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ScottyMcGeester's avatar

Is there anything I can do for my laptop battery?

Asked by ScottyMcGeester (1897points) July 25th, 2014

I have a Samsung QX411-W02UB. Had it since late 2012.

I loved the long battery life in the beginning but then I noticed a decline. Now, the decline in battery life is so obvious that I feel like something’s wrong with it, or at least something is wrong with how my laptop is estimating my battery life.

I tried calibrating it. Letting it die and then charging all the way and then seeing if it estimates the battery life better. It doesn’t. It falls rapidly. In the span of like barely 10 minutes it says it’s 75% then 60% and literally right now in the time it took me to start this post and type here it went down to 55%.

BUT THEN. It goes back up a little bit. The percentage keeps dropping but the estimation in remaining time keeps shifting up and down. It’s all very confusing.

The thing that sucks about this laptop is that you can’t remove the battery.

I have no effing idea why I made this choice to begin with when I got this. I must have not been paying attention.

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7 Answers

XOIIO's avatar

Wow, non removable batteries, at least for the average consumer? What a scumbag move.

ARE_you_kidding_me's avatar

These integrated batteries are a total dick move to get people to replace their hardware every few years. If you are even the slightest bit mechanically inclined you can simply change it. I have done macs, iphones & ipads without issue. In the future try not to let the batteries discharge all the way. LI batteries have a finite amount of charge-discharge cycles. It’s best to keep them on the charger when you are using them if it is convenient to do so.

RocketGuy's avatar

Integrated battery makes for a lightweight laptop.

XOIIO's avatar

@RocketGuy Not much difference between having the same size battery hidden inside, or give it a bit of plastic and a slot like most manufacturers.

jerv's avatar

Lithium batteries degrade with exposure to oxygen. They degrade far faster as higher temperatures; the temperature inside a car in the summer will knock about 50% off it’s capacity in 2 months. Under average use, figure 2–3 years before it’s down to half though.

Integrated batteries don’t require the release mechanism or added bulk and cost associated with allowing r-battery removal, and (the ultimate concern of Apple fanatics) they look better as there’s no cracks in the case; it looks smoother.

That battery cannot be saved; it must be replaced. There’s people with the skills to do that if you can’t.

ScottyMcGeester's avatar

Old question but I figured I’d carry onto this.

I got a brand new awesome desktop so I sort of forgot about my laptop but now I find myself using it again just to be on the move and writing.

My Mom was like “Oh I just found the battery online we could buy it.” I was suspicious, and so I found what she looked at it, which was this: http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B00FBF0Z8G/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_dp_ss_2?pf_rd_p=1944687562&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B007BFOP0I&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1EBZPR9VS3HC8X8AH4H2

But the thing is – it’s not a genuine Samsung battery. It’s from a knockoff called Amsahr. This knockoff appears to be the sole seller all over the place, even ebay. There’s a used one on that Amazon link which doesn’t specificy if it’s Samsung or Amsahr but it’s used and buying a used battery is like. . . just. . no. Not gonna do that.

I can’t actually appear to find a battery from Samsung itself, which makes me wonder if I should gamble with this.

I have no problem changing the battery myself. It’d save time and money. I’ve disassembled desktops before so it’s not a completely alien thing for me to do. I’ve just looked up dozens of videos of people doing it on this specific laptop. But now the question is how I would get the battery in the first place. The above is all I can find but I’m hesitant.

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