Considering leaving Blade 14 (2013) constantly on

Hey guys,

I have had my Blade 14 (2013) from when it got released and loved it since.

I have recently upgraded my home cinema system (well...just the tv and the sound system really ) and was considering buying a htpc as a Plex server.

However, as I have been running a Plex server on my Blade for a few months now, I was now thinking of buying a nice cooling pad and leave the laptop always on (adjust the power setting so it doesn't sleep on shut lid) and always plugged in.

Now the issue I am afraid of is the battery dying much quicker as it will be plugged in most of the day and only discharging when I get home from work and/or during weekends.

Is this a relevant concern?
If so, is there a way of forcing the laptop to not charge the battery at all when plugged in? Or some sort of alternative?

Not sure if I can remove the battery (after unscrewing the back plate), but even is it could be done, it would just be a hassle to have to re-assemble it back, so this is out of the question


Thanks in advance!

 

I guess it would depend on the design. My old Dell laptop would stop charging the battery unless it was under 95%. I've had that laptop on for media/small Terraria server for close to a year now and the battery hasn't gotten any wear according to hwmonitor. I think as long as the battery isn't being discharged it should be fine? I know Windows doesn't charge the battery after it reaches 100% charge until it drops below 95% again.

 

Just checked the battery status using hwinfo64 and it states the battery wear level is at 9.9% (64036 mWh out of 71040 mWh). This is after 1 year of daily, heavy usage.

So, if I leave the laptop plugged in, it should stop charging when 100% and stop. But now will the laptop use the battery volts or the chargers? If the chargers, why would the battery discharge at all then?

 

All batteries have internal resistances and will slowly lose their charge. Capacitors are the same way.

 

Ir your budget allows, you could always just build a small PC to use as a plex server. You could go with an Intel Nuc and for under $300, you would have a small quiet PC for plex and other media while your laptop is free to do something else. I know it doesn't your question but that's what I would do if I were you.

 

You can leave it on and plugged in all day. It will not harm the battery. Just use it.

 

It's fine you don't have to worry unless your computer gets too hot

 

I was thinking about getting a htpc but I want to get one that will be future-proof for when 4k media becomes less sparse, as I have a 4k TV. A NUC will not deal with 4k media at all, and until I gather the funds, I'll just use the Blade for this.

 

thanks for letting me know.

that's why I wanted to leave it on a cooling pad. anyone know a good one for the 14" blade?

 

try the notepad u3 you can direct the fans

 

Just leaving an updated on this. Since I opened this thread, I went on and got myself one of these coolers Cooler Master: NOTEPAL A200 (black, obviously), and left my Blade running on it ever since, always plugged in.

It's been close to 6 months now and the only down-time was between restarts.

As is stated previously, the battery wear reported by HWiNFO64 before doing this was at 9.9% (64036 mWh out of 71040 mWh).
Now, it is showing me 10.7% (63470 mWh out of 71040 mWh), which I find to be shockingly low.

It seems to me that leaving the laptop constantly plugged in, is better for the battery life than running full battery cycles.

 

Running full battery cycles is the worst thing you can do. Using a battery saver that limits it to 70 or 80 percent is best. Leaving it topped up at 100 isn't as ideal but better than cycling it all the time.

 

Right now it seems not get above 90% charged. It's saying 90% available (plugged in, not charging).
Is there a way to force it to stop at 70-80?

 

yes, what is this "battery saver" one talks about? My Samsung had a bios option to cause it to stop charge at 80% (or was it 90%) that was handy.

 

That's exactly it. Though sadly not all manufacturers implement it.

 

oh...right...so there is no way to do this on the blade...