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Hi,
I’m wanting to buy a netbook as I’m heading away backpacking for 6 months maybe more if money lasts. South Africa then head north…
I’d narrowed my search to either the N140 or the N210. However I’ve noticed the NB30 is now just being released and it seems better suited to being thrown in a backpack etc???
Problem I’m facing is deciding which one to go for. I thought I had decided on the NB30 now having been between the other two… However when I look at the specs of the NB30 I have seen the battery life quoted as 6.5hrs, 8.5hrs and 11hrs?!?
Can anyone let me know which battery life is correct??
amazon.com says 6.5hrs (US), everywhere else seems to say 8.5hrs or 11hrs and sometimes both 8.5hrs and 11hrs are mentioned in the same specification!?
I’m in the UK and have seen the NB30 with XP advertised for £252, not sure whether to just go for this or if it will appear on amazon next week for £229 or something like that. Think I’ll opt for XP as its £50-£60 cheaper and I can install Windows 7 at a later date if need be. The hard drive sixe isn’t that important as my important stuff will be on an external drive so if the netbook is stolen I hopefully still have my backup drive…
Any help on battery life and if anyone has one what they make of it etc is appreciated?
One last thing, does anyone know if the lid feels like rubber? or plastic?
Thanks.
StuartHi,
greetings from Italy. I bought my NB30 one week ago, and at the moment BatteryBar says the battery life is around 6h, unfortunately, very close to the life I got after the second battery charge, using my NB connected through an internet dongle (so bluetooth and wifi disabled).
It also says that there’s a 20% of battery charge “unused”, as if it could be an consequence of the “memory effect”.
I already had a look in BIOS settings, where there’s the possibility to let the battery get charged up to 80%, in order to gain a longer battery life in case of a long use of netbook with AC power.
I already updated the BIOS with the new version (dated Feb 18th) and I think I’ll make further trials to check if that 20% is an error of BatteryBar or if it needs a fix in settings.
I also have a Asus 1005PE, where the battery is available 100%, with an estimated life of 8h, having the same mWh of my NB30 battery (which is a 4400 mAh model, same for the Asus).I think it’s the best model to be thrown in a backpack, because it’s definitely less “delicate”
than the 1005PE for example.
As for the lid, it’s plastic, not rubber.bye,
flavioflavione – Wecome to the forum
If you have the settings such that the battery is only charged to 80% capacity then this explains the 20% charge that appears to be missing. There is normally no memory effect with Li-ion batteries as was experienced with the old Ni-cad batteries.
On certain models Samsung software is include to limit the charge to 80% to extend the life of the battery. This may be the same for the NB30.
If you are looking to get the maximum charge time from the battery then disabling the charge limiting feature will extend the effective usage time.
Hope this helps
Thanks mate!
Actually I’ve already checked both BIOS settings as well as software configurations, but as far as I can understand, my NB30 is correctly configured to have a 100% capacity when being charged.
So I’m wondering if it’s either an error of BatteryBar or a faulty battery, or who knows maybe a buggy BIOS.
A life of up to 6h could be OK, considering that I have either wifi or mobile broadband connection always on, but far away from the 11h stated on Samsung UK website (not yet available on Italian website), which refers to European models running with a 4400 mAh battery.thanks again.
As far as I can understand from some clips and comments on YouTube, it looks like that other users are experiencing a 6h battery life with the European version of NB30, which is really a pity because it’s a very good netbook IMHO.
so I wonder why Samsung is claiming up to 11h of battery life on their UK site…Hi,
Thanks for the responses. Much appreciated. I think I’ve decided to go for the NB30. As far as I can see the NB30 is 6.5hrs life from normal use and 8hrs with brightness down and wifi off maybe? No idea where this 11hrs comes from? Maybe its 11hrs with brightness down, everything switched off and just sitting on the desktop and not moving the mouse or touching the keyboard…!
Still think as its the newest model and offers a bit better ruggedness it would be my best option… my batteries always die pretty quickly anyway!
Thanks again for the help.
Hi, I have an NB30. My battery, when fully charged, reports 11Hrs of life!
You must choose how you intend to use your netbook.I have chosen the default mode, already set for you by Samsung, and it works.
I have not made any changes in the BIO either.However, this mode is for when you do ligth work. Like word processing and surfing.
You try to play video, for example, it can still play but it feels ‘jumpy’.
You would need to to switch to ‘power’ mode and it will be perfect.
Yoy will, of course, discharge the battery a little sooner.I really like my NB30.
Regards
Francesco
Hi!
after having completely discharged the battery through the procedure available via BIOS settings, now BatteryBar reports that only 11% of the battery charge is not available for use, and now battery life looks like a little bit longer.
I’m always referring to BatteryBar indications, because it seems more accurate than what reported by W7 battery icon.
Also, I found that my mobile broadband dongle could be the reason for a quicker loss in battery life.
I’m currently using my NB with a very low brightness and with all settings on “saving power”.
Anyway, my NB30 is running on a 4400 mAh battery.[quote1267092506=flavione]
BatteryBar reports that only 11% of the battery charge is not available for use, and now battery life looks like a little bit longer.Also, I found that my mobile broadband dongle could be the reason for a quicker loss in battery life.
[/quote1267092506]
Me too, I have brand new N210 and N220 and battery reports it as 11% battery wear.
I also find USB dongle drains more power than the built in wireless.
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