These wireless networking technologies consume battery power. You can disable both by using Airplane mode. Click the Wi-Fi icon in the taskbar and then click the Airplane mode button. You can also disable only Wi-Fi by clicking the Wi-Fi button on the taskbar Wi-Fi menu. To disable Bluetooth, go to Settings > Devices > Bluetooth & other devices and toggle off the switch for Bluetooth.Constantly checking for new email messages can drain your battery. So, tell Windows to check less frequently to extend the life of your battery. Go to Settings > Accounts > Email & app accounts. Click on your account, click the Manage button and then for Download new content, switch it from as items arrive to every 30 minutes, hourly or manually and then click Done.If you purchased an HP laptop recently, it could be subject to a flaw that could cause its battery to overheat and catch fire.
HP said on Thursday that it’s commencing a battery recall for the company’s notebooks and mobile workstations, including the HP Probook 64x, HP x360 310 G2, HP Envy m6, and others. The affected laptops were sold worldwide between December 2015 and December 2017. Affected batteries were also sold as accessories during the period.According to HP, the batteries in question “have the potential to overheat” after use. In some cases, that overheating could cause the batteries to become unstable and catch fire. HP also warned that the batteries could be a “burn hazard to customers.”The PC maker didn’t say in a support page posted to its website how many units are affected in the recall. However, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) said in its own statement that “about 50,o00” units sold in the U.S. are at risk. Nearly 3,000 more units sold in Canada could also be a problem. According to the CPSC, it has identified eight cases of the batteries “overheating, melting, or charring.” One person suffered a first-degree burn from the battery and three others had property damage totaling $4,500.
HP has created a support page where its laptop owners can see whether their units are at risk of overheating. If owners discover they’re subject to the recall, HP will send them a free battery replacement and help them get it safely swapped out.“HP’s primary concern is for the safety of our customers,” the company wrote on its support page. “HP is proactively notifying customers, and will provide replacement battery services for each verified, eligible battery, at no cost.”At some point in your laptop's life, the battery is going to get worse and worse until it doesn't work anymore. This week on the Tom's Guide forums, one user asked for help in finding the best battery replacement when that dreaded day comes.mhcwei writes, "I have a Dell Inspiron 15R 5537 laptop, and I need a new battery. Dell told me it [the battery] is 65 Wh 6 cells. Any suggestion[s]?"
Well, mhcwei, you actually did most of the work already. You know the model as well as the kind of battery inside the laptop. After doing a little digging, I found that you can purchase a replacement battery from Dell itself. It's a 11.1v, 65-WHr, six-cell primary lithium-ion battery that costs $57.87, and it's labeled as compatible with your Inspiron 15R 5537. For reference, WHr (watt hours) equates to the battery capacity, so the more the better.There is also a cheaper, $29.99 model on Amazon. However, we cannot vouch for that battery, because we haven't tested it. It's safer to recommend buying from the company that sold you the laptop.
In mhcwei's case, I went directly to the Dell support site and typed in the laptop's service tag, which you can find on the back/bottom of the chassis (there's also an option to automatically detect your PC). Once you're in, simply go to Parts & Accessories, then to Batteries. In this case, two batteries showed up, so you'd simply pick the battery that's more in your price range.
Other laptop companies may have similar systems set up, but if yours doesn't, you should call the manufacturer directly and see if you can coordinate a battery purchase from them. If they don't sell the battery, then ask them about the WHr, amount of cells and voltage of the one you have.Then, type those numbers into Google (or your search engine/online store of choice) and ensure that whichever battery you come across states the exact names of the laptops it's compatible with. From there, check out if the seller is legitimate by looking at seller ratings and reviews.Lastly, if you suspect that your battery isn't going to last you that long, I suggest buying a replacement as soon as you get a new laptop. This way, you won't have to scramble once it's time to make the swap.
Anyone considering a new laptop purchase for themselves or as a gift should keep in mind that while speed and design very important, a lot of people care about battery life above all else. After all, there's nothing worse than having your laptop shut down in the middle of an big meeting, while writing an important email or halfway through streaming the latest binge-worthy Netflix series.The good news is that laptops and two-in-one hybrids with 10 hours or more of battery life are now easy to find. That's thanks to improvements in Intel's Core i-series CPUs, as well as power and thermal management improvements in both Windows 10 and MacOSBased on the extensive battery testing conducted in the CNET Labs, these are the 25 PCs with the longest battery life scores over the previous year, from the fall of 2016 through now. This list includes Windows and MacOS laptops, Windows two-in-one hybrids, and Chromebooks running Google's Chrome OS. Not included are Android or iOS tablets.
New additions in this latest update include the Lenovo Yoga 920, which jumps to Intel's latest eighth-gen CPUs, as well as the latest MacBook Air, which received a small CPU update earlier in 2017. Note that Microsoft's recent Surface Book 2 has two separate batteries, one in its tablet half, another in the keyboard base. Together, we've run them for up to 17 hours, but our battery performance for that system has been inconsistent, and we're conducting further tests before considering it for this list. The full collection can be found here, with a breakout of the top laptops and their battery life scores below.
We call on our laptops to do a lot of things, from playing videos to office work to web surfing to games. As a middle ground task that's not too easy and not too intense, the specific test used here streams a private video over Wi-Fi on an endless loop. Note that these scores reflect the specific configurations we tested, and that screen resolution and CPU choice are some of the major factors that affect battery life.
Regulators had thought that single lithium battery fires would be knocked down by the flame-retardant gas required in passenger airliner cargo holds. But tests conducted by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration found the suppression systems can’t extinguish a battery fire that combines with other highly flammable material, such as the gas in an aerosol can or cosmetics commonly carried by travelers.“That could then cause an issue that would compromise the aircraft,” said Duane Pfund, international program coordinator at the U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, speaking Wednesday at an aviation safety forum in Washington. PHMSA regulates hazardous materials on airliners along with FAA.The research highlights the growing risks of lithium batteries, which are increasingly used to power everything from mobile phones to gaming devices. Bulk shipments of rechargeable lithium batteries have been banned on passenger planes.
The findings last year by the FAA prompted the government to advocate that the United Nations International Civil Aviation Organization call for a ban on electronic devices larger than a mobile phone in checked bags. That effort fell short, Pfund said.“One way or another, we have to deal with these hazards,” said Scott Schwartz, director of the Air Line Pilots Association’s hazardous goods program. ALPA, the largest pilots union in North America, is holding its annual safety conference.ALPA hasn’t taken a formal position on whether there should be a ban on lithium batteries in checked bags and some fear that many passengers would simply ignore it. At the very least, the union is seeking greater education campaigns so travelers are less likely to place spare batteries and electronics in their checked bags.