Alex Zaharov-Reutt
Tuesday, 23 December 2008 13:46
Opinion and Analysis
Page 1 of 2
Faulty third-party battery testing software is at the root of claims
that Dell is shipping a 3-cell, 24Wh battery in its Dell Mini 9
netbooks, says Dell, which claims it has always shipped a 4-cell 32Wh
battery – as advertised.
A firestorm has erupted over Dell batteries – and this time, they aren’t over the explosive variety. No, it appears the “battery scandal” is as much BS as it is an acronym for “battery scandal”.
Instead, there are claims (see this link
at Slashgear) that third party testing software has uncovered that the 32Wh 4-cell battery, manufactured in Korea and assembled in China, was actually a 3-cell 24Wh battery instead.
This supposed revelation has sparked outrage in netbook circles across the Internet, but according to Dell, third party battery testing software is at fault, and is giving people both the wrong idea, and the wrong information.
The simple reason for concern is that a lower power battery means less hours of battery life, with Dell promising 4 hours of life for the Mini 9, something that most Dell Mini 9 users concur with.
Indeed, given Windows 7’s ability to eke out more battery life, this will hopefully soon increase once hoards of netbook users upgrade to the Windows 7 beta from the currently installed Windows XP, although Mini 9 users with Linux probably aren’t terribly strong candidates for a Win 7 upgrade – especially if they’re unlucky enough to be lumbered with a 4GB SSD.
The Dell Mini 9 netbook I’m currently testing has a luxurious 16GB SSD, and once the Windows 7 pre-beta is installed, approximately 8GB is left free, which is quite lovely.
So, what has Dell stated in response to this storm in a netbook battery bay?
It’s all over on page 2... please read on.
