2-4User’s Manual
2.3 Optimizing Battery Life
This section helps you get the most out of battery operation. Optimizing
battery life prolongs the charge/recharge cycle and improves recharge
efficiency.
2.3.1 Maximizing Battery Power
Follow these suggestions to maximize battery power:
• Purchase an extra battery pack
• Use the system utility ASTDK to reserve hard disk space for the zero-
volt suspend function.
• Condition the battery pack to reduce the possibility of memory effect.
Refer to section 2.3.2.
• Use the AC adapter whenever possible so that the battery is reserved
for on-the-go computing.
• Disable the parallel and serial ports if no devices are connected to
these ports. You can do this through Setup.
• Make use of the power-saving modes described in sections 2.4 and
2.5.
• Eject the PCMCIA card from the card slot when not in use, since the
PCMCIA card draws extra power
• When using a network card, logout first before ejecting the card.
• Use the disk cache utility SMARTDRV (bundled with MS-DOS) or
create a virtual disk (RAMDRIVE) to lessen the loading of the hard
disk.
• Store the battery pack in a cool, dry place. The recommended storage
temperature for battery packs ranges from 10°C to 30°C. The higher
the storage temperature, the faster the battery pack self-discharges.