of load

 

in my gaming/ design laptops I need 15 minutes, enough to get to the next outlet. for my on the go machines I NEED 8-9 hours of ACTUAL runtime.

each person needs to find their balance between perforrmance and battery life.

 

Do I need to be using my battery now? I'm on the couch. I didn't charge my laptop yesterday or today and still have hours left, despite using it a lot.

I "need" maybe 3-4 hours for my own laptop. My work laptop I only need 30 minutes for. But I like having a lot more capacity (x220 + 9 cell, 10-11 hours is realistic) because of my usage patterns.

But there are several things that need to be factored in to consideration. If you're going to be using a laptop away from an outlet, you don't want it to die. You don't want it to provide the exact minimum of amount of power that you need in order to do what you need to do, as batteries degrade over time.

For example, if you use your laptop in class. How long is the class? If it's 2 hours and you're fine with the idea of verifying that the laptop is fully charged before class, and then charging it directly afterwards, you will be OK with 3 hours. But if you need to go to a quieter location to study, like to travel, don't have much access to power at school, or collaborate with other people for school stuff, you will likely need more time. If you're not always equipped to keep the laptop fully charged, you need to be aware of that.

You may also need to consider how intensive your battery based usage is. Maybe you want a laptop you can game on but when untethered you're just doing school stuff. Or maybe something more moderate, where you will be doing heavy photo editing on battery. Because 3 hours in word is a lot less power than 3 hours of photo editing, which is a LOT less power than 3 hours of gaming.

Also, if you look at planned usage, you need to factor uncertainties in to the equation and what level of mobility you expect. On a desktop replacement that you rarely take out of your home, for example, battery life may not matter at all. You may even just leave it on the same desk all the time. But if you expect to use it on the go, you need to consider how important it is that your battery may die before you finish what you're doing. And if that's the case, can you find an outlet? If you can, that's one thing. But if you can't, what would it cost you? If just a hassle, it's one thing, but if you need your laptop to work while you're making 7 hour flights, need to do a lot of work on the plane, you have no room for poor battery life.

If you want to game on vacation or something, you're still going to need to be plugged in on the m14x. But where it'll shine compared to a more dedicated machine is that you will actually be able to use it as a laptop and not just a portable laptop.

Needing to turn game settings to medium is a small price to pay if you're OK with that as a compromise for being able to do light work for 5 hours. But if all you do is game, expect it to last a while on the battery, and offer good performance, you will be underwhelmed by the battery life of the m14x, and the performance too. So plugging in the Sager would be the right choice for you.

If you're not going to game on vacation or away from home, a low powered laptop with a desktop is a better solution (That's what I do, personally!). But with only one machine, you need to decide if having a *laptop* is important, or if you really just need a luggable computer.

Having only one laptop if you have conflicting interests is tough, because it's not just a matter of performance. But in the end there is no universal right or wrong. Just a whole bunch of people with different needs and expectations.

 

thats exactly why i have 2 laptops. (desktop is not viable because every 3-6 months i move locations for 2 months or more)

if you think the ipad is enough for general note taking etc, get a nice keyboard for it and forget about needing good battery life on your gaming/power rig.

go for the sager in that case.

 

80 percent of the time 2-3 hours works.
The other 20 percent it would be nice for 5+ hours. At times on campus my 3 hours max battery life has killed me.

 

It also depends on what you need it for. If your a light user, notes, browsing, etc. you don't need too much power. However, if you need to use photoshop, vid editing or anything else power intensive, then your going to sacrifice battery life. Your only answer to that type of usage would be battery slices or larger batteries. And that would really depend on the manufacturer and end user suppliers.

I, like another poster earlier, use 2 laptops. I move between 2 offices and home. If I know I am going to be at either office for a while, I bring my DTR with me, but if I know I am going to be mobile all day, I bring my tablet. My DTR is usually plugged in, and I use it for photo and video editing. If I know I am going to be in the field I use my slate. Man I wish we could get a powerful laptop or slate that gets 5-6 hours. But so far it is either battery or performance.

 

I'm a university student, and I have my GX640 and an ipad w/ zaggmate keyboard. As much as I'd like to tell you that an ipad is enough to use as a on-the-go computer for notes, it really isn't. You'll find that it's more than adequate during lectures but if you plan to do any computing at a library or at a friends place, the ipad is not an ideal way to do it. I get 2 hours out of my laptop and imo, it's more than enough. If I have a real long class I go ipad and if it's a shorter one (1 - 1.5 hrs) I can choose.

2 hours is enough, and I won't feel comfortable leaving the house without the A/C unless I have anything less than 10 hours of battery life on my laptop anyways. You never know where you might end up going to study or hang out that you'll need power.

The one thing I will say though is that it's a good idea to get an extra A/C adapter. One can sit in ur bag at all times and one at your main desk. It's a pain to always reach down and grab ur A/C adapter when you're rushing to class (or even worse, forgetting it altogether).

 

I agree. I have one adapter at my main office and leave it there, the other stays in my bag for use at my other office and home for my DTR. Much faster and easier that way.

I am not sure why when I type the abbreviation for desktop replacement it provides an automatic link to the sales part of this website, but don't click it thinking it will tell you anything. It goes straight to the advertisement page of NBR.