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Photo: Ed Yourdon
I WAS REALLY AT wit’s end last week, when not just one but both of my laptops died the night before a trip. “I’m going to walk over to Staples to check out laptop prices,” I told my husband, who reminded me that we weren’t exactly in the market for making a big purchase.
He fancies himself something of a handy man, so he logged on to YouTube and entered the search phrase: “laptop battery hack.” He found this video, then bought replacement Lithium batteries and a soldering kit for about $20.00. Thirty minutes later, voila: a laptop battery almost as good as new… and for a price that was a lot more comfortable than the cost of a new laptop.
Community Connection:
There’s another reason why the battery hack trick is good: it keeps dead batteries out of landfills. To get some perspective on where your e-waste goes, check out the photo essay, “Intolerable Beauty: Chris Jordan Photographs American Mass Consumption.”
Julie Schwietert
Julie Schwietert Collazo is a writer, editor, researcher, and translator currently in New York, formerly of Mexico City and San Juan. She is Matador's managing editor and is the lead faculty member of MatadorU's travel writing program.
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Thanks Julie – perfect timing for me, as my laptop battery has been lasting about, hmmm, 2 to 3 minutes lately. Will look into the same solution!
This is exactly the kind of thing I wish I could just come up with. I never would have thought of just building my own battery. Very smart.
Again, good timing – I get about 10 min on this thing.
Excellent piece. THe Dell in the video looks just like the piece of crap sitting on the bar next to me. Battery died about a year ago, so, I just keep it plugged-in allthe time. Costs alot more to get the battery shipped from US to Japan. I can probably save over $100. You do have to be careful soldering on a lithium battery, though. Not just eye protection; they can explode and castrate you. Maybe I’ll teach the wife to solder !
Glad this proved so timely for several readers! And Mike- thanks for the warning… fortunately, both laptop and husband are intact!
Great tip to save all of us chained to the computer while travel frustration against the dead battery! I just wish I trusted myself not to cause the batteries to explode! I might find a friend who does things like this as a hobby…