what is the RIGHT way to charge my thinkpad EDGE? (battery life)

i've read conflicting opinions on how to charge my thinkpad edge.

A) some say keep it plugged in to a source as much as possible even when on 100%.

B) some say let the battery drain to "very low" and plug it.

which one is the right one ? (explanation?)

the battery kind:

Battery Information

Number of Cells
6-cell
Battery Chemistry
Lithium Ion (Li-Ion)
Maximum Battery Run Time
4.50 Hour

 

The answer depends on whether you're aiming for maximum runtime (hours) or maximum battery lifespan (years). With today's battery technologies, you can't have both at the same time! There are a few tips here:

How can I increase battery life? - lenovo community

 

Have you read the battery guide? IMO there is no perfect way for charging batteries. I've always charged to 100% and used it til the battery is <20% or died since I want the maximum battery life out of my notebook (it's made to be used on the go, so why cut battery life short). I have minimal wearing on my Acer and even my previous Dell Inspiron 8600 (from 2002). I leave my battery in at 100% charge when using A/C power too since if there is ever a power failure, the battery acts as a UPS.

 

The batteries are ca. $50 on ebay.
Use it the way you want to.
You probably spend more $$$ on a night out drinking.

So fuggit

 

I would just set the power manager to Automatically optimize for battery lifespan and then just leave it in the computer and enjoy your computer. This is how I treated the battery in my T60, and after 3.25 years and 1167 cycles it still holds over 75% of its original capacity

 

Depends on how often you use your ThinkPad. For me I use my ThinkPad three times a week unplugged and I have the charging minimum threshold at under 21% and maximum at 95%.

So say on Sunday night, I would charge the laptop to its maximum threshold and then the next day, use it unplugged at school for about two hours and by the time I get home, I have about 70% to which I plug it in (no charging) until I have class again few days later.

After that next class, I would have about 45% or so coming home and then I would plug it in (again, no charging). Then I would do this for one more day and come home with about 23% or so (no charging!).

By now I would use the laptop unplugged until the battery is under 21% and then I plug it in to finally charge the ThinkPad after a week's worth of usage. I would leave the laptop plugged in until it's Sunday night again and everything starts all over .

I now never remove my battery for any reason. Only downside to this is that you won't be at maximum battery when you are on the go unless you finally reached under 21%.

I do agree with others in that you should just charge it to max and enjoy/not worry about it as they are replaceable. But for me, a 9-cell battery is way more than enough for my usage in a day so I try to expand it to a whole week before charging. Basically I'm doing both options 1 and 2 except my "very low" would be 20%.

 

thanks for your input!

whenever i'm home - i'll keep it plugged in "ready for the road".
this way when i am out - i dont need to carry the charger.
less weight and most of all cords free.

i hope, by the time the battery is unsuable - they'll have nuclear ones.

10x