How to Maximize HP Laptop Battery Life

Maximizing Short-Term Battery Life

Keep your laptop plugged in when not using it. This will ensure that your battery is fully charged when you turn the computer back on. For example, you might hook your computer up to a charger before going to bed.

Close unnecessary applications. Any programs which you aren't currently using should be closed in order to cut down the battery drain. If possible, you'll also want to avoid using battery-intensive programs like video players or photo editors.

Unplug any unneeded accessories. Things like USB flash drives, CDs, mice, and other peripherals will cause your battery to drain faster, so remove these items for a small boost in battery life.

Lower your computer screen's brightness. Click the square Action Center icon in the bottom-right corner of the screen (or press ⊞ Win+A), then click the Brightness box until your computer's brightness is down to 50 percent (or lower if you like). Computer screen brightness is one of the largest contributors to battery drain, so this will drastically increase your battery's life if you were using high brightness. If your laptop uses a light-up keyboard, you can disable the light feature by holding down the Fn key and tapping the keyboard icon at the top of your laptop's keyboard (on some computers, you may not need the Fn key).

Turn off Bluetooth. Like screen brightness, you can do this from the Action Center by clicking the colored Bluetooth box. If this box is grey and has "Off" under it, Bluetooth is already disabled.

Use Battery Saver. Battery Saver is a Windows 10 feature which temporarily disables high-performance things like shadows and other graphical aspects. You can enable it by clicking your laptop's battery icon in the far-right side of the taskbar and then clicking Battery Saver in the pop-up window. To disable Battery Saver, simply click the battery icon again and then click Battery Saver.

Keep your laptop's vents clear. Your laptop's vents serve to cool down your computer, thus preventing the built-in fans from working too hard. If the vents become blocked by dust or items on your desk, the fans will have to work significantly harder, and your computer's battery life will suffer as a result. Always try to use your laptop in an open, well-ventilated space.

Maximizing Long-Term Life

Understand that age matters. While you can prolong the life of a Lithium-Ion battery for a while, most such batteries won't make it past the age of three or four without taking a huge dip in short-term lifespan. EXPERT TIP Spike Baron Spike Baron Network Engineer & Desktop Support Spike Baron is the Owner of Spike's Computer Repair based in Los Angeles, California. With over 25 years of working experience in the tech industry, Spike specializes in PC and Mac computer repair, used computer sales, virus removal, data recovery, and hardware and software upgrades. He has his CompTIA A+ certification for computer service technicians and is a Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert. Spike Baron Spike Baron Network Engineer & Desktop Support You can increase the lifespan of your battery by letting the charge run down. Leaving your laptop plugged in all the time isn't usually the best option. Occasionally unplug your battery and let it run down to almost dead before recharging.

Avoid using your laptop in extreme environments. Excessively hot, cold, or damp conditions can damage your laptop's internals, battery included. If you find that your laptop is overheating often, try clearing the vents or using it in an area with good air circulation.

Store your battery separate from the laptop. Even if you turn off your laptop for several days or weeks at a time, your battery's life will still diminish faster than if you remove the battery from your laptop. Some HP laptops, such as high-tier Pavilion notebooks, don't have removable batteries; if this is the case for you, skip this step.

Keep batteries stored at an ideal temperature. HP recommends keeping laptop batteries stored between 68°F and 77°F (or 20°C and 25°C). This will prevent them from being damaged by excess heat or cold. It's also a good idea to store your batteries in as dry a climate as possible.

Try to maintain 70 percent charge. When storing your battery separate of your laptop for several months at a time, make sure that the battery is at around 70 percent charge when removed, and check it every three months or so.

Changing Battery Settings

Open Start Windows Start. Click the Windows logo in the bottom-left corner of the screen. You can alter your battery settings to optimize your computer's performance for battery life, though doing so will cause some programs to run slower than usual.

Type in choose a power plan. This will search for the appropriate option in Control Panel.

Click Choose a power plan. It's at the top of the Start window. Doing so opens the Power Options window.

Click Create a plan. This link is in the upper-left side of the window. A new window will open.

Check the "Power Saver" box. It's one of the options in the middle of the window.

Enter a name for your plan. In the text box at the bottom of the window, delete the existing text and type in your preferred name for your plan.

Click Next. It's at the bottom of the window.

Set up your plan to favor battery life. In the "On battery" column of the window, do the following: Change the "Turn off the display" option to 10 minutes. Change the "Put the computer to sleep" to 15 minutes. Lower the brightness to 50 percent (or lower).

Click Create. It's at the bottom of the window. This will create your power plan and apply it to your computer. You can double or triple your battery life if you were previously using high-performance power settings.