Microsoft faces Windows 7 battery problems
Microsoft officials recently confirmed that they are looking into reports of radically shortened battery life on some laptops after installing Windows 7.
Users reported on Microsoft TechNet that their batteries were working just fine with Windows XP and/or Windows Vista. However, on Windows 7, the users are confronted with a warning message saying, “Consider replacing your battery. There is a problem with your battery, so your computer might shut down suddenly.”
“We are investigating this issue in conjunction with our hardware partners, which appears to be related to system firmware (BIOS),” a Microsoft spokeswoman said, referring to the firmware that boots the PC and initializes the hardware components. “The warning received in Windows 7 uses firmware information to determine if battery replacement is needed.”
Although some users have agreed with Microsoft, saying that the warning messages are spurious, some others however, believe that Windows 7 has ruined their batteries for life.
There are some indications that the issue could potentially affect many, though. Interestingly a Google search for the error message “consider replacing your battery” found nearly 73,000 entries.
How big the problem has become is unclear at this time. The TechNet forum dedicated to Windows client issues had 100 posts during January alone. The thread has managed to garner some 350 posts over the last eight months, about half of which were posted over the last month or so. The only official answer was posted and approved by a Microsoft moderator in June: “Windows 7 has had issues identifying certain batteries, as you can easily see searching the forum,” wrote Adam M, Microsoft Certified Professional. “Due to such prevalence, it is safe to say the issue will be addressed. Thank you for reporting your troubles on the forums.”
Windows 7 was supposed to extend battery life on notebooks, and in almost every case it certainly has. Nevertheless, there are always a few users who have issues. Microsoft’s stance is that the root cause of the issue is related to specific system firmware, meaning it only affects machines with certain BIOS releases.
-Abhinaav Singh
