28 Using a Battery
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CAUTION: Misuse of the battery may increase the risk of fire or chemical burn. Do not puncture,
incinerate, disassemble, or expose the battery to temperatures above 65°C (149°F). Keep the battery
away from children. Handle damaged or leaking batteries with extreme care. Damaged batteries may
leak and cause personal injury or equipment damage.
Checking the Battery Charge
The Dell QuickSet Battery Meter and the low-battery warning provide information on the battery
charge.

Dell QuickSet Battery Meter

If Dell QuickSet is installed, press <Fn><F3> to display the QuickSet Battery Meter.
The
Battery Meter
window displays status, charge level, and charge completion time for the battery
in your computer.
The following icons appear in the
Battery Meter
window:
For more information about QuickSet, right-click the icon in the taskbar, and click
Help
.

Low-Battery Warning

NOTICE: To avoid losing or corrupting data, save your work immediately after a low-battery warning.
Then connect the computer to an electrical outlet. If the battery runs completely out of power, hibernate
mode begins automatically.
A low-battery warning occurs when the battery charge is approximately 90percent depleted. The
computer beeps once, indicating that minimal battery operating time remains. During that time,
the speaker beeps periodically. The computer enters hibernate mode when the battery charge is at a
critically low level. For more information about low-battery alarms, see "Power Management" on
page31.
• The computer is running on battery power.
• The battery is discharging or idle.
• The computer is connected to an electrical outlet and running on AC power.
• The battery is charging.
• The computer is connected to an electrical outlet and running on AC power.
• The battery is discharging, idle, or charging.