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    Windows 7 - Why is my battery less efficient?

    Discussion in 'VAIO / Sony' started by melorock, Aug 21, 2009.

  1. melorock

    melorock Notebook Enthusiast

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    I have Windows 7 RC 64xbit installed. My laptop is a VGN-SR 430J/B and it is advertised as having 6 hours battery life. Yet when I pull my charger out of my laptop, it doesn't even have 3 hours at power savor mode.

    Do I need a vista driver to make my battery more effiecient? How can I correct my problem?
     
    melorock, Aug 21, 2009
    #1
  2. ScuderiaConchiglia

    ScuderiaConchiglia NBR Vaio Team Curmudgeon

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    Advertised battery life and real world battery life are two entirely different animals.

    Gary
     
    ScuderiaConchiglia, Aug 21, 2009
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  3. melorock

    melorock Notebook Enthusiast

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    Yeah.

    But not 3 hours difference at the lowest possible power saving settings. Something's up.
     
    melorock, Aug 21, 2009
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  4. itworker

    itworker Notebook Enthusiast

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    I have win7 rtm running on my Vaio P and have the same complaint. Battery life under Vista is significantly better. It's either the driver(s) or its the OS.

    Win7 is definitely snappier. I wonder though if that snappiness is the result of the CPU being taxed more by the OS than Vista resulting in a lower battery life.
     
    itworker, Aug 21, 2009
    #4
  5. Jayayess1190

    Jayayess1190 Waiting on Intel Cannonlake

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    It has to be the drivers. Sony won't have official drivers for Windows 7 until around the public release in October.
     
    Jayayess1190, Aug 21, 2009
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  6. melorock

    melorock Notebook Enthusiast

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    Didn't I read that W7 was supposed to be more energy efficient? I'll keep searching the internet, I'll post if I find something.
     
    melorock, Aug 22, 2009
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  7. NHT

    NHT Notebook Evangelist

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    Have you ever tried the battery in Vista?
    6h with the SR? Don't make me laugh. Even my Z in Stamina mode can hardly longs 5h. The SR430J comes with a HD4570 card, so 3h is not bad at all.
     
    NHT, Aug 22, 2009
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  8. TDO

    TDO Notebook Consultant

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    It has more energy saving options and you don't need specific drivers as in Vista for some funtctionality.

    But you have set them all right yourself!!

    Under Vista Sony is doing it all for you with it's drivers.

    TDO
     
    TDO, Aug 22, 2009
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  9. melorock

    melorock Notebook Enthusiast

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    No, I didn't have vista long.

    Promising 6h and only getting 3h on lowest possible settings is false advertising. What am I supposed to do?
     
    melorock, Aug 22, 2009
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  10. ScuderiaConchiglia

    ScuderiaConchiglia NBR Vaio Team Curmudgeon

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    Do you REALLY have it at the lowest possible setting? All peripherals turned off, Wi-Fi turned off, brightness turned to minimum, disk drive powered off, etc. etc. etc. Because that is the ONLY way you'd get the advertised max.

    Not to sound harsh, but what you should do is your homework. It is well documented that none of the manufacturers "max battery life" claims are made under any sort of realistic operating conditions. Pick up any computer magazine or read any online review of laptop battery life and you will see what I am talking about.

    There has been some talk of implementing a set of standards for doing these measurements that would be closer to typical use. But so far it is just talk.

    As others have said 3 hours is pretty typical and should be considered good. Not what you want to hear, I know. But it is the REALITY.

    Gary
     
    ScuderiaConchiglia, Aug 22, 2009
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  11. melorock

    melorock Notebook Enthusiast

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    Brightness IS turned to a minimum, but I'll try and turn off my optic drive and Wifi and see if that's what is taking up 3 HOURS of battery life. And despite others expierencing similiar battery life predicaments with an untested "evaluation copy" that is Windows 7 RC (see...this whole forum?) I absoultly know that in realitiy, it could not be Windows 7.
     
    melorock, Aug 22, 2009
    #11