Thinkpad Tablet Battery Took Long Time To Fully Charge

[killer1]

As the title mentioned, when the battery left below 20%. It took more than 20 hours for me to fully charge the battery which is impossible for me to use it every day.

But sometimes, it took only around 4 hours to fully charge it which happens seldomly.

So, I think that it is a software problem more to a hardware problem.

And it happened since day 1 I purchase the machine.

Can someone recommend me?

Help is very much appreciated and thank you

[sobrado · Accepted solution]

Make sure the tablet is fully powered off while charging. Use the OEM USB cable and power adaptor. If the slate does not detect the right cable/power brick it may go into a fully USB-compliant mode drawing only 0.5 Watts and it means a slow, very slow, charging process that, in fact, can last up to twenty hours.

If nothing works, buy a dock. It is not very expensive and, from what I have read, it worths the money.

While here, make sure you have all updates applied. I have not found information about the OTA you are running on your post but, if you suspect it can be a software issue, it is the best way to get an answer. Updates are very valuable and will make your slate running faster. OTA 2 has a firmware upgrade for the battery, and it may be helpful too.

[killer1]

Thanks for your help.

I'm using the original charger which comes with the tablet.

May I know what is OTA?

I had tried to find update from the tablet and it state that the firmware is up-to-date.

Where can I download the OTA2 ?

Thank you for your help. 

Cheers!

[Serene_Lenovo]

Hi Killer1

From Wikipedia:

"Over-the-air programming (OTA) refers to various methods of distributing new software updates or configuration settings to devices like cellphones and set-top boxes. In the mobile content world these include over-the-air service provisioning (OTASP), over-the-air provisioning (OTAP) or over-the-air parameter administration (OTAPA), or provisioning handsets with the necessary settings with which to access services such as WAP or MMS. Some phones with this capability are labeled as being "OTA capable."

This means that wireless mechanisms are used to send data or update packages.

The following link provides a step-by-step guide on how to get these updates.

Hope the above helped!

-serene

[killer1]

Hi Serene,

Thanks for your help. But I had done the updates immediately after my purchase. So, the problem still persist. I had just checked and there are no updates.

Do I have to turn off the tablet during charging?

I experienced that after I charged the battery until 85% ( the charging time took so long that it was not fully charged after a whole night ) and left to work in the morning. I didn't use the tablet and left it in standby mode, when I returned home at 9pm the battery only left with 30% energy.

Please advise and thanks for your help.

Cheers!

[sobrado]

Sure, turning off the slate while charging will make the process a lot faster.

Turn off the slate when not in use too, if you make it sleep (a short power button press) and have the keyboard folio case (a must have, in my humble opinion!) wait at least ten seconds and make sure it will not turn on again when using the optical trackpoint and keyboard before closing it.

[killer1]

Its fine for me to turn off the slate during charging.
But I find that it doesn't make sense if I have to tun it off when not using especially when I carry it during my work.
The standby mode is quite important as I had to refer anything inside the slate.

Could it be the case that the battery is still new that I had to charge it for another tens of tomes?

Thank you for helping, cheers!

[sobrado]

You do not need to turn off the slate during your work, but make sure you wait enough time before closing the keyboard folio case. If not, there is a chance the tablet will turn on while carrying, draining the battery. I do not think you have issues with your battery.

[spasell]

This is the kind of stuff that kills me and ultimately, can be not only a dealer breaker, but gives Android tablets a really bad name.  

I HATE using my company issued iPad. I am not an advocate for it, but after using it, I can see why the loyalty to that product is so high...Easy to use, very little issues or problems really with just about anything.  

I made a post later up top about the fact I had not used my TPT for about 5 weeks.  I power it completely off in the keyboard case and when I went to turn it on, 100% completely dead.  

1st, why would it drain power when it is completely off?  And yes, it was turned completely off, a function I have performed numerous times.  

2nd, when I went to start charging it, with the supplied power adapter, it literally was charging 2% after 1 hour!! 2%? ARE YOU KIDDING ME? 

And then I read that if you buy ANOTHER accessory for it to make it actually do what it should do out the box, which is to say, charge at a normal rate, it will charge like it should?  Really?  

So if I buy a brand new bicycle, should I have to buy the chain separately to make it peddle correctly?  

This is why manufacturers on this platform, Android, trying to compete outside of the Apple dominated market, lose, fail miserably.  

I understood from a software perspective, Google is at fault on many issues, and why in the end, they will NEVER catch up to Apple in the tablet universe.  

But hardware for it?  Lenovo who targets business users like me?  I cannot even take this tablet with me for a 2 day trip because it will be unusable having to take TWENTY hours to charge?  

Is anyone from Lenovo paying attention?  You make the best laptops and PC hardware on the market, have a niche and almost cult like following, and when your loyal customers make a transition to tablets, where, lets face it, all business will be in the next 3-5 years, you have a product that takes TWENTY HOURS to charge?  

This to me is mind blowing, and really, so disheartening.  

[ColonelONeill]

Charging is very slow when the battery cells are near empty. This is done so the cells have a reduced chance of dying due to overdischarge.

Charging beyond 80% is also slower because the charging circuitry will slow down the rate of charge more and more as it approaches full capacity. This is done to reduce battery wear.