A31 battery not charging... need new one?

[tbessie]

My trusty A31's battery appears not to be charging. I have used it plugged in mostly for the last year, and I noticed today that the battery was sitting at 90%, even plugged in. So I unplugged the power cord and let the battery go down to 6%. Then, when I plugged the cord back in, even with the machine off, the battery no longer charged at all. It's been sitting at 6% all day.

The computer is a little older than 2 years right now... is that about right for a battery becoming unchargeable?

- Tim

[friedrich-eugen]

Well thessie,

You answered Your question ...

If a battery - after reconditioning as described by IBM - stays as You
described, You should assume that it has had its time...

As I am constantly looking for A31-batteries, I can assure You that there are some, but not many outlets for these and that they are not really cheap, allthough IBM does take a premium.

[tbessie]

... and now it charges properly.

The IBM web site shows a battery for the A31, from what I can see... somewhere around $150 I think. Or did I misread that?

- Tim

[friedrich-eugen]

that is quite a lot for so short a time

[jerryci]

I have an A30 (2.5 to 3 years old) and it experienced a similar problem. I use the AC adapter about 99% of the time and the battery only rarely. Recently the battery meter showed a declining charge: 95%, 92% a day later, 90% 2 days later, 88% 3 days later, etc. I unplugged the AC and ran the battery down to around 4% or 6%. Then I plugged it in again and charged it for 12 hours. It only went up to around 60%. Then after another 24 hours, it went to around 99%. It fell gradually to 90% over the next day and I thought it needed a new battery. Then abruptly (a week ago), it went back up to 100% and has since stayed there. This has led me to suspect that it might not have been the battery, but rather the charging system. Like an automotive battery, perhaps there had been a leak or short in the system and the computer was partially running on the battery when it should have been running 100% on the AC. Is this relevant to your case, Thessie? I don't know. ??? I'm just pointing out the possibility that perhaps it isn't the battery and since they cost around $150US, perhaps you should try discharging and recharging one more time.

Jerry Cipriano

[doppelfish]

[quote="friedrich-eugen"]
As I am constantly looking for A31-batteries, I can assure You that there are some, but not many outlets for these and that they are not really cheap, [/quote]

You wouln't mind sharing the knowledge about such sources with us,
would You? :-) I'm seeing offers on eBay on a regular basis, but I'm
concerned about the age of these batteries (and it seems the Li-Ion
batteries tend to quit after a rather short time no matter how you use
them) and I'd rather get my supplies from a professional, reliable
place.

cheers [from a fellow A30p owner],
-- fish

[hausman]

These people are located in Vancouver, Canada. They sell OEM versions of IBM batteries. Unlike what you find on eBay, these are new batteries with a 1-year guarantee (like IBM) and at a competitive price. I recently bought a replacement battery for my A21p from them. They processed the order quickly and efficiently.

http://www.intelligentbatteries.com/zz_ ... ad_a30.htm

[friedrich-eugen]

Hallo doppelfish,

Well at that time I did indeed refer to offers on ebay. There are even less now than there were before. And only few of them are new, most are refurbished ones. And some are obviously questionable.

I have had good (used only a few times) and bad ones (used heavily, dead after refurbishing) up to now.

It is possible, following IBMs advice closely, to refresh those batteries. This does not mean however, that there will be no "casualties".
My batteries for two A31P now reach the age of 2- 2 1/2years and are still ok (2/3 of the original power).

Anyway, the link hausman provided will certainly be useful.

[doppelfish]

Anyway, the link hausman provided will certainly be useful.

Yes, even if they are on the other side of the great pond, and your
reply as well. Thanks!

cheers,
-- fish

[AlphaKilo470]

If you don't use your battery for a long period of time, you'll have to go through a few charge/recharge cycles to get it back to full functionality again. Since a Lithium Ion batery will go bad over time no matter what (using it takes up cycles, storing empty can drain the cells enough to kill it, storing full will eventually run it down), you might as well just get the most out of your battery and run the computer off of the battery at least once every few days.