Digital Express

Archive for the ‘Laptops’ Category

You can save up to 50% with an aftermarket battery for your notebook – if you dare.

It was five years coming, but the battery of my ThinkPad R50 finally met its maker. On a recent trip, it conked out after powering the notebook for only half an hour – three hours short of what I’m used to getting out it. Now it refuses to be recharged at all. Clearly, it’s time for a new battery.

It’s a fact of life that sooner or later, every laptop battery hits old age. Most do well for between 18 and 36 months, depending on how heavily they’re used. Then they slip into a slow decline and lose the ability to take a full charge.

The reason? A typical battery pack can be recharged between 300 and 500 times before the chemicals inside start to wear out, with the result that a battery that once powered a system for three hours can now run for only an hour or less. That’s when it’s time to replace the battery.

There are two basic types of notebook batteries: the brand-name batteries that the manufacturer sells and the aftermarket batteries that are available from third-party resellers – often for a significantly lower price. The trade in aftermarket batteries is growing quickly, perhaps by as much as 30% a year, according to Don Saxman, an analyst at BCC Research in Wellesley, Mass.

“This is the result of the enormous popularity of notebooks,” Saxman explains. “Lots of people buy a second battery, and the longer you keep a notebook, the greater the chance that it will need a new battery.”

We all want to save money, but not if it puts our notebooks at risk. Buying an aftermarket battery often goes against the advice of laptop manufacturers, and in some cases can even void the warranty. Is it worth it to save a few bucks?

I went on a mission to find out whether aftermarket replacement batteries are a good deal, safe and reliable or a dangerous fraud.

Bargain Hunting

With the Lenovo replacement battery for my ThinkPad R50 selling for 0 – about half what the notebook itself is worth – there was certainly room to save some money. I also went looking for a new battery for my two-year-old MacBook Pro. Both machines have worn-out batteries that power the systems for half the time or less than they could when they were new.

With the battery part numbers in hand, I did a little nosing around on the Web. I found several places that sell batteries for a wide variety of notebooks made in the past 15 years, from ones introduced earlier this year to relics like the 12-year-old Texas Instruments Extensa 600. Many of the companies also sell AC adapters and batteries for mobile phones, digital cameras and handheld devices.

IBM ThinkPad R50 Series Laptop Battery

It turns out that lots of places carry replacement batteries for the ThinkPad R50; the same battery works with ThinkPad T40 series notebooks. Only a handful of online stores had a power pack for the MacBook Pro.

IBM ThinkPad T40 Series Laptop Battery

I was able to find both the batteries I needed at UK Top Laptop Battery Shop, based in 92, Clydesdale Place Moss Side Employment Area Leyland Lancashire PR26 7QS United Kingdom, Ohio. But before contacting them, I did a little research. I Googled exceldigital.org.uk to see if anybody had reported faulty products or bad experiences, or if there were pending legal actions against them.

It appeared to be reputable businesses that have been around for several years. The products they sell include a one-year warranty and a 30-day money-back guarantee.

It retailers can quickly ship out a battery in an emergency. For instance, exceldigital.org.uk has its warehouse in 92, Clydesdale Place Moss Side Employment Area Leyland Lancashire PR26 7QS United Kingdom for next-day delivery.

How They Performed

Over the course of a month, I ordered six batteries for my two notebooks and tested them out. Two came from Laptops for Less, two came from Laptop Battery Express, and one battery each came from Apple Inc. and Lenovo Group Ltd. With one exception – a dead battery from Lenovo, which the company quickly replaced – each of the new batteries worked perfectly and powered up the notebooks completely.

Without a doubt, aftermarket batteries are a good way to replace a dead battery without spending a lot of money. Despite costing to less, the aftermarket replacements proved to be just as good and reliable as the originals in my tests.

All of the aftermarket batteries I looked at fit fine. They just snapped in, and the systems powered right up. And the aftermarket replacements powered the notebooks for about the same amount of time per charge as the reseller replacements did.

Other than some minor cosmetic differences – for instance, the plastic on one R50 replacement was a slightly different shade of black and not as shiny as the original – I couldn’t tell them apart from the manufacturers’ batteries.

“It’s hard to tell them apart,” says BCC Research’s Saxman. “Often, notebook makers buy batteries made by a third-party manufacturer, while aftermarket battery packs frequently come from the same factory that made the originals. It’s confusing, to say the least.”

Frequently, the only things that separate the two types of batteries are whose name is on the label and how much it costs. In fact, the MacBook Pro battery that Laptop Battery Express sent me was actually an Apple-branded battery with all the markings, including a serial number.

The company’s supplier said it was left over from a production run made for Apple. Whether this violates agreements between the factory and Apple is for their lawyers to fight about. All I know is that I got a battery for less that appeared to be identical and gave me no problems.

