Battery "pooched?"

[greatg67]

I've had SP3 since its official release. Been a great workhorse, but now I'm noticing my battery capacity is significantly decreased (full capacity charge is way below mfr specs). I'm lucky to get 1hr on a full charge. So, just wondering what the groups thoughts are on paying to get a refurb? Buy an SP4? Or hold out for SP5 (hopefully coming soon)?

Installed batteries
Information about each currently installed battery

BATTERY
NAME X883815
MANUFACTURER LGC-LGC
SERIAL NUMBER 1148262404
CHEMISTRY LION
DESIGN CAPACITY 42,157 mWh

FULL CHARGE CAPACITY 10,815 mWh
CYCLE COUNT 193

 

[donebrasko]

How are you able to see this info? I've noticed a difference in my battery as well

Posted via the Windows Central App for Android

 

[Daniel Cunder1]

open cmd and run powercfg /batteryreport

 

[xandros9]

Oh dear. That's not good.

If it was significantly cheaper and you need a Surface I'd get a Pro 3 refurb because money and it'll work fine.

But then again, you can cut your losses and get a computer that's easier to repair by yourself. (so not a Surface or MacBook, there are tablets that are less glue-happy and stuff out there)

 

[Chintan Gohel]

So the capacity keeps reducing over time? And I can see it :unhappysweat:

 

[Guzzler3]

Ok, one thing to try before you go shopping or tearing into things, is to let the battery COMPLETELY drain to the point that the system will NOT start up. It might take some effort to get there, as in multiple attempts to start the system.

The reasoning behind this that sometimes the battery monitor needs "calibration". The best way to do this is literally drain the battery, then let it fully charge before you try to boot up. I would let it charge for 24 hours.

 

[Guzzler3]

Shoot! I forgot to add: BACKUP your data before attempting the above! Just incase your battery truly is going bad. There have been people reporting that if the battery is toast, that the system won't boot even when on power.

One thing I have learned with LiOn batteries (RC planes, boats, phones, computers) is that they really don't like to be completely drained/charged on a regular basis. It's always better to keep them "topped off" (i.e. plugged in) as much as possible, and only be on battery when you have to.

 

[greatg67]

That's an interesting theory. From another post

"..As a generality, keeping a Li-ion or Li-polymer battery at 100% charge constantly does shorten the battery's overall service life. High temperatures also reduce service life.

See: How to Prolong Lithium-based Batteries - Battery University

As I constantly remind users who ask battery life questions, batteries are meant to be used. The nature of Li (and other) battery chemistries is that they will naturally degrade (slowly), whether you use the battery or not, so go ahead and use them. In fact, I can make the case that using batteries actually prolongs their life, because, as you have experienced, staying constantly on AC significantly reduces their service life..."