A bad design for T420s--a rubber foot on the battery!

It has 4 rubber feet, on on each corner. but ..... one is on the battery....

So I you remove the battery, the computer has no rubber foot at the bottom-right corner... When you put your right hand on the palm rest, the computer becomes very unstable...

 

"the laptop isn't designed to be used without a battery" excuse incoming in 3...2..

 

I don't call that an excuse --just the truth.

I still don't understand the logic behind wishing to use a ThinkPad without the battery installed. If one is that concerned about charge thresholds, ThinkVantage Power Manager can be used to control that.

 

i can understand why people would want to take out their battery if they want to have an extended usage via ac adapter they would want to prolong their battery life by taking out the battery... i guess the only way for t420s users is to set the battery charge setting through the lenovo power management software and leave the battery in the system at all times..

 

If you're using ThinkVantage Power Manager to adjust your charge thresholds, how are you diminishing the life of your battery by leaving it in your notebook? The battery won't charge until it drops below your user-defined percentage, and will charge back up only to the percentage you specify.

Most people keep it installed on their ThinkPad since it performs a lot of other valuable functions to maximize runtime.

 

True, but generally speaking, heat is bad for a battery's lifespan, so if a laptop is staying at the desk, it is sometimes advisable to remove it. I run my T500 without the 9-cell battery.

My X120e has the rear two legs on the battery--I would prefer that they weren't, but with charge thresholds, it's not too much of an issue for me. I've just left the battery in my X120e since I got it. This sort of design is very typical--a huge number of laptops have one or two feet on the battery.

 

Sorry but the T420s doesn't get hot under typical information worker roles and usage. I have to agree with the other folks here, leave the darn battery in.

Having said that, I also agree with the original poster. The rubber pads should be on the main chassis.

 

That's what I hated about my old Dell E1705. It's a terrible design decision IMHO. I'm very thankful my T410 does not have this "feature". TBH, it's one of the main things I look at when considering a new system.

 

Neither does my T500, but in either case, there's no point arguing that a desk drawer would be a cooler environment. Besides, when gaming, both the T500 and T420s will get reasonably warm. Your choice whether or not to remove the battery, though: obviously, it's not a necessity.

On that point, agreed.

 

I have had my 9 cell battery in my T500 for all the time during the 2.5 years I had it. I mostly use the system on AC. I have battery thresholds sets. Even if I did not use the battery at all during a given period (AC all the time) I still discharged and charged the battery about maybe once per month.

So, after 2.5 years I have 3% battery wear. So I am not really concerned about the battery being inside the notebook all the time.

And this way I don't risk losing my work if the power/circuit braker goes

 

In all my years of owning a notebook I have never contemplated disabling the built-in UPS.

Also, my experience of the past 3 years is that notebook and battery manfacturers seem to have understood what kills the batteries and have implemented measures to improve their longevity. My Dell E6400's battery had only about 10% wear when I sold the notebook after two years. In that time the battery had innumerable partial discharges but not so many which took it near to empty. I would hope that my T420s battery will do no worse.

As for heat, the under-palm rest location keeps the battery cool. It's at the opposite corner to the CPU and cooler than a cell phone kept in a pocket.

I also note that Lenovo isn't aggressive in the battery charging. I see a maximum of about 26W (irrespective of whether a 65W or 90W PSU is being used). Fast charging = more heat.

John

 

I guess I will just hope the battery compartment doesn't get very hot when the computer is working...

 

It won't get much above ambient temperature - there are no other heat-generating components in the vicinity. The battery itself may heat a little during charging but the flat shape will help the dissipation.

John