Laptop battery charge indicator program. Battery Mode – battery indicator and advanced power management for Windows devices
Why is the battery light blinking on my laptop?
Often inexperienced users The question arises as to why the battery indicator on a laptop is blinking. Almost all manufacturers in mandatory make battery status indicators on their models. This is necessary to inform the user about the particular state in which the battery is located. The indicators may be on, off, or flashing slowly or rapidly. Each such state indicates a certain state of the battery. Unfortunately, these LED signals on laptops can vary depending on the manufacturer and even the model. Because of this, confusion arises and it is difficult for an untrained person to understand why the battery light on his laptop is blinking.
As already mentioned, most laptop models different manufacturers have indicators that work in different states. Depending on condition battery The indicator can be on, off, slow or fast flashing. The display may vary depending on whether the laptop is connected to electrical network or is in offline mode.
On most models, a green, purple or blue indicator light indicates that the battery has a full charge. On many models, manufacturers separately provide a laptop charging indicator, which shows that the charging process is in progress. Typically flashing green, purple, orange or blue colors indicator.
As a rule, if the battery indicator is green, purple or blue, then the battery is working. It doesn’t matter whether the indicator blinks or not. If the color is orange, then in most cases this indicates that the battery is being charged.
Laptop manufacturers most often make the battery indicator flash to inform the user that the battery is low. When the battery charge drops below a certain limit, the indicator flashes red or orange until it is connected to the network. There's nothing to worry about, the battery just needs to be charged.
But if the laptop battery indicator continues to blink red or orange when connected to the power supply, this may indicate problems. In this case, the fault may be hidden both in the power supply and in the laptop battery. There may be problems with correct operation the indicator itself. In some cases the indicator may remain red or orange and after connecting to charging. It turns off only after reaching a certain battery level.
Laptop battery indicator in Windows. Red X on the battery icon.
If you have difficulty determining the battery status using the indicator, you can look at the battery data in Windows.
The battery indicator is located in the system tray on the taskbar. If the icon displays an electrical plug, then at this moment the laptop is connected to the network via the power supply and the battery is in the process of charging (or fully charged). If you hold the cursor over the battery indicator in the taskbar, Windows will display information about the current charge level.
If you click on the battery icon, more detailed information will be displayed.
When connected to the network, an electrical plug appears next to the battery icon.
If electrical plug no, but the laptop is connected to the network, this indicates problems with the battery or power supply.
When the battery is discharged to a certain level, Windows will display a message about the need to charge and add it to the battery icon exclamation mark in the yellow triangle.
If Windows diagnoses battery problems or a critical charge level, the battery icon will have a red cross on it.
If you need to see more detailed information about the state of the laptop battery, then go to the corresponding section in the panel Windows management.
Start menu -> Control Panel -> Power Options. There you can select a power saving plan, set the actions of the power buttons, etc.
The Battery Mode program is a small free utility, which is an alternative to the battery indicator as part of the standard Windows arsenal. The program developers call their brainchild a tool for advanced power management. Let's take a closer look at the possibilities Battery programs Mode.
You can download Battery Mode for free on the developer’s official website. The program is presented in 32- and 64-bit editions.
Battery Mode does not have a traditional system installation process. The downloaded archive with the program must be unpacked.
And in the unpacked folder, run the file “BatteryMode32” or “BatteryMode64”.
Standard Windows 10 battery indicator
Before we begin reviewing the capabilities of the Battery Mode program, for comparison, let's first look at the standard battery charge indicator included in Windows 10. It is located in the system tray, and when you click on its icon, the remaining battery charge is shown as a percentage and the remaining operating time of the laptop or tablet.
In the battery indicator window itself, you can set the desired percentage of screen brightness and enable battery saving mode. Options in the context menu called up on the indicator will lead to brightness settings, power settings in the Windows Control Panel, or Mobility Center.
Adjusting screen brightness and battery saving mode separate buttons also available at the Center Windows notifications 10.
This, in fact, is the full potential of the standard Windows indicator.
Battery Mode functionality
After launching Battery Mode, another battery charge indicator will appear in the Windows system tray. It will differ from the system indicator by a colored icon. This color corresponds to the selected power supply scheme: green – energy saving, yellow – balanced scheme, red – high performance.
By clicking on the Battery Mode icon, we will see, as in the standard indicator window, the remaining battery life and charge percentage. Like the standard Windows indicator, the Battery Mode indicator offers quick access to adjusting the screen brightness, only not in a set percentage, but in the form of a slider for setting a free value. But what the standard Windows indicator does not have is quick access to changing power supply schemes. Whereas such access is placed directly in the Battery Mode indicator window. Thus, you can constantly switch to the desired power supply depending on the tasks performed on the laptop or tablet.
We will get more options in the context menu called up on the Battery Mode icon. You can assign a program to autorun along with Windows. You can change the style of the icons or use single-color ones.
To quickly switch power supply schemes, hot keys are available with the ability to assign your own combinations.
Along with quick access to changing power supply schemes, the following two functions are the main features of the program, due to which you can abandon the standard Windows indicator in favor of the Battery Mode indicator.
