I Think I have a battery problem on my Sony VAIO laptop

Discussion in 'hardware' started by sooflymami, Nov 22, 2012.

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  1. sooflymami

    sooflymami Registered Member

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    Ever since I bought my laptop I never unplugged the AC adapter from my laptop, I've always kept it plugged in even when its fully charged. I didnt know I could use the laptop without it plugged in. Today I noticed after I unplug the adapter, the laptop wont turn on at all..It only turns on and there's power when the AC adapter is plugged in..the battery is inside the laptop so it's not just using the AC adapter. After plugging in the AC adapter and turn on the laptop, on the tray battery icon, it says it's 99% available complete plugged in,charging. Also, after I turn off my laptop, the orange light keeps blinking. I'm confused.
     
  2. Cudni

    Cudni Global Moderator

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    sounds very much like the battery is finished. How old is the comp? But as you always use ac then battery matters not.
     
  3. sooflymami

    sooflymami Registered Member

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    I bought this computer in March this year
     
  4. Wild Hunter

    Wild Hunter Former Poster

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  5. cheater87

    cheater87 Registered Member

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    As far as we know the battery in the laptop is dead. Is it OK to keep the battery still plugged into the laptop? Will anything bad happen or is it going to be OK to keep it in there? Is it safe to do that? Is it going to damage the laptop with it still plugged in and charging? All this time she had the AC adapter plugged in for long periods of time and she is worried if it will damage the laptop in any way.
     
  6. Cudni

    Cudni Global Moderator

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    ot posts removed
     
  7. roger_m

    roger_m Registered Member

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    It's completely safe. We had a laptop at work we were running 24 hours a day 7 days a week for several years with a completely dead battery (or possibly it wasn't charging the battery) - the laptop would lose power the instant it was unplugged.

    It did cause some problems with Vista - for some strange reason Vista would freeze for exactly 6 minutes after booting up with the dead battery. I forget if this was fixed with a service pack install or a new battery. I think it may have been a service pack.
     
    Last edited: Nov 24, 2012
  8. Wild Hunter

    Wild Hunter Former Poster

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    I would remove the dead battery.
     
  9. Niels

    Niels Registered Member

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    Unplug the power cable of your laptop and remove also the battery. Hold the power button pressed at least 10 seconds. Now insert the battery again, plug the power cable in. See if Windows now shows the correct battery level.

    Check also the battery compartment and battery. Only a damaged battery can cause a serious fire and exploding risk. But if there aren't any damage signs on the battery than there isn't any problem. See this a proof.
     
  10. Noob

    Noob Registered Member

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    I think the battery is probably dead, i had the same thing happen to an Asus Laptop that was plugged in all the time, after a couple years the laptop won't turn on at all without the power cord. :rolleyes:
     
  11. Niels

    Niels Registered Member

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    You are probably right, there are almost 9 months passed. Sometimes you can reset the battery management in Windows. But the chance is indeed very low that the battery will revive.
     
  12. Noob

    Noob Registered Member

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    Hahaha time to get a new battery dude . . . your bank account will take a hit!! :D
     
  13. Eagle Creek

    Eagle Creek Global Moderator

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    Keeping the AC plugged in is safe, however not recommended. I'm working on AC for about 3 weeks straight (24/7) now and I always remove my battery when working longer than 12 hours/AC.

    However, usually the manual doesn't state you should disconnect your AC when your battery is full so you might be able to get a new one from the manufacturer. Contact them and see if the warranty is 6 months ore one year. Usually the warranty on batteries is much lower than on the laptop as a whole, but since the prices they charge for batteries (sometimes up to 400€ for a 700€ laptop!), I'd check before I bought my own.
     
  14. majoMo

    majoMo Registered Member

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    I agree with Eagle Creek, if working too much with the AC plugged I remove my battery also.

    I use the freeware BatteryCare and I'm glad with their help to handle with battery calibration and a good use of battery.

    Info about "Should I remove the battery when A/C is plugged in?" and "Proper laptop battery usage guide" in general (BatteryCare Page).
     
  15. roger_m

    roger_m Registered Member

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    I've never head of laptop batteris costting anywhere close to that. You should be playing under $100 US or 77€ or you are getting ripped off.
     
  16. Eagle Creek

    Eagle Creek Global Moderator

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  17. roger_m

    roger_m Registered Member

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    You can an equivalent 9 cell battery for $67.99 US = 52€

    I do realise that's coming from the US, but surely you should be able to get something for not much more locally.
     
  18. roger_m

    roger_m Registered Member

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  19. Eagle Creek

    Eagle Creek Global Moderator

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    Well prices of laptop batteries aren't really the point here :). I've seen 'em up to 400 and I'm sure there are cheaper ones out there. Sooflymami might can get them cheaper as well.

    Going back on topic: since it's fried within a year after buying the laptop, it might still be covered by warranty.
     
  20. Noob

    Noob Registered Member

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    I purchased a laptop almost 2 years ago but this time i remove the battery when i'm using my Laptop with the AC charger and after 2 years of use the battery still lasts like 4-5 hours.
    So basically i recommend you not to leave the battery in the laptop when using the charger. I leave my battery at 80% charge before i unplug it and it usually looses like 5% after a couple months of storage. (I rarely take the laptop with me, i use it 99.99999999% of the time in my house) :D
     
  21. roger_m

    roger_m Registered Member

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    Some laptops have power management software which well only let the battery charge to a certain % and then stop charging. My Vaio lets you stop charging at 50% or 80%.
     
  22. jdd58

    jdd58 Registered Member

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  23. cheater87

    cheater87 Registered Member

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    What does a damaged one look like?
     
  24. Eagle Creek

    Eagle Creek Global Moderator

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    Basically like what a damaged "anything" would look like: bits and chips coming of, dents, holes, cracks, etc.

    Just visually inspect the outside of the battery and the compartment to see if anything is out of the ordinary.
     
  25. cheater87

    cheater87 Registered Member

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    Would one need the receipt to use the warranty?
     
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