Power for Days!!
by Gary Woods

The biggest problem with notebook computers is battery life. The solution that manufacturers usually come up with to extend the life of the battery is to reduce the speed or configuration of the CPU. (Central Processing Unit) The slower chip means not as much heat, which means you don't have to keep the fan running all the time, which when you add it all up means pretty sluggish performance.

Being a certified member of the "if it ain't fast, it ain't nothin" club I've got a notebook with a 3.2 Gig Pentium 4 CPU, 1 Gig of RAM and a 7200 RPM 60 gig hard drive. All this means that it's really fast, but sucks the life out of the battery in about an hour.

A solution I found is called the PowerPad by Electrovaya http://www.electrovaya.com. The PowerPad is a rugged battery filled with super-polymer lithium ion. The unit stays cool to the touch even after hours of runtime, which means you can set your hot laptop on your lap and keep working.

The 120 model PowerPad measures 8.75" X 11.75" and is 3/8" thick. Since most notebook users tote around carrying cases with internal file folder divisions the PowerPad simply stores in one of those divisions.

There are three models the 80 ($249) the 120 ($299) and the 160 ($449). The 120 model will charge from empty to 80% in 3 hours and gives the user 12 hours of runtime.

If you have any suggestions or questions for me please drop me a note at garyandlaury@santabarbaraproperties.com or see my column on the Internet at http://www.santabarbaraproperties.com or call me at (805) 729-0910