Sometimes aftermarket batteries are even better than the originals. Due to added efficiencies that manufacturing plants have developed in the time since the notebook and its first battery pack were made, some replacement cells can be lighter or contain more capacity.

Two of the six batteries I looked at stand out. The MacBook Pro battery from exceldigital.org.uk weighs 2.3 oz. less than Apple’s battery but delivers about the same capacity; it ran for only five minutes less than the reseller replacement. Then there’s the R50 replacement battery sold by exceldigital.org.uk, which has a higher capacity but weighs 0.2 oz. less; it ran for an extra 10 minutes. Each was significantly less expensive than the manufacturers’ batteries, which sounds like a win-win to me.

Are They Safe? And What About My Warranty?

The aftermarket battery trade is a fact of life and will likely grow in the coming years, but that doesn’t mean the notebook makers have to like it. I asked several leading laptop manufacturers if they believe aftermarket batteries are dangerous to use and if using them invalidates the notebooks’ warranties. While Apple, Hewlett-Packard and Dell did not respond to my repeated queries, Lenovo and Toshiba agreed to discuss the issue.

Neither manufacturer said that aftermarket batteries are dangerous, but they stressed that their batteries were designed and manufactured expressly for their equipment. A Lenovo representative said, “We do not support the use of nongenuine Lenovo batteries in ThinkPads. ThinkPad batteries are designed and tested with ThinkPad notebooks to ensure safety, compatibility and performance.”

While using an aftermarket battery doesn’t invalidate a notebook’s warranty in and of itself, the manufacturers probably wouldn’t repair a notebook under warranty that has been damaged by a faulty aftermarket battery, according to company representatives. In other words, a faulty aftermarket battery does invalidate the warranty.

As a Toshiba Corp. marketing executive said to me, “Toshiba does not guarantee the system’s performance, reliability or safety as they relate to aftermarket batteries.”

This is ironic, since notebook makers like Apple, Dell, Sony, Lenovo, Toshiba and others have an uneven record when it comes to the batteries they sell themselves. Together, they have recalled millions of bad batteries over the past few years. Some of the power packs weren’t up to spec, while others were potential fire hazards. So it seems that no battery, regardless of who makes or sells it, is immune to problems.

“Most replacement batteries are perfectly safe,” observes Vishal Sapru, manager of power systems at market analysis firm Frost & Sullivan. “But you really need to be wary.” His advice is to seek out a reputable dealer with a history of supplying high-quality products that provides a year’s warranty on the battery and an initial money-back guarantee.

The reward is that you’ll pay between 15% to 50% less than the manufacturer product for substantially the same battery. “In some cases, it really is the same battery,” says Sapru. But he warns against batteries listed for less than 50% of the reseller price: “Below that, there’s potentially something wrong with the battery and the seller.”

Excellent advice is to steer clear of used batteries or those listed on eBay. I wish I had heard this advice five years ago when I bought a battery for my Gateway notebook on eBay for , compared with Gateway Inc.’s 0 product. It was listed as a new battery in the original packaging, but it held only a 20% charge, making it worthless to me.

“In other words,” explains ExcelDigital’s Sky, “shop carefully and be comfortable with your battery purchase. If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.”

Lets start regarding laptop bags what you need to choose before you buy it. First thing you need to choose is the laptop size, if you have laptop size about 15″ then make sure where will you keep all laptop cords and other accessories of the laptop, so don’t buy just 15″ laptop bag go little bit bigger than that.

Secondly you need check the style which kind of style you looking for, some peoples like very casual style and some wants something like professional looking to suite their business or services. If you are student and you wanted to carry some books and other papers work with your laptop so best go for rack sack bags, ladies can choose from different style according to their own personality. Third thing you will be looking for material about laptop bags, what kind of material you will prefer, some people like leather and some like nylon and some like fabrics, so you need to decide what exactly you need to suit your style. Fourth and last thing you need to choose is space what you need to put in the laptop bags. Briefcase type laptop bags have lots of compartments and pockets to hold your files and other paper work and visiting cards and laptop cords, some people don’t like to carry another briefcase so best get something bigger laptop bag which can carry your briefcase things as well. For students need to buy laptop rack sack to carry their books and water bottle with laptop so make sure you must have all these facility in your laptop bags to give you most comfortable protection to your laptop and other facilities.

Is it Possible to Get a Free Apple Macbook Pro Laptop?

