making the most of the battery

[auinabq]

First time poster. Got my sp2 yesterday and after a bumpy start am using it. It was a bit of a stressful purchase. I'm not an early adopter by any means. One of the reasons I made the move was my old laptop is an XP one!

One of my big worries is the battery and potential cost of replacement. I'd like to put that off as long as possible! I've done some searching to learn as much as I can about these batteries but have some questions.
1. When plugged in, does the computer run on the battery or the power source? OR when plugged in is it simply charging the battery? Would keeping it plugged in as much as possible when using extend some of the battery life?

I've read to do the following, as well:
Let it run below 10% once a month.
Try to only let it charge to about 80%

Anything else? TIA.

 

[Wayne Orwig]

First time poster. Got my sp2 yesterday and after a bumpy start am using it. It was a bit of a stressful purchase. I'm not an early adopter by any means. One of the reasons I made the move was my old laptop is an XP one!

One of my big worries is the battery and potential cost of replacement. I'd like to put that off as long as possible! I've done some searching to learn as much as I can about these batteries but have some questions.
1. When plugged in, does the computer run on the battery or the power source? OR when plugged in is it simply charging the battery? Would keeping it plugged in as much as possible when using extend some of the battery life?

I've read to do the following, as well:
Let it run below 10% once a month.
Try to only let it charge to about 80%

Anything else? TIA.

When plugged in, it runs off of the power supply AND charges the battery.

Heat damages the battery, don't store in in a hot car. Let as much air cool the tablet as you can when in use.
Leave it plugged in and running of the power supply as much as possible.
Do NOT intentionally deep cycle the battery. The only exception is that an occasional deep cycle can help calibrate the power meter.

I only deep cycle my SP1 every three months or so and I keep in at basically 100% charge all of the time, except for the occasion that I truly need it portable and stand alone.

 

[auinabq]

Thank you so much. I'll try to leave it charging as much as I can.

What's the deal with charging to 80%? Is that before you take it out for an all day endeavor?

 

[Wayne Orwig]

Thank you so much. I'll try to leave it charging as much as I can.

What's the deal with charging to 80%? Is that before you take it out for an all day endeavor?

Don't have any clue why anyone would say that.
BUT.
Technically, the batteries will last a bit longer if they are kept cool, and around 50% charge. So someone that is OCD, may try to not charge to 100%. It really isn't practical to do that AND be useful.
For practical reasons it is better to just go to full charge and leave it there, ready to use.

 

[javispedro]

The Surface Pro doesn't allow the two things that would allow most maximization of battery life, which are:
- Removing it (to store it somewhere cool at 50% charge)
- Running the device from the charger while not charging the battery (since it's not going to be stored cool, at least keep it at 50%)

Personally I'd suggest that we add some pressure on MS to offer a cheaper battery replacement plan