CMOS battery lasts only 6-9 months

May 02, 2008 11 Replies
R

The original CMOS battery in my laptop - a 2032 lithium coin cell - lasted 5 years. Since then the various replacements seem to last only 6 to 9 months. The laptop power battery gave up after 18 months and was removed from the laptop perhaps 3 years ago, so I don't think the relatively short life of the CMOS battery is due to the absence of the main battery.



I intend to solder an extra CMOS battery in parallel and in an accessible location, so I don't have to deep strip every time.



I'm guessing the short life is down to brand and, if so, does anyone have any recommendations for the best make of coin-cell batteries?



Many thanks



Martin



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E

Where are you buying them from ?

Graham

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G

I still smile at my naiveness at buying a whole bunch of "Duracell" AA's for a pound at one of those pound shops before going travelling in India. When my Maglite eventually needed a change of batteries, I discovered that every one was as flat as a fart.

Gareth.

Gareth.

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N

Agreed,

My wife's watch battery failed after 2 years. Thought I'd be clever by buying a set of 12 batteries on eBay for the same price as a branded one.

The generics lasted a month each.

Gave up after I had replaced 3 and just bought a proper branded battery (Maxcell in this case) still going strong 1 year later.

Cheers,

Nigel

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R

Fake chinese duracells are rife on market stalls here

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G

This made me laugh:

formatting link

Gareth.

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P

I didn't know there were charging for Tibets... How much are they?

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R

Hi, One I got from Asda (UK), another I got from Wilkinsons - well known brand - the other 2 I think from watch repair shops. That said, all the time I'd been looking for Maxell. Certainly, this time I'm not going to be fobbed off with "this is the best on the market" s**te. I'll search high and low till I find Maxell, after all, that was fitted as original.

Thanks

Martin

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B

It is fairly common for the leakage current to increase over time ! A microamp-meter in series with the battery will show you what the leakage level is. Don't do this with the machine plugged in ! In fact unplug the power lead to make sure.

Best Regards: Baron.
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