Power Meter Settings for Laptops

Power meter settings allow you to change how much power your laptop computer uses, whether it operates on electricity or a battery. The settings are useful to conserve battery life, and they affect processor speed and screen brightness.

Electrical Outlet Operation

When a laptop is plugged into an electrical outlet, changing its power meter settings to use as much power as possible results in the computer's best performance. You don't need to conserve battery life while the laptop operates on electricity.

Battery Operation

You have two options when the laptop operates on its battery. The first option is to keep the power meter settings the same as if the laptop were plugged into an electrical outlet to gain maximum performance, which results in a shorter battery lifespan. The second option is to alter the power meter settings so the laptop uses less power than normal, which increases the battery's lifespan. The latter option, however, causes the laptop to run slower than normal, and its screen may not be as bright.

Low-Power Alarms

Most laptops have alarms that can be enabled in the power meter settings to tell you when the computer is low on power while running on a battery. The alarms allow you to save what you are working on and avoid data loss if the power runs out.

References

• Microsoft, Windows: What's New in Managing Power Settings
• Microsoft, Microsoft at Work: Strategies for Conserving Battery Power