Microsoft investigating Windows 7 battery issue
Microsoft says it is looking into a problem that is causing some Windows 7 users to get a warning that there is a problem with their battery when, in fact, there is not.
"We are investigating this issue in conjunction with our hardware partners, which appears to be related to system firmware," a Microsoft representative said in a statement on Tuesday.
The warning in question uses the computer's basic input output system (BIOS) to try to determine whether a battery needs replacement. For some reason, the signals are getting crossed and some users are getting the message even when they should not.
However, because this warning is new to Windows 7, users moving from Vista should not necessarily ignore the message if they see it. Instead, Microsoft suggests users contact their computer maker to see whether the warning is warranted or not.
Meanwhile, Microsoft says it and the PC makers are trying to figure out what is behind the glitch. "We are working with our partners to determine the root cause and will update the forum with information and guidance as it becomes available."
During her years at CNET News, Ina Fried has changed beats several times, changed genders once, and covered both of the Pirates of Silicon Valley. These days, most of her attention is focused on Microsoft. E-mail Ina. 
I installed Win7 last week on an old IBM X-series tablet device. Although the device was old, I received the warning message that the extra-celled battery needed replacement. I did nothing... and got over 4hrs of life before I had to recharge again. (The expected usage rate when I had Vista installed.)
MSFT: if you need a guinea pig, then just lemme know how I can help.
If this is a glitch in the Win7 OS, I'd sure like to know about it, because at $60-100 for a replacement for the battery that came with the machine that's a pretty expensive hit.
I also had a Vista problem that it would not boot to Windows, instead to somewhere before and I had to press F1 to get it to continue and sometimes I had to restart it more than one time and then it would finally get to Windows after telling me that it was not recoverable. I have also had the boot problem for years and just recently it stopped so some Windows Update must have fixed it.
if your battery is fully charged, pull it out of the computer if you are going to use it while plugged in...
The battery will last longer that way
SIMPLE WAY TO CHECK, -- CHARGE YOUR BATTERY - CLOSE THE LID - LOOK AT THE BATTERY LEDS'S AND PRESS AND HOLD THE TEST BUTTON ( This button is flush against the battery but it is a battery icon inside a cirlcle it may be different depending on the models ) - IF ALL THE LED'S LIGHT UP - ALL YOUR CELLS ARE WORKING - IF YOU WANT TO DOUBLE CHECK - TAKE THE WHOLE BATTERY OUT AND REPEAT THE TEST.
Then the problem lies between the Bios and the OS.
In my case out of 5 Led's only 3 light up - so i defenetely need a new battery.
SIMPLE WAY TO CHECK, -- CHARGE YOUR BATTERY - CLOSE THE LID - LOOK AT THE BATTERY LEDS'S AND PRESS AND HOLD THE TEST BUTTON ( This button is flush against the battery but it is a battery icon inside a cirlcle it may be different depending on the models ) - IF ALL THE LED'S LIGHT UP - ALL YOUR CELLS ARE WORKING - IF YOU WANT TO DOUBLE CHECK - TAKE THE WHOLE BATTERY OUT AND REPEAT THE TEST.
Then the problem lies between the Bios and the OS.
In my case out of 5 Led's only 3 light up - so i defenetely need a new battery.
1) Adjust all setting in your power scheme to minimize actions when the battery is low. (turn off all sleep or hibernate commands and reduce all warnings to 0 or 1 minute).
2) Run the following command:
To change the 'Battery->Critical battery action->'On battery' setting to "Do nothing" using powercfg.exe
1. activate the power scheme you want to modify.
2. open an elevated command console (windows key, type 'cmd' in start menu, press "ctrl+shift+enter", click 'continue')
3. execute "powercfg -setdcvalueindex SCHEME_CURRENT SUB_BATTERY BATACTIONCRIT 0"
4. your current power scheme will show "Battery->Critical battery action->On battery: Do nothing" despite the option being unavailable in the drop box.
3) Run your laptop until it dies...your pc will fully crash. Then fully recharge and run until it dies again.
This will recalibrate your battery. Because Windows 7 automatically shuts down your PC when it thinks the battery is low, it never recalibrates. You have to stop if from sleeping or hibernating all together to get the battery to recalibrate. I went from 66% battery wear to 0.0% overnight.
- by jzaremski July 10, 2010 6:48 PM PDT
- It would be great to see journalists such as yourself follow up on this issue. The posts to Micrsoft's Technet show the issue persists and many users note that there has not been a fix from Microsoft.
- Like this Reply to this comment
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(22 Comments)One of the reported issues seems to be that Windows 7 incorrectly reports the battery's "designed capacity" as some amount higher than its true designed capacity.
It seems that error causes the system to shut down early because Windows 7 thinks that the battery has already been substantially drained because it is assuming a higher design capacity than is correct.
Many users say that they did not have this problem before upgrading from either XP or Vista to Windows 7.