“Information about the power supply system” – this item context menu calls up a summary technical characteristics batteries, where, in particular, you can see the degree of wear and tear.
Battery Mode provides a scheduler function for custom installation conditions for automatic transition of a laptop or tablet to a specific power supply scheme. You can add rules to the scheduler - power supply conditions and actions applied to these conditionals.
For a certain battery charge, in the presence or absence of power from the mains, you can schedule the appearance of a custom message or automatic transition to another power supply scheme.
Have a great day!
The laptop battery is designed to last for several hours without being connected to the network. The standard resource is 100 charges and discharges, and it does not matter whether the resource consumption was partial or complete. The battery heating is controlled by a thermistor (temperature sensor).
Indicator functions
The battery charge is displayed in the notification area in the lower right corner. In Windows 7, it is possible to select a convenient power management scheme through the battery indicator or disable this icon through the “Properties” menu. Through the same menu you can return it back.
The battery charge indicator shows the current charge status in percentage and notifies you of the remaining battery life. Time display on indicators is not always accurate. It can change dramatically with different RAM and processor load. Beep will warn you if the laptop battery is low.
When plugged into a power outlet, a picture of a power plug appears in the tray and the current charge level is reported as a percentage.
Power Management Schemes
Saving battery power is possible by selecting one of the specified schemes:
1. Energy saving - reduces the performance and brightness of the PC during operation.
2. Balanced – maintains battery charge level during idle time.
Some PCs have a special driver to optimize battery performance. Sometimes it does not function correctly, in particular on Lenovo laptops. The battery is charged halfway and the process stops. The lock can only be removed by manually changing the parameters.
Reduced energy consumption
The savings will become noticeable if you disable unused programs, wireless communication, ports, reduce the sound level, remove unused USB devices.
You can save battery power by lowering the brightness and using simple analogues instead of powerful utilities.
It is better to choose sleep mode instead of standby mode.
It is not recommended to place the laptop on a sofa, armchair, etc. This way it cools worse, and extreme temperatures rapidly reduce the laptop’s battery charge.
To prevent the battery from deteriorating...
After fully charged you need to disconnect the laptop from the network and do not charge it again until complete discharge. Periodically, a completely discharged battery should be removed and the metal contacts wiped with a soft cloth lightly moistened with alcohol.
Control widgets
Battery monitoring is possible through applications that can be downloaded for Windows 7. Widgets like Hud Launch Battery, Laptop Gauges, Battery Meter are easy to download for free. The Computer Status gadget has a similar principle of operation, which shows full information about the PC status.
To ensure that your laptop doesn't run out of juice when you're running offline, you need to constantly monitor the battery level. This can be done using the built-in Windows tools or through special utilities.
Checking the charge level
To find out the battery charge, just look at the notification area. There should be an icon that demonstrates the status and operating mode - standalone or networked. But if it's simple, why do users wonder where to look for information about charging a laptop?
Sometimes the taskbar icon disappears. It can be returned through the control panel, but there are other ways to find out the charge level. For example, on Windows 10, you can go to the “System” section in Settings and go to the “Battery Saver” tab. At the top you will see the level and approximately the remaining time. 
By clicking the Battery Usage link, you'll be able to see which apps are consuming the most power. 
You can monitor the battery status and time battery life by using special utilities– BatteryCare, Battery Optimizer, Battery Eater Pro, etc. These programs allow you to optimize the performance of your laptop, showing battery life when different settings. In addition, some manufacturers build into laptops proprietary utilities, controlling the operation of the battery. For example, on Lenovo laptops The Energy Management program is responsible for power management, through which you can also find out the battery status.
Returning the charge icon
If the laptop battery icon has disappeared from the notification panel, you can quickly get it back by adjusting the display system icons. On Windows 8 and 7:
If the laptop has Windows 10, the procedure is performed differently:
View battery capacity
If your laptop's battery level drops sharply and you are running out of battery life, check the battery capacity. Capacity decreases over time, so even if the notification area icon shows 100% battery level, the battery may actually be charged at 50 percent of its original capacity. Why is this happening? This is due to the wear and tear of the laptop battery, which needs to be changed promptly.
To find out the battery capacity of a laptop, use the Windows command line:
- Run command line with administrator rights.
- Run "powercfg -energy".
- Wait for the diagnostics to complete and the report to be generated.
Another way to find out the degree of battery wear is to view it using the AIDA64 program. This diagnostic utility shows the status of all laptop components, including battery capacity and charge. Therefore, even if the battery icon disappears, you can view the charge level in AIDA64.
AIDA64 offers free demo access for 30 days. After this period, you must purchase a license or stop using the utility.
Setting up the power supply
If it is not possible to replace the battery, and the battery life urgently needs to be increased, then try to optimize the operation of the computer by adjusting the power supply. You can do this through the control panel:
On Windows 10 there are even more customization options. On the “Battery Saver” tab in the “System” section Windows settings you can enable the function of the same name (available only when running on battery power). 