How long does Battery Charge last?

[rmdl51]

Hello! I have a question that has been bothering me for a while, my dad just bought a Toshiba Laptop Satellite A-135 with Celeron M (basic entry level) which the battery only last about 1.5-1.75 hours, is that normal?, I've seen some Toshiba with Centrino last over 4 hours (maybe more, not sure). I heard the centrino CPU's are much more efficient with the Battery duration, I believe is not a brand problem but my questions are:

1-The charge of the battery depends on the low energy consume CPU or the cells on the battery it self? or both?

2-In case the answer is just the battery, can I just upgrade my dad's battery Laptop to make it last longer?

3-If CPU matters, which is the best on that matters? C2D? Turion64x2? CentrinoDuo?

Thanks!

 

[raybay]

This all depends on how many cells it has , and how the computer is used. It can be 1.5 to 4 hours, but 1.75 of steady use is about average.
There are a bunch of tricks on the website for reducing the power consumption, thus lengthening the time that the battery provides power. Look for battery power management.
This is, however, why the Toshiba Satellite is a lower cost laptop, than the Toshiba Tecra and other Toshiba laptops.

A 9 cell battery will give much longer power life than a 4 cell or 6 cell... but the cost is remarkably higher.

 

[Nodsu]

I remember the time when I could get 6 hours from my TP X31.. Pretty damn hard to find a laptop that can do that today unless you go and buy some ridiculously huge optional battery.

 

[raybay]

But then the X-31 was shipped without an optical drive, and has several unique design adjustments to give it that long life... amongst those were the significantly smaller screen, the lower power video graphics system, and the standard, slower, lower speed (4200 rpm) hard drive with which it shipped, which consumed less power. I have an X-30, X-31, X-41, and X-61... all designed for longer battery life... wonderful, rugged computers.

 

[Tedster]

Toshiba laptops are NOT known for long life. Brand new, mine only lasts about 1.5 hours.

Use it on low power mode, and shut off your wifi. Or better yet, get a 12 cell battery.