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Conventional Batteries in Laptops

70 points posted to Laptop Power by penguinsa Jul 4

My trusty Nikon d70 has an "emergency" spare battery holder. If the rechargeable batteruy goes flat, you fill it with "standard" batteries. Could we have something similar for laptops?

This couples with the idea of LED backlit LCDs. Reduce the maximum voltage, and you reduce the number of cells required. 4 cells at 1.5v each gets you 6 volts.

Disposable C cells have plenty of juice (4500mAh typical). For the uber thin crowd, you might need multiple AA's (2500mAh each) in prallel. Long life isn't the issue- use IN AN EMERGENCY is the issue here.

I like the idea of a compartment at the hinge of a laptop, with a bayonet quick release and the ability to drop in fresh batteries.

silver
Jul 5		 It's not that they don't have the potential but that they have too much internal resistance. This is why notebook batteries get hot anyway. The only way to make this work would be to use a really low power scheme and obviouslly Vista doesn't support that model. I had hoped to see more Windows CE notebooks however they didn't take off well.
jervis961
Jul 5		 I thought we were trying to make notebooks thinner?
penguinsa
Jul 6		 Yes, many new laptops make "thin" their selling point. However, unless you are Apple you still make the battery removeable.
Current battery pack (Lithium especially) run at over 3V per cell, and use multiple cells to increase current and voltage ratings.

All I'm asking is- make the final battery cell of a shape that allows conventional batteries to be used IN AN EMERGENCY.
You want thin? Use AA's. Or AAA's. Heck, there are even AAAA batteries now.
jervis961
Jul 6		 A camera only needs 2 AA batteries in most cases. A notebook would need much more power. It would be lighter and more cost effective to just buy a second battery.
bennish
Jul 17		 maybe as an external thing? but not built in
jordann
Jul 26		 APC already offers an external battery.
 
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