The Notebook Review forums were hosted by TechTarget, who shut down them down on January 31, 2022. This static read-only archive was pulled by NBR forum users between January 20 and January 31, 2022, in an effort to make sure that the valuable technical information that had been posted on the forums is preserved. For current discussions, many NBR forum users moved over to NotebookTalk.net after the shutdown.
Problems? See this thread at archive.org.

    Make Vista show the amount of time left when using battery

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by sean473, Sep 2, 2009.

  1. sean473

    sean473 Notebook Prophet

    Reputations:
    613
    Messages:
    6,705
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    In Vista , the battery meter shows only the percentage of battery left but not the amount of time left when using the battery. Is there anyway to make it show the time left when using battery power?
     
    sean473, Sep 2, 2009
    #1
  2. C0xy777

    C0xy777 Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    32
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    15
    i know this can be done with gadgets, and applications external to the OS but i wouldnt have a clue if vista can do this from the word go, also they may not be very reliabe depending on weather or not you use powermizer

    Also factoring in the amount a CPU can pull is variable will probably change the reading anyway
     
    C0xy777, Sep 2, 2009
    #2
  3. LPTP-LVR

    LPTP-LVR Notebook Deity

    Reputations:
    298
    Messages:
    1,794
    Likes Received:
    2
    Trophy Points:
    55
    Get this little app.....fits perfectly in your Vista taskbar and is much more accurate than Vista in calculating the time that's left. It also shows battery wear and how long it takes to reload your battery.....and it's free ;)
    http://osirisdevelopment.com/BatteryBar/
     
    LPTP-LVR, Sep 2, 2009
    #3
  4. sean473

    sean473 Notebook Prophet

    Reputations:
    613
    Messages:
    6,705
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    well it's a nice app but is there anyway to make the vista battery meter to that?
     
    sean473, Sep 2, 2009
    #4
  5. hustheman

    hustheman Notebook Evangelist

    Reputations:
    119
    Messages:
    366
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    no vista does not have time left support so there is no way to enable it if it wasn't built in in the first place
     
    hustheman, Sep 2, 2009
    #5
  6. moral hazard

    moral hazard Notebook Nobel Laureate

    Reputations:
    2,779
    Messages:
    7,957
    Likes Received:
    87
    Trophy Points:
    216
    maybe try running RMclock.
    RMclock shows me how much time is remaining while on battery. Also when the AC is plugged in it shoes the % charged.

    If you haven't already done so, read the undervolting guide.
     
    moral hazard, Sep 2, 2009
    #6
  7. Mastershroom

    Mastershroom wat

    Reputations:
    3,833
    Messages:
    8,209
    Likes Received:
    16
    Trophy Points:
    206
    Just hover your mouse over the battery icon in the taskbar, it should give you the percentage and time, e.g. "51% (3:35) remaining"
     
    Mastershroom, Sep 2, 2009
    #7
  8. hustheman

    hustheman Notebook Evangelist

    Reputations:
    119
    Messages:
    366
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    no HP decided to be a poop and not let us see that

    also why is this in hardware upgrades...
     
    hustheman, Sep 2, 2009
    #8