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JakeRich · 03-18-03, 09:34 AM

Actually, the circuit is reporting accurately, but with too high sensitivity. A 0.01v drop from 3.00v is reported as an 80% level battery. That small change can come from temperature changes alone. When you soft reset the machine and the temperature has changed again, the battery looks like it goes back up. The threshold for these changes is right at 3.00 volts, which is the nominal voltage on the backup battery Dell sends out. If you get a fresh one ($3 at RadioShack), it is actually slightly above 3.00 v and the gauge never drops below 100%, even if the temperature fluctuates. Basically don't worry about it unless it drops below 70% and stays there. (Or get a new one from RS and eliminate the phenomenon.)

03-18-03, 09:34 AM	#6 (permalink)
JakeRich Aximsite Hall of Fame Join Date: Nov 2003 Posts: 7,878 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	Actually, the circuit is reporting accurately, but with too high sensitivity. A 0.01v drop from 3.00v is reported as an 80% level battery. That small change can come from temperature changes alone. When you soft reset the machine and the temperature has changed again, the battery looks like it goes back up. The threshold for these changes is right at 3.00 volts, which is the nominal voltage on the backup battery Dell sends out. If you get a fresh one ($3 at RadioShack), it is actually slightly above 3.00 v and the gauge never drops below 100%, even if the temperature fluctuates. Basically don't worry about it unless it drops below 70% and stays there. (Or get a new one from RS and eliminate the phenomenon.)