I recently got my first gaming laptop, and I mainly use it for university work, but I'm also excited to start gaming on it since it outperforms my old PC. My main concern is about how keeping it plugged in during gaming might affect the battery life, which isn't great to begin with. I'm not sure if this is something I should be worried about or if modern laptops have built-in protections to prevent battery damage. I'd appreciate any advice on how to manage this better!
5 Answers
Generally, leaving it plugged in is fine. Most laptops know to stop charging at 100%, and it just runs off the power. The bigger issue is if you frequently charge between 80% and 100%, which wears the battery out faster. If you can, set it to start charging at 90% or 95%; it won’t hurt your gaming experience. For heavy gaming, you might even want to set it lower to 80% to reduce strain on the battery.
You can download an app that limits charging to around 80%. Some laptops even have this option in the BIOS built-in. It's good to know that batteries are usually easy to swap out, especially for gaming laptops, so don’t stress too much if it isn’t perfect!
If you have a Lenovo, check out Lenovo Vantage; it has a feature called conservation mode. I set mine to start charging at 70% and only adjust it when I need to unplug for a bit.
That's a smart move! I think keeping it from charging up too high helps with longevity.
You could set the BIOS to limit the charge to a maximum of 80%. This way, you can keep it plugged in all the time without harming the battery.
Some laptops can run directly off the power brick without the battery installed. It might be worth checking how yours works if you're really concerned about the battery!
Right! And make sure your charger is the original one; otherwise, it might drain the battery while gaming.