Tip of the Week: How to Boost your Laptop’s Battery Power

We all know the pains of having a laptop with low battery power, but sometimes it feels like you're perpetually plugging in your computer; even when it seems like the battery should last longer. These battery problems are common, but they aren’t an endgame for your laptop. There are several ways you can jumpstart your laptop’s battery.

The purpose of a laptop is to remain portable while computing, and that isn’t possible if your battery is continuously failing. You shouldn’t have to be tied to an outlet on a daily basis in order to keep yourself productive. With these five tips, you should be able to keep your laptop alive significantly longer.

Windows Updates Can Improve Battery Life
If you want your computer to stay protected against the threats present in the online community, the latest patches for your operating system are a necessity. With Windows updates, you only receive these if you are using a supported operating system. Microsoft releases security updates and patches regularly, so you should have no problem maintaining the latest fixes for your operating system.

As it turns out, these same updates can improve battery life. Computerware can apply updates and patches to your systems remotely and securely, taking the responsibility of keeping your system secure off your shoulders.

Optimize Your Power Settings
In Windows 8.1, you have several options available to you to change your power settings. You can either choose a preset power plan, or build your own. To access these settings, look for the Power Options selection in the Control Panel. Some of the available options include:

• Screen brightness.
• How often the display turns off.
• When the computer sleeps.
• Where your computer’s resources are most allocated.

Dim the Monitor Display
Your laptop has several settings for brightness which can affect how long your battery lasts. Naturally, the higher the brightness on your monitor, the more energy it uses. According to CNet, the brightness of your monitor should be below half, or whatever is most comfortable for your eyes. In Windows 8.1, there is a slider which helps you adjust the brightness to the perfect degree. It can also help to turn down the keyboard brightness (if it lights up), if you’re able to.

Turn Off Bluetooth Connections
Even if you don’t use Bluetooth devices, just having Bluetooth activated can drain your battery. By shutting off Bluetooth, you can decrease the strain that it puts on your battery and significantly increase the amount of time between charges.

Disconnect Unused USB Devices
Similarly, USB devices can also drain your battery. Even something like an external mouse or keyboard can be putting unnecessary strain on your computer’s power source. This also includes your smartphone, which can be charged by plugging into a laptop’s USB port. This forces users to pick a poison; either your laptop dies, or your phone dies. Most certainly, you can be more productive with your computer.

Computerware is full of tips and tricks that can help you optimize your technology’s performance. If you are finding that your laptop’s battery is a little worse-for-wear, give us a call at (703) 821-8200. We can figure out how you can take better advantage of it, or if the problem is more serious, we can find you a replacement battery. Don’t let a drained battery drain away your business’s productivity, too.