Battery stops charging part way

[alexjking77]

Hi,

I have an Optimus laptop, about 18 months old, Win 7. A couple of weeks ago it suddenly started having a battery problem. When charging, it would get to about 70%, then just stop. The battery icon in the system tray would still say 'plugged in, charging' and the charging light is on, but it wouldn't go any higher than around 70%. Also, the battery would discharge normally until about 20%, then suddenly drop to under 10% in a matter of a couple of minutes. It seems to be getting worse - now it only charges to about 45-55%.

I expect battery life to drop off over time, but this seems unusual with the way it is so sudden and the way Windows is still telling me it is charging.

Any ideas what is wrong with it?

 

[mantadog]

Could be a hardware fault in the battery unit, in fact I would be fairly sure it was. If it was a software fault regarding how windows communicates with the battery then it probably wouldn't be getting worse.

I think the only cure here is going to be a new battery, which should be available in the spares section of your account.

 

[ubuysa]

After a 24-hour charge how long does the battery run the laptop for? If it's more than 4 hours it's probably fine. If it's much less then you probably have a battery problem.

It's not uncommon for the Windows charge meter to get out of sync with the actual state of charge of the battery. It's easy to reset but it takes some time:

1. Switch the laptop off and plug it in on charge for 24 hours. Do not use the laptop at all during this period.

2. Unplug the mains charger and switch on the laptop. Ensure that the Battery Settings under the Power Options are set so that the low battery level is 10% with an action of notification and the critical battery level is 5% and the action is shutdown. Ensure that sleep and hibernate are turned off so that the only thing that will switch the laptop off is when it shuts down after the critical battery level is reached. Leave the laptop on until it shuts down because of critical battery, you can use the laptop normally during this period but do not shut it down manually.

3. Leave the laptop switched off and put it on charge again for 24 hours. Do not use the laptop during this period.

You should find that the Windows battery meter is now in better synch with the state of charge of the battery.

 

[alexjking77]

It runs for a little under two hours with a full charge, but then I don't think it ever ran for more than three. Possibly the battery was always a bit dodgy.
I'll try re-calibrating and see if that makes any difference - if not, it may have to be a new battery.