[SWLUG] Re: More on Laptops

[Julian Hall]

Gareth Bowker wrote:

<snip>

>        
>So the 1100 looks much better. If you can use two batteries on this
>(I've not investigated whether that's possible, mind you) then that'd
>put you close to your 8-hour target quite admirably.
>
>Google, as always, really does know everything :)
>  
>

Laptop battery life always is a minefield and is *heavily* dependent on 
usage of the laptop.  When my laptop was new I could get around 2.5 
hours out of the battery on general use.... writing emails and other low 
intensity tasks.  However, pop in a DVD and watch it, and the battery 
life slips by about an hour because so much juice is taken up driving 
the DVD.

So the quoted durations of battery life *really* need to be taken with a 
pinch of salt, unless they also include the circumstances and parameters 
of the test.   Was that 4 hour test the result of turning off the power 
saving and letting it sit with a screen saver for the whole time, or was 
it doing something useful?  To get a desired battery duration (like 
getting a printer that performs at the advertised speed ;)) you really 
need to look at getting something quoted above the target.

Kind regards,

Julian