Laptop battery (2 questions) - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

Rlyss · 08-21-2005, 02:51 AM

Hi all. I'm not sure if this should be in Electronics. I've got a Dell Inspiron 5160 laptop (3.02GHz, 256MB of RAM and a 60GB hard disk).

1. In both Dell's Quicket utility and Windows Power Management they have the option for 'Max Battery' Does this mean maximum battery life (stays on for longer, uses less power) or does it mean maximum battery power (stays on for less time, uses the full power of the battery)?

2. This is electronics bit. My computer randomly switches from AC power to battery power when it's plugged into the wall socket. It'll be using AC power for hours and then it'll just start using the battery. In order to get it back to AC power I have to follow these steps exactly:

- Unplug the plug at the back of the laptop
- Turn off the switch at the wall socket
- Unplug the plug from the wall
- Put the plug into the back of the computer
- Plug the thing back into the wall
- Turn on the wall switch

If I do anything different it'll still use the battery. This happens wheter or not I use the Dell Quicket utility.

Is this due to some faulty battery/power supply? Or is it a problem with the wiring in the walls or the wall socket perhaps? Is it some sort of power surge? Unfortunately it's the only wall socket I can use so I can't test it on other sockets.

Cheers for any help.

bendsley · 08-21-2005, 07:01 AM

Max Battery is max battery life.

As for the power thing, have you checked for a BIOS update? I have a Latitude D800 and am on BIOS release A13. So, there may be an update or some fix from Dell that might help you with this. You might also look at the Dell forums. There are a lot of people on there that can help you.

08-21-2005, 02:51 AM	#1 (permalink)
Rlyss The Pusher Location: Edinburgh	Laptop battery (2 questions) Hi all. I'm not sure if this should be in Electronics. I've got a Dell Inspiron 5160 laptop (3.02GHz, 256MB of RAM and a 60GB hard disk). 1. In both Dell's Quicket utility and Windows Power Management they have the option for 'Max Battery' Does this mean maximum battery life (stays on for longer, uses less power) or does it mean maximum battery power (stays on for less time, uses the full power of the battery)? 2. This is electronics bit. My computer randomly switches from AC power to battery power when it's plugged into the wall socket. It'll be using AC power for hours and then it'll just start using the battery. In order to get it back to AC power I have to follow these steps exactly: - Unplug the plug at the back of the laptop - Turn off the switch at the wall socket - Unplug the plug from the wall - Put the plug into the back of the computer - Plug the thing back into the wall - Turn on the wall switch If I do anything different it'll still use the battery. This happens wheter or not I use the Dell Quicket utility. Is this due to some faulty battery/power supply? Or is it a problem with the wiring in the walls or the wall socket perhaps? Is it some sort of power surge? Unfortunately it's the only wall socket I can use so I can't test it on other sockets. Cheers for any help.

08-21-2005, 07:01 AM	#2 (permalink)
bendsley Professional Loafer Location: texas	Max Battery is max battery life. As for the power thing, have you checked for a BIOS update? I have a Latitude D800 and am on BIOS release A13. So, there may be an update or some fix from Dell that might help you with this. You might also look at the Dell forums. There are a lot of people on there that can help you. __________________ "You hear the one about the fella who died, went to the pearly gates? St. Peter let him in. Sees a guy in a suit making a closing argument. Says, "Who's that?" St. Peter says, "Oh, that's God. Thinks he's Denny Crane."