T400 / T500 and newer T series ThinkPad Laptops

[#1]

OK,

back to update. Got 2 to 2.5 hours (didn't time) on 4-cell with discrete graphics. Machine shutdown on battery running low, and generated an error- then now appears catastrophic. I've got a service ticket in.

[#2]

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TheDude wrote:

OK,

back to update. Got 2 to 2.5 hours (didn't time) on 4-cell with discrete graphics. Machine shutdown on battery running low, and generated an error- then now appears catastrophic. I've got a service ticket in.

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Just a tip, you should never discharge the batttery completely. You will run the risk of doing irrepairable damage to the battery .

[#3]

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stealthth wrote:

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TheDude wrote:

OK,

back to update. Got 2 to 2.5 hours (didn't time) on 4-cell with discrete graphics. Machine shutdown on battery running low, and generated an error- then now appears catastrophic. I've got a service ticket in.

---

Just a tip, you should never discharge the batttery completely. You will run the risk of doing irrepairable damage to the battery .

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really? if you have two batteries (e.g. main + ultrabay) you will drain one first (ultrabay), and as far as i can tell, i haven't lost any capacity in the ultrabay battery but i lost quite a bit of capacity in the never-completely-drained main battery (~97% of original capacity after about 1 months usage)

[#4]

yes really.

That 97% battery is roughly normal. Lenovo ships batteries out slightly underrated as far as i can tell, so its normal for it to fall back to the rating quickly. (for example, two of my batteries came with about 2-6 Wh more than what teh battery was rated)

And yes, the ultrabay gets drained to 0%, and there is no option other than to remove it/pull out the tab before it drains to 0 to stop it from happening. Lenovo have not yet responded to this issue, or rather, their response is "this is by design".

[#5]

slightly overrated you mean? i mean, it says 44Wh on the battery, design capacity is 43.29Wh in Power Manager, and 42.52Wh now, after roughly a month, or 9 cycles. so is it not good to "recondition" the battery then? it basically, afaik, charge the battery then drain and then recharge it again.

also, so is it better to keep the battery in the laptop all the time then? since i use it on ac more than on battery

[#6]

no, reconditioning basically drains the battery to 0%, which you want to avoid as much as possible, then brings it back up to 100%, to verify the effective range/capacity of the battery. i think lenovo recomends this being done every 40 cycles. if you do it all the time, each time you do it adds a cycle. Lithium batteries are not meant to be fully Cycled, and lithium polymer batteries are made in such a way that if you go under a certain treshold of voltage/power, they become inoperable/dead.

I Meant underrated as in my battery was rated 84.24Wh, but came in brand new as a 89Wh battery. my 56Wh battery came in as a 59Wh battery.

currently my 9 cell with 8 cycles is at 84.38Wh, so its still technically slightly over 100%. It was manufactured 06-24-09 and first use date was 07-09. its basically about 3 months old. Granted, i`ve had it in my drawer for over two months, so its only had about a month of use. and i store it as per lithium battery storage recomendations, in a cool place at ~40% charge. Why? Because the higher the battery charge and the hotter it is, the faster it loses its capacity over time, even when not in use.

So by that rule, if you always use the cord, its probably not that great for the battery to be in and sucking the machine's heat. Personally i have specified the machine to stop charging the battery at 80% since day 1, and also have it on the docking bay, which directs the hot air away from the battery (which, i must say, is ingenious on lenovo/IBM's part. I Do leave my battery in though, since it acts like a UPS, but i leave in the Ultrabay battery, since its slightly further away from teh hot components.

[#7]

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stealthth wrote:

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TheDude wrote:

OK,

back to update. Got 2 to 2.5 hours (didn't time) on 4-cell with discrete graphics. Machine shutdown on battery running low, and generated an error- then now appears catastrophic. I've got a service ticket in.

---

Just a tip, you should never discharge the batttery completely. You will run the risk of doing irrepairable damage to the battery .

---

Yeah, discharge wasn't intentional. Damage wasn't to battery. Motherboard is being replaced - starting to look like shutdown was not battery running out at all. Overall, I wouldn't worry about a few full-discharges, but I agree, it will shorten battery life if done all the time.

[#8]

Can anyone tell me if the Lenovo notebook cases (Topload business case, Deluxe expander case) can fit the T500 with the 9cell battery without problems?

thanks!

[#9]

i want to buy a laptop sleeve. does any one know if this will fit?

http://www.laptoptraveller.com/golla-laptop-sleeve-golla-15in-notebook-sleeve-g612-clan.html

[#10]

The Battery in my T400 is very loose. It doesnt fit correctly I can move it up and down when it is in. Is this normal?