If you think your laptop battery runs out quicker than it used to - you could be right.
New research from one of the UK’s top watchdogs has found that the battery life claimed by laptop manufacturers often falls drastically short.
Big brands such as HP, Dell and Lenovo are all affected, however anyone with an Apple MacBook could be in luck.
The news comes from new research carried out by Which?, which tested 67 models across seven major laptop makers.
The report found that most brands were overestimating battery life by hours rather than minutes, with some overstating by 50 per cent or more.
Among the worst offenders were the Dell Inspiron 15 5000, which claimed to have seven hours of battery, but under Which? tests showed only three hours 58 minutes.
The HP Pavilion 14-al115na promised nine hours of battery, but only gave four hours 25 minutes, with the Lenovo Yoga 510 only living for two hours seven minutes instead of the promised five hours.
However there was better news for Apple fans, with the company’s devices performing rather well in the tests.
The Apple MacBook Pro 13 claimed to only have a 10-hour battery life, but Which? tests found it actually gave out 12 hours.
Which? tested the laptop with a number of everyday tests, including continually browsing the web on a Wi-Fi connection and watching films, until the battery was fully drained.
Of course, the amount of battery life you get from any device is reliant on what exactly you are using it for.
Several of the companies mentioned in the report have hit back against Which?’s findings, claiming that providing accurate battery life estimates is often extremely challenging.
Dell said, “It’s difficult to give a specific battery life expectation that will directly correlate to all customer usage behaviours because every individual uses their PC differently – it’s similar to how different people driving the same car will get different gas mileage depending on how they drive.”
Overall, Which? suggests always doing extra research before you buy a laptop and find yourself feeling short-changed.
“It’s vital to look past manufacturer claims and dig a little deeper to find out what kind of battery life you can really expect from your laptop,” the site said.
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