Top 10 Laptop Batteries Hacks, Tips, And Tricks

The gadgets you love don't always love you back-at least when it comes to battery life. Turn C batteries into Ds with quarters Only a few things ever need D batteries, but who has them handy when you need those things? Get serious rechargeable batteries (and a charger) It's a help to the environment, and your checking account, to use rechargeable batteries instead of letting your Wii remotes and other gadgets eat through AAs. Turn off your digital camera's screen Having a view of the whole scene you're shooting is one of the digital camera's big advantages over film-based models, but powering that tiny little LCD takes quite the toll on your little batteries. While you're thinking cool, try stashing your batteries (just your batteries, mind you) in the freezer if you're trying to conserve every last drop while you're away from your charger. Get long-term battery life An inquiring reader asked how to keep his batteries delivering on-the-go power for the long haul, rather than watch his investment be eaten away by age. A Battery University link offers more tips, and Apple's guide to batteries suggests a few tips on what to do with unused or spare batteries-store them in a cool place at about 50 percent charge, for instance. Except, in the case of the Mac, sleeping and hibernating isn't done with remaining battery power in mind, and on Vista, well, all those Aero effects and background processes suck up power too quickly. Recalibrate a laptop batteries to regain life It's a shame, but laptop batteries can lie to you about how much juice they have, or can really hold. Then turn it back on, make sure your power settings are such that the system won't try to sleep or hibernate, then run your computer all the way down on battery power. Charge it back up one more time, and you'll know whether you really need to start shopping at Laptop Battery Express, Laptops for Less, or check with your manufacturer to get a new lithium stick.