If i want to keep my battery life on my laptop longer, should I plug it in all the time or use up the Battery?
336687
Plug it in when you have the chance, if it is new just run it until it is almost empty and then charge it, do it a a couple times.
778112
this is no software involved\npure hardcore hardware\n\nauto-cut off switch / mechanism in power adapter determines charge level in battery & accordingly sets charging level at boost, trickle or off\n\nhence this is a function of adapter not laptop\n\nfrom laptop, only control when running on batteries is battery conservation, like dimming of screen, switching off wi-fi ... etc, depending on u'r settings
746321
no u can use the ac power supply it wont hurt it cause that's how u recharge the battery so don't worry about it just use it like that
474857
It varies way too much to say for certain. Depends on how hard  you're working your hard drive, cpu, how bright you have the screen, etc. Also wireless cards use up a LOT of power, turning it off when it's not needed will save you a lot
693676
I'm assuming you run your computer on for long amounts of time. The best thing to do is to get a cooling pad like mentioned and to slow down the processor so that it doesn't produce extra heat when not in use/under a large load. http://www.pbus-167.com/chc.htm Notebook hardware control is a great program you could look into to see temps and to slow the processor down when you don't need all 100%. It can also help save battery life when you're not plugged in.
32205
It depends on the laptop but if you are going on a trip you should give it a full day charge
707903
Look for the Power settings in your Control Panel.   You should have settings there for Brightness mode.  \n\nYou might consider lowering the room lights instead.  You will probably find that your laptop is plenty bright in battery mode when the other lights are lower.\n\nOf course, your battery won't last as long... but seeing better is probably your best option.\n\nGood luck
874350
You definitely need to cycle the battery (need not be all the way down and back again).\n\nLeaving it fully charged all the time will dramatically shorten battery life.\n\nRead some good tips here\nhttp://forums.macosxhints.com/showthread.php?t=57873\n\n///
456935
You laptop should come with a care and instruction manual. When it comes to actually operating it, it won't be much different than using the computer you are on right now. Just bear in mind that you need to keep the battery charged.
629622
Never. This allows your computer to charge its battery in case you want to unplug it for more mobility. It doesn't matter if your computer is one or off because it will still recharge the same way as usual.
1095248
You can use it while it's plugged in. I have a new Dell Laptop as well and I plug it in and sit on the couch to use it. \nI think there is a light that goes green when it is fully charged if you wanted to take it to a local coffee shop or something.
85766
Nothing you should be worried about. If it does, it will be like 1 second less, but the fact is.. if you have more RAM things will get done faster so you can do more with less time. RAM will not hurt the battery life, it will only help it.\n\nhristo_y are you a moron? I was saying, the computer WILL consume more energy but you will not notice the difference. The computer battery may last 1 second less from the extra power it consumes. Try answering the question and not saying something ignorant.
125096
No, generally speaking larger laptops use more power, usually because they are more powerful and have larger displays (which takes more electricity).  Smaller laptops tend to be less powerful, less features, and smaller screens, so therefore use less power.\nThis explanation does not apply to battery life as well though, if you are interested in this.  But since you mentioned Energy Star, I'm assuming you are most interested in Energy Conservation, not battery life.  For this, you will be best off with the smallest profile of laptop, the subcompact laptop, if it suites your needs.
661810
Short answer: no.\nLonger, more complete answer: it depends.\n\nWhile on, the UPS uses a small amount of electricity (which costs a small amount of money), produces a small amount of heat (which makes air-conditioning run a tiny bit more, which costs money), and provides a small charge to the battery in the UPS which keeps it in tip-top condition (maximum battery life).\n\nWhile off, the UPS uses no power and produces no heat, but the internal battery "self-discharges" at a slow rate.  This means that you won't have 100% capacity when you turn it (and the computer) on, and the repeated small self-discharge & re-charge cycles will slightly shorten the life of the internal battery. If there are long periods when the computer (& UPS) would be off (like weeks), then this self-discharge could be significant.\n\nSo, if electricity is hideously expensive, or air-conditioning is costly or unavailable, then turning off the UPS might make sense.\n\nIf you've got no money to replace the UPS and the battery has to last as long as possible, leaving the UPS on makes sense.
444213
Wow, there seems to be some differences of opinion on this one. Well perhaps I can help clear up some of the mystery.  I have actually done quite a bit of research on this topic.\n\nThere is this thing called "battery memory".  It doesn't actually have anything to do with memory, what it refers to is the battery's ability to hold a charge.  If a battery is not discharged all the way before it is recharged it starts to develop a "memory" of the amount of discharge. It doesn't happen right away but eventually it gets to the point where the battery will no longer charge to the full capacity it used to have.\nDifferent battery types are effected by this different amounts.  Alkaline batteries are severely effected by it. Lithium Ion batteries (the kind in a laptop) are not nearly as effected by it but are still a little effected.\nThere is something else to consider however.  All batteries, especially lithium Ions and most especially cheap lithium Ions loose there charge over time, even when they are just sitting being unused.  This means that every few hours or even every few minutes depending on your battery and laptop, the battery charger kicks on to get the battery back to 100%.  This rapid charging and discharging will quickly hurt the batteries life.\nOf course this is only one of many things that can and will effect the life of your battery.  The manual to your laptop should have care instructions for it.  Usually it recommends running on the battery and draining it completely dead then doing a full recharge around once a month.  This will help stop "battery memory".
727573
assuming your battery is good, just change your power settings to turn off the power save options ... realize that your battery may not last the length of the movie ... leave the power save options on for the hard drive to conserve energy, the only ones you should need to turn off are the mouse, keyboard and screen sleep settings
1089761
Very little cost.  :)   Computers use very little power, and electrical power is cheap.  If you left your computer on 24 hours a day, you're probably using roughly 10 cents of electricity in a day.  Turning it on and off is hard on the hard drive.  Good rule of thumb is to turn it on when you go to use it, and leave it on the remainder of the day until you're done with it for the day.  You can turn on and off the screen, that'll increase your screen life.  But turning it on and off a lot puts stress on the hard drive.  Mostly leave it on once it's on.