Quick, Easy Tips to lengthen Laptop Life

Learning how to appropriately care for your laptop is really quick and easy, but it will certainly allow your laptop to last much longer. If you are willing to take some basic safety measures for your laptop, you are going to enjoy a lot of usage.

Laptops owners can enjoy the benefits of working or surfing the Internet on the go. This is the main selling point of having a portable laptop; however any owner must also think about the battery if you will want your battery to last as long as possible. Rechargeable batteries can only be recharged so much, and then it will be time to purchase a new one. The average laptop battery only lasts two to four years. How can you extend the life of your laptop’s battery? The answer is by simply following these tips to prolong laptop battery life.

Battery Conditioning Not Needed
A common mistake often made is unplugging the laptop when using it, connecting it back to the AC only when the charge in the battery is running out.  The logic behind this is to prevent overcharging, though this is a bad decision based on flawed information.  The result is a shortened serviceable life span of the battery, since there are a finite number of charge-discharge cycles inherent to every rechargeable battery.

When you hard drive spins and reads, it takes up quite a bit of battery power. Therefore, set a schedule and do a defragmentation one time per month. Your computer will run faster and your battery will last longer.

Hear a Buzzing Sound?  Don't wait for it to, Go Away
If you hear a loud, buzzing or whining sound emanating from your laptop, send it for service at your earliest convenience. There are only two main moving components in your laptop capable of generating buzzing or whining noises - the built-in ventilation fan or the hard-disk drive. Generally speaking, any noise coming from them speaks of impending failure of those parts. Waiting for the sounds to go away is just asking for trouble. You'll probably either lose data through an untimely hard-disk crash or some component will burn out irreparably if the laptop fan stops working. So back up your data in both cases, and send the laptop in for service.

Get a Keyboard Protector or Use an External Keyboard
The keyboard gets the heaviest physical wear on the laptop.  While designed for heavy use, the keyboard usually cannot be replaced if damaged and is a usability nightmare if not properly maintained. Since laptops are often used around food, crumbs and other bits and pieces such as staple bullets often accumulate under the keys. A keyboard protector will help keep out all that stray matter. To reduce wear on the keys, using a separate keyboard when at your desk will be preferable

Defragment Your Drives Regularly (or Not)
Due to the way the computer file system works, performance of hard-disk drives unavoidably will decrease over months or years of use. As such, it is often a good idea to carry out a defragmentation of your data from time to time. Do note that defragmenting solid-state disks (SSDs) is damaging and can shorten their usable life span. Newer operating systems such as Microsoft 7 recognize this and take away the option to defragment an SSD accordingly; this is not necessarily the case for all OSes, though.
 
Avoid Walking Around with the Laptop
Most laptops still come with hard-disk drives, which spin between 4,200 revolutions per minute (rpm) to 7,200 rpm for higher-end models.  Most users are not aware of this, but the hard-disk head hovers at microscopic distances - less than the width of a hair, to be precise from the furiously spinning disk surface.  So while technology has advanced significantly to do away with the possibility of damage from casual handling, it is generally not a good practice to tuck your laptop under your arm while it is still switched on. Your mileage might vary on this, as some laptops come with built-in software that will temporarily "park" the head away from the spinning surface when movement is detected.  Regardless of that, gentle handling of your laptop is recommended.

Note: This point does not apply to solid-state drives, which have no moving parts

Power Off Properly
One way to quickly shorten the life or even kill your laptop would be to stuff it into your bag when it is still switched on.  While this is not something that most individuals will do deliberately, accidents happen when users click on "Shut Down," then stuff the laptop into the bag without waiting.

Applications or the Windows operating system itself can hang during the power-down process, which in this instance will leave the laptop running for hours in an enclosed bag until the power drains completely.  And yes, there are cases in which the hard-disk drive burned out after being subjected to a few doses of this treatment.  So do check to make sure your laptops’ really powered off first.

Servicing Your Laptop?  Let IT Have a Look at it
A visit to the service centre typically entails a tedious process of backing up one's data, and then waiting for anything ranging to days or weeks for the repairs to be completed.  Now, it's hardly a perfect world out there, and there's always the chance that repairs might not be done satisfactorily.  Just as it's possible that repair personnel might choose to replace a part when they are not technically obligated to do so, the possibility exists that new problems could be introduced as a result of inexperience.

It's always a good idea to let your service help desk or someone who is tech savvy take a look at your laptop to make a preliminary diagnosis.  This will allow new problems that are introduced as a result of the service call to be more easily isolated and identified should they surface after the repair.

Vent maintenance – It is imperative to check all of the vents on your laptop at least once a week to ensure that they are clear and not blocked. Be sure you do not push anything into the air vents; the safest way to clean these vents typically is using a simple can of air that can be purchased at most computer supply stores.

Check the fan - If your fan is not working correctly you could experience some huge problems with your laptop overheating, which can cause problems with your monitor, memory or even the hard drive. To avoid this problem you need to make sure that the fan is working properly. If you are unsure whether the fan is working properly check the website for the laptop manufacturer, you can frequently find software there to use for testing purposes.

Dust is the enemy of your computer - You should always make sure that your laptop is kept away from dust; this can clog fans and even vents which will cause your laptop to heat up significantly. To help protect the laptop, it is important to look for a way to protect your computer such as keeping it on a table or a desk.