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How Long Should I Charge my HP Laptop Battery?
Zach Cabading
|
October 20, 2019
How long it takes to charge your HP laptop battery generally depends on:
- The type of battery that your laptop has
- The type of charger that your laptop has
- Whether or not you’re using your laptop while it’s charging
- Whether your laptop is equipped with Fast Charge technology
Some batteries can hold a greater voltage than others, and batteries with the larger voltage typically take longer to refill. That’s not necessarily a bad thing - when your battery holds a larger voltage, it’ll also keep your laptop powered for a longer amount of time.
The other thing that affects battery charging speed is the type of connector that your laptop charger has. Most laptops use an A/C adapter to recharge the laptop. But there are other types of laptop chargers that are capable of greater power transfer, and thus, faster charging. USB-C is an ultra-fast connector that can charge your battery in a shorter amount of time. Of course, if you want to charge via USB-C you’ll have to have a laptop with a USB-C port.
Additionally, it may take longer for your battery to charge if you’re using the laptop while it's charging. When you’re using the laptop, you’re simultaneously draining some of the power while the power is being resupplied. This may increase the amount of time it takes to get a full charge.
How long should I charge my HP laptop for the first time?
Your first charge is always your most important charge. When you buy a new laptop, you’ll want to charge your battery for 24 hours to make sure that it gets a full charge on its first go. Giving your battery a complete charge during its first charge will prolong its life.
How long does a laptop battery last?
Laptop batteries usually only last from 2 to 4 years, which amounts to about 1,000 charges. However, there are a few factors that determine how long a battery will last before it finally gives out:
- The material that the laptop battery is made from
- How much you use the laptop
- To what degree you recharge the laptop
The best laptop batteries are made from lithium - a battery made from any other material is likely to have a shorter battery life.
The more you use your laptop, the less your battery may last. Remember, the average laptop battery only lasts for about 1,000 charges, so each time you recharge your laptop you step an inch closer to its demise.
Is it bad to keep a laptop plugged in when it’s fully charged?
Don’t worry - as long as your laptop battery is lithium-based, it can’t be overcharged. Internal hardware prevents your battery from charging any further until the voltage drops below 100%.
However, charging your battery to high voltages (except for the first time) can significantly decrease your battery’s lifespan. According to some studies [1], charging a battery to only 85% to 90% can improve its discharge cycle from 300 to even an extra 1000 recharges. Basically, if you charged your laptop to 85% to 90% instead of to 100%, you could improve your battery lifespan by 6 months to a year. Furthermore, charging your battery to only 70% to 75% can nearly quadruple the discharge cycle.
What’s the science behind this? Technically, it takes a greater amount of computer energy to fill the last 3% of your battery - your battery only has so many reserves where it can squeeze electricity, so it requires a lot of energy to move charges around to accommodate the final 3%. This will generally take a toll on your battery’s lifespan, but obviously not the level of charge.
The downside to all that is that if you don’t charge your laptop to 100%, you’ll have less available battery life and your laptop will power down after a shorter amount of time. If you’re constantly using your laptop away from the charging station, that might be a real issues for you.
Of course, you could always circumvent this by using a laptop power bank. A power bank is basically an external battery that you can plug into your computer to recharge your battery - you don’t even need to plug in your power bank to an outlet. When you’re using your laptop in the field and you need to recharge, you could just plug in your power bank and recharge your power bank to about 80%. That would also enable you to buy a less expensive power bank that holds a lower voltage.
How can I improve my battery’s lifespan?
As we mentioned, you can increase your battery’s lifespan by only charging your laptop to less than 100%. But there are also environmental factors that can diminish your battery’s lifespan. Don’t leave your computer anywhere where the temperate is over 86℉ since high heat can damage your battery and decrease its lifespan.
But by far the best way to improve your battery’s lifespan is to recharge is as little as possible. You can do this by doing a few simple things to conserve battery life when you’re using your laptop.
How can I conserve battery life?
There are little habits you can practice that’ll help you conserve the battery life of your laptop so you won’t have to recharge as often. Conserve your battery life by:
- Operating your laptop on low power modes when you’re not using intensive applications (on Windows laptops this is called Power saver mode)
- Set sleep settings for both your display and your laptop
- Turn down your screen brightness (especially if you’re using your laptop indoors)
- Run only one application at a time
- Turn off Bluetooth and WiFi when you’re not using them
If you have an HP laptop, you can run a Battery Check with HP Support Assistant. Battery Check will re-calibrate your battery so you’ll enjoy greater energy efficiency. To use Battery Check:
- Press the Windows key
- Search for and open HP Support Assistant
Here’s to a long and happy battery life!
[1] Battery University; How to Prolong Lithium Based Batteries
About the Author: Zach Cabading is a contributing writer for HP® Tech Takes. Zach is a content creation specialist based in Southern California, and creates a variety of content for the tech industry.
