[Power] [support-gang] XO Battery Life

[Adam Holt]

On Aug 10, 2015 5:29 AM, "Adam Holt" <holt at laptop.org> wrote:
>
> Also page http://wiki.laptop.org/go/XO_Troubleshooting_Battery used to be
very relevant, and hopefully still offers useful context/tips, given the
sad unavailability of new batteries (as I understand it) for the 2 million
or so XO-1 and XO-1.5 laptops out there in the world.
>
> For the much smaller RTC

"real time clock" batteries

> on the motherboard, does anybody know if XO-1.5 and higher "leggy" RTC
batteries are purchasable anywhere?  As described here:
>
> http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Fix_Clock#XO-1.5
>
> Great photo here:
>
> http://wiki.laptop.org/go/File:Xo_1_5_coincell.jpg
>
> On Aug 10, 2015 2:52 AM, "James Cameron" <quozl at laptop.org> wrote:
>>
>> G'day Sora,
>>
>> You asked about the run time of XO-1 batteries.  Quick answer; maybe
>> another 1800 cycles, less in tropical heat, and two hours seems normal.
>>
>> Long answer:
>>
>> Our specification says XO-1 batteries should survive 2000 charge
>> discharge cycles and still be within 50% of as-new capacity, when used
>> at 25°C.
>>
>> A cycle is from 0% to 100% to 0% again.  If any of those 200 cycles
>> were not complete, then less than 200 cycles will have been
>> experienced.
>>
>> So for the batteries you describe, there should be of the order of
>> 1800 cycles remaining, subject to the elevated tropical temperatures
>> in Haiti.
>>
>> I understand you have recently upgraded the software.
>>
>> The latest software is more usable, therefore it will be used more,
>> and every battery will last a shorter time.  So reports about short
>> run time are a very positive result.  Congratulations.  ;-)
>>
>> Two hours of continuous use is a reasonable run time.
>>
>> I did a test just now; installed 13.2.5 on an XO-1, configured
>> wireless, stopped powerd (so display is always on), with a fully
>> charged battery, unplugged power cable, and left it alone in a corner.
>>
>> With a battery from 2007, the laptop ran for 2.5 hours.
>>
>> With a battery from 2011, the laptop ran for 3.0 hours.
>>
>> There are a few things you can do to improve the run time;
>>
>> - closing activities before opening new ones,
>>
>> - charge, store, and use laptops away from direct sunlight and heat,
>>
>> - check you are charging the laptops from a voltage above 11V, because
>>   if they are charged below 10V the batteries might not be charged
>>   fully, (happened to me when charging from a 12V battery which was on
>>   the way to recycling),
>>
>> - check for damage to battery contacts on the laptop, or the
>>   batteries, as this may cause early shutdown, (happened to me so far
>>   on two batteries since 2006),
>>
>> - when a battery is taken from storage for the first time, treat it
>>   with a couple of charging cycles before you rely on it,
>>
>> - try turning on automatic power management in Sugar My Settings; on
>>   very old XO-1 sometimes it works well, but sometimes the keyboard or
>>   touchpad may not work.
>>
>> If you wish to investigate further, unpack the attached ZIP file onto
>> a USB drive with nothing important on it, and boot it in the laptops
>> one by one.
>>
>> It will automatically save the power logs, which are a record of power
>> draw and battery capacity over time.  Then it will turn the laptop off.
>>
>> After you've used it, send me the file pwr.tar from the USB drive.
>>
>> I can look at the measurements to figure out if things are all fine.
>> Battery serial numbers will be in the file, which will tell me the
>> date of manufacture.
>>
>> Or, you might do this and keep the pwr.tar file yourself.
>>
>> Hope that helps!
>>
>> References:
>>
>> http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Power_Log_Collector#Open_Firmware
>>
>> --
>> James Cameron
>> http://quozl.linux.org.au/
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> support-gang mailing list
>> support-gang at lists.laptop.org
>> http://lists.laptop.org/listinfo/support-gang
>>
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