PC laptop manufacturers have wrestled with the issue surrounding battery life for years, not least of which because business users keep talking about how productivity can be hampered when the juice runs out. But some new models coming out this year may finally make “all-day” battery life a reality.
Lenovo was the first to unveil one of these with the ThinkPad T420, an ultra-thin notebook weighing under four pounds. The company announced that it could stay on for up to 30 hours on one charge, provided the user had the extended battery, which is larger than the standard one. The standard one is a 9-cell battery that can go for up to 15 hours, while the extended one adds another nine cells to double the power.
Meanwhile, HP unveiled its EliteBook 8460p, which can go as high as 32 hours when you get the optional high-capacity battery. And it can stay on that long, despite a next-generation Intel Core processor and 14-inch HD display.
All that said, battery life numbers have always been inflated because they aren’t based on real usability tests, other than just turning the machine on and letting it function without so much as an app open. Hence, why it’s a bit more believable that Apple’s new MacBook Pro lineup announced last week won’t top seven hours of battery life, even at the best of times.
Still, Lenovo and HP have created business notebooks that should easily survive a full work day, and then some. Assuming the EliteBook goes a full 32 hours, that’s like flying to China and back with a little time to spare to check email.
At this point, neither manufacturer has said much of anything about when these battery life levels will be seen with consumer notebooks, but a 15-hour charge should be coming, if not this year, then almost certainly by sometime in 2012. Sub-$1,000 notebooks are already in the five-to-seven hour range, depending on the model, of course, so it’s only a matter of time.
The ThinkPad T420 and HP EliteBook 8460p will both be available in March through their respective business partners and websites. Pricing has been set at $1,399 for the T420 and (starting at) $999 for the EliteBook 8460p.
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