Even though most people may not be aware of the fact that receiving a free laptop without having to spend one, red cent – there are things out there that you can do in order to get them totally free. One of the most popular brands is the Apple Macbook Pro Laptop. There are ways that you can go about getting free laptops of this model at no charge to you – if you know where to find them. Thousands of people would be excited to know that these amazing laptops can be attained for free. There are more than enough Apple Macbook Pro laptops to go around if you are looking to add some great free laptop deals to your collection. So, can you get this free laptop for yourself? Of the people that do know about these deals, it is a known fact that getting one of these valuable tools for yourself is very much possible – as many people in the world over do it everyday. Free computers can be a reality if you are willing to put in just a little work and effort to get one of your own. Doing some good research on how to get a free laptop like the Apple Macbook Pro can be just the start that you will need to get started and on your way to getting more free laptop computers than you can count. How can you get started? Since there are many deals on laptops for free out there, you should know that you will most likely qualify to get one for yourself. The practical thing for you to do is find some great websites and sources that offer Apple Macbook Pro laptops for free. There are quite a few laptops for free that are available for nearly anyone wanting to take advantage of them. Once you do that, be ready and prepared to meet a few simple steps or instructions. From there – you can look forward to getting the free laptop computers of your dreams! As long as these deals go on, there will never be a lack of free laptop deals to consider.

Even though most people may not be aware of the fact that receiving a free laptop without having to spend one, red cent – there are things out there that you can do in order to get them totally free. One of the most popular brands is the Apple Macbook Pro Laptop. There are ways that you can go about getting free laptops of this model at no charge to you – if you know where to find them. Thousands of people would be excited to know that these amazing laptops can be attained for free. There are more than enough Apple Macbook Pro laptops to go around if you are looking to add some great free laptop deals to your collection.

So, can you get this free laptop for yourself?

Of the people that do know about these deals, it is a known fact that getting one of these valuable tools for yourself is very much possible – as many people in the world over do it everyday. Free computers can be a reality if you are willing to put in just a little work and effort to get one of your own. Doing some good research on how to get a free laptop like the Apple Macbook Pro can be just the start that you will need to get started and on your way to getting more free laptop computers than you can count.

How can you get started?

Since there are many deals on laptops for free out there, you should know that you will most likely qualify to get one for yourself. The practical thing for you to do is find some great websites and sources that offer Apple Macbook Pro laptops for free. There are quite a few laptops for free that are available for nearly anyone wanting to take advantage of them. Once you do that, be ready and prepared to meet a few simple steps or instructions. From there – you can look forward to getting the free laptop computers of your dreams! As long as these deals go on, there will never be a lack of free laptop deals to consider.

Advantages of Buying Refurbished Laptops

Laptops can be sent back to the manufacturer if the purchaser finds the screen of the laptop scratched or with a minor blemish, or if it is an unwanted present to him or if the packaging of the laptop is dented etc. Such laptops are inspected, tested again for quality and repackaged by the manufacturer and sold for a very less price. Such laptops are called as refurbished laptops.

Factory refurbished laptops:

The laptops in the factory undergo rechecking for any manufacturing defect by passing through various stages of examination. Then, when no fault is found, the hard disk of the laptop is reformatted and again the operating system is loaded. It is again made to work for less than 4-5 hours time to check for any defect and the parts are replaced if they are found to be defective. The refurbished laptop is then updated with a new serial number to mark it as a factory refurbished laptop. Such factory refurbished laptops are of high quality available to the consumer at a lesser retail price. Such refurbished laptops can be got from almost all the renowned brands. However the process carried out for the restoration of laptops may differ from company to company. The main aim is to make the laptop run again efficiently as it used to be previously.

Custom refurbished laptops:

These are repaired laptops which are reassembled to match the customer’s preference. It gives an opportunity to get a complete laptop solution at a very affordable price to the customer. The utilities offered by the customer refurbished laptops are got at a cost of a used laptop. It also avoids the necessity to upgrade immediately, which is not the case with the standard laptop. It allows the customers to have preferences in terms of selecting the features like the screen size, processor speed requirements, multimedia, memory capacity, hard drive size, optical drive, graphics, accessories, Bluetooth etc.

When purchased in bulk, custom refurbished laptops are the best option as it combines both functionality and price advantage together. Additional benefits can be availed through promotional offers and discounts from the manufacturers.

Advantages of purchasing refurbished laptops:

The refurbished laptops are of high quality as they are checked for high standards of performance at each level of examination done. The consumer can get a branded, quality laptop of a latest model at a very less price compared to the retail price. More over discounts are offered to military personnel, senior citizens and students who can maximize their savings by purchasing a refurbished laptop. The refurbished laptops can be selected from renowned brands available in the market at a lesser cost. Such refurbished laptops are also got with 1 year warranty which can be extended up to 3 years. The warranty period supports replacement of parts and maintenance required by the laptop. Hence purchasing such laptops are very reliable. The refurbished model laptops enable the customers get more features at a lower cost. When the purchaser is bent on buying the latest, trendiest laptop, but cannot afford to buy a new one he can go for a refurbished laptop to get satisfied.