I love my laptop (it’s a Toshiba Satellite A75-S2112), but the battery only lasts two hours when I’m on the road. And every time I try to search for alternate batteries it doesn’t really say how long they’ll last.
I could carry around a spare I suppose, but my question is: Can I buy a totally new battery in a, for example, 4-hour, 6-hour, 8-hour increment? Or does it not work that way?
It doesn’t really work that way. The major problem is a battery with more life will most likely be bigger. So, it won’t fit into your existing battery bay. The battery components are limited by the technology we know today and are a fairly consistent size. Maybe when a new technology comes out they will make it retrofitable. Some laptops do have extra batterys that attach to the bottom or that trade out with your CD/DVD drive.
You might simply get a new battery of the same type you already have. Some types of computers batteries hold a charge for less and less time as they are charged and discharged.
Depending on where your battery bay is, this may be possible. My Dell Latitude X300 has its battery bay on the bottom-rear edge, and anyone who flew coast-to-coast once a month got the “extra tank” from our office. Dell makes a double-deep battery for the Latitude that boosts its battery life from 2ish to 6ish (!) hours. Combine that with a processor-stepping software program, and I can last for the entire flight to LA.
The battery bay is on the bottom-front (meaning closest to me when I’m using it). It runs the entire length, from left to right, of the laptop. But based on what you guys are saying, I’ll probably have to just buy another battery of the same size and carry it as a spare.
Not necessarily. He might be able to find a higher-capacity battery within the same form factor.
I have an ancient Dell Latitude and can buy the standard 3800mAh batteries for it, or I can spring a few extra bucks and get an “extended life” 4460mAh battery if I chose to.
I’ve bought several laptop batteries for myself and for clients from http://www.pacificbattery.com/
DISCLAIMER: Aside from being a satisfied customer, I have no connection with those folks.
All modern laptop batteries are made of smaller cells wired together. Just as there are a variety of capacities in rechargable NiMh and LIon AA cells for consumer electronics, there are a number of choices for the cells that go into a laptop battery. You are not generally limited to OEM capacity batteries. For example, OWC sells batteries for Apple laptops with 50% greater capacity. It is not unheard of to take apart and re-build an old battery with larger capacity cells as demonstrated on this thread. Though these links pertain to Apple hardware, there are sources for extended life batteries or component cells for most laptops. Keep in mind that laptop batteries usually have additional components that give the computer information about charge state, and the machine may not work or be able to take advantage of additional capacity if these components are not functioning or if firmware/software parameters are not properly (re)set.
You can get an universal battery (Google for it). The good ones are quite pricey, though; $400 and upwards.
I did qualify that by stating newer battery technology (hopefully smaller) may be retrofitable. If you had an ancient laptop you probably upgraded from an obsolete battery technology to a current one.
The Toshiba he has already has Lithium Ion batteries. That is the best value, smallest, longest lasting batteries on the market right now. There are some newer technologies and enhancements in the works (as always). If the OP can hang in there for awhile someone will make a retrofittable battery for it that will last longer.