Laptop battery

[Zeppelin]

I have a laptop that stays on my desk 95% of the time, and is always plugged into the mains.
Is it better to remove the battery and charge it occasionally or over a laptop life span of say 2 years it doesnt make much difference if the battery is left in all the time?

[Bushfiva]

Over 2 years, it doesn't really matter.

Some notebooks don't run with the battery removed, some do. Mine does, but I leave the battery in because it's effectively a UPS if the power goes down.

My favourite computer is a 6-year-old notebook. I did a third-party battery rebuild last year which cost about $200. As more and more notebooks are reaching EOL because battery packs aren't available, rebuild services are getting better and cheaper.

[MacBoero]

I would leave the battery in nowadays, as the charging circuits and the batteries themselves are far more intelligent that they used to be, and will generally take care of themselves. The only thing left for the user is to occasionally run the laptop down until it asks for the power to be reconnected, or puts itself to sleep. The chemicals need to be cycled once in a while to keep them in good condition.

[mixture]

Zeppelin,

(a) The battery acts as a UPS
(b) Depends on the battery type, some are meant to be kept at a reasonably high charge level rather than being allowed to discharge fully before recharging
(c) The old adage applies that one should only remove batteries from things if you are putting them into storage.
(d) I've got a 2009 vintage Apple laptop with a non removable battery, spends most of its time plugged into mains.... battery still gives its full rated 3.5 hour usage time when off mains.

[Loose rivets]

I got a good deal on a Sony Viao a while back, but was irritated by the battery running down over about 4 days. They sent me a new battery, but it was the same.

Finally, a Sony man that had bothered to read the tec specs, told me that was normal. I grumped so much they let me keep the other battery. Seemed fair enough.

I raely run cycle the batteries however. Perhaps I should, but modern ones don't demand it like the old Ni Cads . . . do they? :confused: