Power Scheme Settings

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ranjit · #1 Post by **ranjit** » Wed Aug 30, 2006 6:59 am

Hi All,

I have been trying to find the thread regarding the "Power Scheme Settings" in Battery Maximizer to increase the life of the battery and for the management of screen brightness, but unfortunately, I have had no luck. Can someone point me in the right direction?

If I am right, this thread is an old one.

Cheers and best regards,
ranjit

#2 Post by **GomJabbar** » Wed Aug 30, 2006 7:21 am

Is this the one you are looking for? http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=3296

ranjit · #3 Post by **ranjit** » Wed Aug 30, 2006 7:50 am

No, GomJabbar, the link that you provided is not the one. The one I am looking for is a long thread in which users have indicated recommended settings (system standby, CPU speed, LCD brightness, etc.) for the power (AC + Battery) schemes. I know that there is a lot of threads dealing with this subject in this forums which has made looking for the exact one very difficult. I think it appeared in 2004.

Let me know if you have more information.

Cheers,
Ranjit

#4 Post by **GomJabbar** » Wed Aug 30, 2006 10:23 am

Here is another one. http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=5506

You can use the search button at the top of the page to enter in all the terms that apply. Select radio button Search for all terms.

It may be easier to ask the question(s) that you want answered.

ranjit · #5 Post by **ranjit** » Wed Aug 30, 2006 8:10 pm

Ok, GomJabbar. I will go ahead and ask the question.

Is there ne1 out there who can advice me on the recommended values of the following items in "Power Schemes" for optimal performance?

System standby
Turn off monitor
LCD brightness
Turn off hard disks
CPU speed
System hibernates

Cheers and best regards,
Ranjit

#6 Post by **GomJabbar** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 2:24 pm

I've been a little busy, that's why I didn't reply sooner.

Here is my take on it for maximum battery life.

1) Standby - set to the lowest value (fewest minutes) possible, without interrupting your work flow too much.
2) Turn off monitor - set to a lower value than Standby.
3) LCD brightness - set to Level 0 for maximum battery life.
4) Turn off hard disks - set to a value equal to or lower than Turn off monitor, but less than the value for Standby.
5) CPU speed - set to slow for maximum battery life.
6) System hibernates - set to a value greater than Standby.

The preset schemes that are included in Battery Maximizer are a good place to start. For instance.....

Super Power Saver = best battery life
1) Standby - 5 mins.
2) Turn off monitor - 3 mins.
3) LCD brightness - Level 0 [low]
4) Turn off hard disks - 3 mins.
5) CPU speed - Slow
6) System hibernates - 2 hrs.

High Battery Performance = very good battery life, with more convenience
1) Standby - 10 mins.
2) Turn off monitor - 5 mins.
3) LCD brightness - Level 3 [low]
4) Turn off hard disks - 3 mins.
5) CPU speed - Slow
6) System hibernates - Never

I personally set up my own scheme, which I named "My Preferred Scheme". Here is how I have it set up.

My Preferred Scheme
1) Standby - 15 mins.
2) Turn off monitor - 3 mins.
3) LCD brightness - Level 5 [low]
4) Turn off hard disks - 10 mins.
5) CPU speed - Adaptive
6) System hibernates - Never

Note, the above settings are only for battery use. When in the Battery Maximiser Wizard, you can click on the AC plug icon to change the AC plugged-in settings.

You can set up your own scheme as well. You decide which tradeoffs are the best for your situation. Use the preset schemes as a guide.

FYI, CPU speed can be set to Slow (slow), Adaptive (in-between), or Maximum (fastest). For must uses, Adaptive is a good all-around choice.

FYI, LCD brightness is also changed by a BIOS setting (or in ThinkPad Configuration). In addition to the 7 Levels you can set in the schemes, you can set the LCD brightness when running on batteries to Normal (dims when you unplug the AC even with the Level set to 7) or High (does not dim except to the level you have on your scheme setting). So for instance, a High Level 3 will be brighter than a Normal Level 3.

Here is some more information on CPU speed settings in Microsoft's XP Power Options settings: http://www.pcpitstop.com/faq/cpu.asp . Look about 2/3rds the way down the page.

ranjit · #7 Post by **ranjit** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 8:32 pm

Hi GomJabbar,

Thank you so much for the elaborate message on Power Scheme settings, and for your help and support in this regard.

Between CPU (very slow) and CPU (adaptive), which setting should I use both on battery and AC for long term use?

Cheers and best regards,
Ranjit

#8 Post by **GomJabbar** » Thu Aug 31, 2006 11:45 pm

For maximum battery life, choose Slow CPU speed when on battery. If your ThinkPad responds too slow for your tastes, or it stutters playing a video or game, then set the CPU speed to Adaptive.

While plugged in, there is no harm setting the CPU speed to Maximum. However, you may not see much difference between Adaptive and Maximum for most programs.

Another setting for ATI Radeon users is POWERPLAY. If you right-click on an open area of the display, choose Properties > Settings > Advanced > POWERPLAY [tm], and choose Enable POWERPLAY [tm], this will increase battery life while operating on battery.

ranjit · #9 Post by **ranjit** » Fri Sep 01, 2006 1:56 am

Thank you so much, GomJabbar, for all this info. I hope that my battery holds up for a long time to come!

Cheers and best reagards,
Ranjit

princeatul · #10 Post by **princeatul** » Fri Sep 01, 2006 8:27 am

ranjit wrote:No, GomJabbar, the link that you provided is not the one. The one I am looking for is a long thread in which users have indicated recommended settings (system standby, CPU speed, LCD brightness, etc.) for the power (AC + Battery) schemes. I know that there is a lot of threads dealing with this subject in this forums which has made looking for the exact one very difficult. I think it appeared in 2004.

Hello Ranjit, I guess you are referring to this one, then: Full charge capacity vs. Number of charge cycles.

Power Scheme Settings

Power Scheme Settings

There you go...

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