It’s must-have hardware and your laptop won’t go far without it, but how often do you think about the battery? In this daily article, we will tell you some important facts about the battery to be charged. The laptops we are using nowadays use Four types of batteries: Nickel Cadmium (NiCad), Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH), Smart batteries, and Lithium-Ion (Li-ion), and Li-Ion is the most popular in new laptops. Each type of battery has different characteristics because of the different chemical composition that creates a charge.
Laptop Battery Types
Nickel-cadmium (Ni-Cd)
Nickel-cadmium (Ni-Cd) batteries have been the standard technology for many years, but today they are no longer used and are no longer used in new laptops. They are heavy and very sensitive to “memory effects”. When you charge an incompletely discharged Nickel Cadmium battery, it remembers the previous charge and continues to charge the next time you use it. The memory effect is caused by the crystallization of material in the battery and can permanently shorten its life or make it unusable. To avoid this, fully discharge the battery and then charge it at least once every two weeks. These batteries contain the toxic substance cadmium and should always be properly recycled or disposed of.
Nickel-cadmium batteries and nickel-metal hydride batteries suffer from the so-called memory effect. The memory effect means that if the battery is partially discharged several times before it is charged, you can forget about the additional discharge. The best way to avoid this situation is to regularly charge and recharge the battery.
Nickel Metal Hydride (Ni-MH)
Nickel metal hydride (Ni-MH) batteries are a cadmium-free replacement for NiCad. It is less susceptible to memory effects than nickel-cadmium and requires less maintenance and adjustment. However, problems arise at high or low room temperatures. It uses less hazardous materials (e.g. no heavy metals), but it cannot be fully recycled yet. Another major difference between NiCad and NiMH is that NiMH offers a higher energy density than NiCad. That is, the capacity of NiMH is about twice that of nickel-cadmium. This means longer battery life without additional dimensions or weight.
Lithium-ion Battery
The type of battery to be installed on the laptop. This type is lightweight and outperforms other types of batteries. Unlike nickel-cadmium or nickel-metal hydride batteries, lithium-ion batteries have no terrible memory effect. Since memory power belongs to a nickel-cadmium battery, if it is repeatedly released in the same amount, it loses its fully charged state and recharges without charging before it is fully discharged. There is usually an option to quickly charge a lithium-ion battery, which is useful when you are in a finite-time environment.
Lithium-ion (Li-ion) is the new standard in portable energy. Lithium-ion batteries produce the same energy as NiMH but weigh about 20 to 35% less. They don’t suffer much from memory effects, unlike their NiMH and Ni-Cd counterparts. Their material is not dangerous for zero. Lithium is highly flammable and requires special treatment. Unfortunately, there are currently several recycling programs for lithium-ion batteries.
Smart battery
Smart batteries are not entirely different types of batteries, but they require special care. The smart battery has a built-in circuit board with an IC that can communicate with the laptop and monitor battery performance, output voltage, and temperature. Smart batteries typically last 15% longer due to increased efficiency and give your computer a much more accurate “fuel gauge” feature to determine the remaining battery life before the next charge is required.
How to Determine Your Laptop’s Battery Type
You can determine the battery type on your laptop by seeing the label. However, not every battery is simple to remove or marked. Fortunately, there’s software out there to identify what type of battery is suitable for a laptop. For instance, you can use Notebook Hardware Control or BatteryMon to discover in-depth information about a laptop’s battery. No need to shell out money even. Just get the free trial and cancel the subscription a few days before the trial ends.
If you find that your device relies on NiMH batteries to fuel itself, you might want to research whether you can upgrade it to ‘Li-ion’ for better performance. In case you’re low on budget, you can step steps to prolong the latter’s battery life. First, make sure to discharge it fully on a regular basis. A pro tip is to perform a complete drain and recharge after using, draining, and recharging it for 3-4 times. Taking this step should prolong the NiMH’s battery life to an extent.
Depending on your laptop’s model, there might be two extra batteries inside the system. An alkaline battery might also be there to help power the internal clock. Another battery (optional) acts as a secondary power source when you swap out the core battery for a new one.
How Do You Manage Your Batteries?
Keep the battery in a sealed plastic bag in a cool place (preferably a refrigerator) to prevent condensation. Leave at room temperature before use. To store a nickel-cadmium battery, it must first be fully charged and then discharged. When a nickel-cadmium battery discharges itself, it produces crystals that reduce capacity (memory effect). Nickel-cadmium batteries and nickel-metal hydride batteries should be charged slowly when stored. On the other hand, lithium-ion batteries need to be charged. Otherwise, you may not be able to charge to full capacity in just 3 months. Also, cells can leak and become corroded. If there are NiMH and Li-ion batteries left, several charge/discharge cycles are required for the battery to reach its optimum capacity.
Batteries these days often come with additional circuitry that tells the charger the best way to charge. Such devices are also referred to as “smart” batteries. We recommend buying several smart chargers that can understand this coding. The charger automatically introduces the right type of voltage, knows whether to use a constant charge or not and in principle can identify one of the three main battery pharmacies described here. Also, high-end models can operate with a “silent” battery. There is also a Windows software package that allows you to schedule battery maintenance and monitor your battery analyzer/charger. Anyway, get the latest charger and use a charger that matches your battery chemistry. Many battery life and capacity issues are caused by improper charging and charging. Using a charger that does not match the battery type can be dangerous.
General Battery Management
The battery case looks the same, but the process charges differently for all three types, so you can’t switch to a different battery technology unless the manufacturer preconfigured your laptop to work with more than one type of battery.
Batteries that have not been used for a long time drain slowly. Even with the utmost care, the battery should be replaced after charging 500-1000. However, it is not recommended to run a laptop without a battery when using AC power. The battery often acts as a large container to protect against power outages in the AC outlet.
Manufacturers change the shape of their batteries every few months, so years later you can have a hard time finding new batteries for your laptop. This is only an issue if you plan to use the same laptop in a few years. If in doubt, buy an additional battery now before the battery runs out.
A new battery has leaked and must be fully charged before use. It is recommended to charge and discharge new batteries 2 to 4 times to reach maximum capacity. It is generally recommended to charge overnight (about 12 hours) for this. note. Batteries can be hot to the touch during charging and discharging. When charging the battery for the first time, the device can indicate that charging is complete in 10-15 minutes. This is normal for rechargeable batteries. New batteries are difficult to charge.
Store the battery in a leaked condition as long-term storage can cause the battery to leak and become inactive. Do not store for a long time when connecting to a laptop. High humidity and temperature can damage the battery and should be avoided during storage. Changing your battery on time is also very important.
Do not remove or carry the battery pack out of pockets, bags, or other containers that could short the battery terminals due to metal objects (such as car keys or paper clips). The resulting strong current can cause very high temperatures, damage the battery, or cause a fire or burn.
Conclusion
That’s it for the battery types. Regardless of the kind present on your laptop, it should smoothly for a set period. However, if your computer is experiencing battery issues, check if it was ‘recalled.’ Lenovo and other laptop makers have specific webpages where they list information about batteries, including recalls and installations. Contact the manufacturer for a free replacement if you find the name of your battery on the recall list. Unless necessary, steer clear of using a laptop with a recalled battery.