3–8
Hardware Guide
Battery Packs
Monitoring the Charge in a Battery
Pack
This section explains several ways you can determine the amount
of charge in your battery pack.
Obtaining Accurate Charge Information
To increase the accuracy of all battery charge displays:
■
Allow a battery pack to discharge to about 10 percent of a full
charge through normal use before charging it.
■
When you charge a battery pack, charge it fully.
■
If a battery pack has not been used for 1 month or more,
calibrate the battery pack instead of simply charging it. For
calibration instructions, refer to
“Calibrating a Battery Pack”
later in this chapter.
Displaying Charge Information on the
Screen
This section explains how to access and interpret battery charge
displays.
Accessing Charge Displays
To access information about the status of any battery pack in the
notebook:
■
Select the Power Meter icon on the taskbar.
■
Access the Power Meter tab. To access the Power Meter tab:
❏
In Windows 2000,
select Start > Settings > Control
Panel > Power Options icon > Power Meter tab.
❏
In Windows XP,
select Start > Control Panel >
Performance and Maintenance > Power Options icon >
Power Meter tab.
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