T61p Battery Life

[Taybridge99]

I've just replaced the battery in my T61p. I avoided the eBay "el cheapo" batteries and purchased a new 9-cell battery from LaptopBatteryExpress for $80 (marked-down from $179). The user instructions that came with the battery recommended that the battery be subject to 5 discharge re-charge cycles in the first week to condition the battery. The first cycle charged to 84% and wouldn't take any more charge. Subsequent charges were 70%, 69%, 68%, 67% and 67%.

Pulling the AC adapter plug and allowing the battery to discharge (wi-fi and screen background on) gave a 10% warning alarm in exactly 2 hours. It's been a long time since I've used the T61p on battery alone but I seem to remember that the battery used to last longer than 2 hours - particularly since there is an SSD hard disk.

Should I complain to LaptopBatteryExpress and request a refund or a replacement or is this normal battery life. I also don't understand whey the battery icon doesn't show 100% when the battery is fully charged. Does 67% full charge indicate a problem with the battery?

I'd be interested to hear of other peoples experiences with "new" batteries.

Bob..

[ajkula66]

That battery is a dud. Return it ASAP.

Anything that won't charge up to 100% when brand new is...rubbish. I'm being nice here.

FWIW...I'm setting up a custom T61p-based FrankenPad with a X9000 (ouch!) 8GB RAM and SSD, currently getting 3.5 hours plus out of a 9-cell Panasonic battery that holds roughly 85% of the original charge, with wireless on and no tweaking to improve the battery life whatsoever.

Good luck.

[Taybridge99]

That battery is a dud. Return it ASAP.

Anything that won't charge up to 100% when brand new is...rubbish. I'm being nice here.

FWIW...I'm setting up a custom T61p-based FrankenPad with a X9000 (ouch!) 8GB RAM and SSD, currently getting 3.5 hours plus out of a 9-cell Panasonic battery that holds roughly 85% of the original charge, with wireless on and no tweaking to improve the battery life whatsoever.

Good luck.

Thanks George - that's just the info that I need. I'll return it. Incidentally, can you recommend a good supplier for batteries?

Regards,
Bob..

[ajkula66]

Bob,

I only use genuine Lenovo batteries, preferably Panasonic ones. If you were any closer I'd offer you one of them at a reasonable price...

No wisdom to share on where to find one in Australia, short of feebay...apologies

Good luck.