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<div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false">Many of the users of Thinkpads want to use older models, and there are many users.</div><div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false"><br></div><div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false">Quite a few of the older Thinkpads used cylindrical cells - like 18650s. Some older and many newer don't, but those are usually very thin and might benefit from a Thinkpad-sized flat external battery pack - there are some on the market now.</div><div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false"><br></div><div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false">For us with older Thinkpads, I wonder about a case that permits user replacement of the cells... a business opportunity.</div><div><br></div>
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On Wednesday, 20 April 2022, 05:50:12 am AWST, Stefan Monnier <monnier@iro.umontreal.ca> wrote:
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<div><div dir="ltr">> The shop cuts open the plastic battery case, solders/welds<br></div><div dir="ltr">> replacement cells to the original circuit board, then<br></div><div dir="ltr">> seamlessly repairs the cut. The battery looks "original"<br></div><div dir="ltr">> to X-Ray and visual inspection, so that airport security<br></div><div dir="ltr">> doesn't complain when you fly with your Thinkpad.<br></div><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div dir="ltr">I think it's generally called "battery refill".<br></div><div dir="ltr">An Internet search for "laptop battery refill" turns up a small number<br></div><div dir="ltr">of candidates.<br></div><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div dir="ltr">> Perhaps one of you already knows of such a source.<br></div><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div dir="ltr">I've used such a service here in Canada some years ago for a battery for<br></div><div dir="ltr">my thinkpad X30 (and it worked great), but they stopped offering<br></div><div dir="ltr">the service.<br></div><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div dir="ltr">IIUC the problem is a mix of various problems:<br></div><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div dir="ltr">- It's a dying market (with batteries getting less and less standard and<br></div><div dir="ltr"> harder and harder to take out and replace).<br></div><div dir="ltr">- It was not cost-competitive: lots of expensive (and somewhat<br></div><div dir="ltr"> dangerous) manual work by skilled individuals.<br></div><div dir="ltr">- It was not reliable: apparently in many cases the battery's charging<br></div><div dir="ltr"> controller IC refused to work with the new cells.<br></div><div dir="ltr">- It was based on "send your battery and we'll return it refilled" which<br></div><div dir="ltr"> means spending several days without your battery.<br></div><div dir="ltr"> In practice that meant that I first bought a second battery and only<br></div><div dir="ltr"> when that second battery seemed to get near its end of life did<br></div><div dir="ltr"> I send my first for a refill. Of all the users of laptops, there are<br></div><div dir="ltr"> sadly few who keep them long enough to need a third battery.<br></div><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div dir="ltr">It's hard to make a living in those conditions.<br></div><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div dir="ltr">:-(<br></div><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div dir="ltr">-- Stefan<br></div><div dir="ltr"><br></div><div dir="ltr">-- <br></div><div dir="ltr">The linux-thinkpad mailing list home page is at:<br></div><div dir="ltr"><a href="http://mailman.linux-thinkpad.org/mailman/listinfo/linux-thinkpad" target="_blank">http://mailman.linux-thinkpad.org/mailman/listinfo/linux-thinkpad</a></div></div>
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