[Burakku Kenshi]

So I let my mother use my laptop for like two days. Turns out she has left it plugged in the whole time. My battery now lasts roughly 30 minutes down from ~5 hours 😭. Is there any way to fix it or do I need to buy a new battery. I know they're pretty cheap, around $10-15 but I just moved and i'm still looking for a job here.

[Freebooter]

Leaving laptop plugged in does not cause any harm to battery make sure to discharge the battery completely and recharge it back this should resolve the problem if not then see if power plan is set to Power Saver if its then the battery is not holding the charge need to be replace. Follow battery troubleshot steps at below URL link.

"How to Fix a Laptop that is not Charging"
http://www.wikihow.com/Fix-a-Laptop-that...t-Charging

[TheGrayAviator]

If you've recycled the battery a couple of times and its not holding its charge, it may as well be the battery that's faulty.

[Burakku Kenshi]

I think both of you are wrong. I have had quite a few laptops and after a while if you leave it plugged in too long it will start to kill off the battery cells I think. I mean I have always ended up buying new batteries because they wouldn't hold a charge after a while.

[TheGrayAviator]

I think both of you are wrong. I have had quite a few laptops and after a while if you leave it plugged in too long it will start to kill off the battery cells I think. I mean I have always ended up buying new batteries because they wouldn't hold a charge after a while.

No, I am not wrong. Its common sense, if your battery is not holding its charge, one of its cells may be damaged, as result, the battery will not be able to hold its charge.

[GrayPanther]

He's not wrong, you can let a battery plugged in if you are careful.
First you need to let it discharge to 10~15% about once a month and then let it fully charge with your computer off.
You also need to make sure it doesn't get too hot.

So your mom letting your computer with battery on for 2 days has probably nothing to do with it. But hey, you never know with computing.

I've read somewhere, that if the laptop is always on power, the battery should be disconnected to help prolong its life. Also like you mentioned, if the battery is always hot that can lead to a shorter life span as well.

[Freebooter]

I think both of you are wrong. I have had quite a few laptops and after a while if you leave it plugged in too long it will start to kill off the battery cells I think. I mean I have always ended up buying new batteries because they wouldn't hold a charge after a while.

Having a battery fully charged and the laptop plugged in is not harmful, because as soon as the charge level reaches 100% the battery stops receiving charging energy and this energy is bypassed directly to the power supply system of the laptop. However there's a disadvantage in keeping the battery in its socket when the laptop is plugged in, but only if it's currently suffering from excessive heating caused by the laptop hardware. The heat, among the fact that it has 100% of charge, is the great enemy of the lithium battery and not the plug, as many might think so.

[FluffyMcFluff]

Also don't use huge tasks the whole time such as games drains it alot