Laptop batteries

[Ethel]

How long should they last before needing to be replaced

My battery is nearly 5 years old and still holds a good charge. Is this usual? Will it go on indefinitely?

[Jugglering]

Wow... you are a very lucky girl... my Medion laptop battery died after two years and I was unable to get a replacement anywhere.... doh ! You obviously are letting it charge up and down on a regular basis ( which I didn't do) and will lengthen its life.... but no battery will last forever, even the rechargeable ordinary AA batteries have only a life of a few years, if that ! If you can get hold of one, it might be worth buying a spare whilst they are still around.

[fo3nix]

That's pretty good going really.

As the above says, it won't go on indefinitely, but I'm surprised it's done this well to be honest.

Keep using it as a laptop (i.e., not connected to the power supply 24/7), and it should do well. And ideally, do a full discharge, leave for 4 hours or so, then a full charge and leave for another 4 hours after it says it's done. Do this once every few months or so. It won't really affect the battery much, but it helps with the laptop's calibration, so it knows if the battery is truly empty or not.