Miscellaneous > Technical Support

Thinkpad - bad battery?

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worker201:
I've got a Thinkpad T-60.  The low battery light is flashing orange, and if I unplug the AC power, it dies.  However, the battery itself claims to be fully charged, according to those little check LEDs.  I've got Windows on there, and it claims that the battery is fully charged - which is in fact true, as far as I can tell.

So how else can I check the battery?  If the battery is okay, wtf is wrong with the Thinkpad?  Please don't say the motherboard, because I let the warranty expire about a week before this started happening.  They called and called to get me to extend the warranty, and I told them to fuck off.  :(

Just to be clear, it works just fine with the AC adapter plugged in.

Refalm:
Is it a Sony battery by any chance?
I know someone with the same problem, he had a Dell.

Calum:
it's the battery. you can recondition the battery (probably instructions on web), it's simple, but takes two days and in my experience it gets you at most 5% of battery capacity back. I've not known the IBM battery utility to misfunction, so if it says fully charged, and the battery's not working, it'll be because the battery has lost capacity over time due to use. Does this sound consistent?

Basically, by the sound of it, i think it's the battery, and that a replacement battery for an IBM T6* is what you need. No warranty is implied or given with this comment though!

davidnix71:
If your laptop battery's life has gotten shorter over time, The New York Times recommends recalibrating it:

    ...the calibration process basically involves first turning off your screensaver and other power management settings that put the computer to sleep. Then fully charge the laptop before letting it run all the way down until the computer shuts off automatically.

    Once the battery has fully drained, you can charge it back up again and restore your screensaver and power management settings.



If that doesn't work, then it's time to buy a new battery.

worker201:
It's not a Sony battery.  The label says it is manufactured for Lenovo in China.

Recalibration is not possible, as the computer powers down immediately if the AC is unplugged.

I guess I do need a new battery.  I wonder if there is any place around here that sells them - I'd prefer to take the computer in and make sure that a new battery is the answer before spending the money.  Official Lenovo brand batteries are $180.

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