Advice for choosing a replacement battery

Hi there,

interestingly, just these days I'm labouring with the very same question. I had to replace the battery for my inspiron e1405 and bought a battery on ebay from wholesalelaptopparts. I would never touch anything from them again. After 4 months the battery lasted a mere 20 minutes (it's a 9 cell battery), a month later I cannot charge it higher than 5 %. If I'll buy a non-OEM battery again, then definitely with a 12-months or 18-months warranty, as some do. Good luck!

All the websites I checked do offer a one-year warranty.  I'm trying to figure out if that should set my mind at ease.  Anyone have a reassuring story about buying an after-market battery that lasted at least as long as the original?

Do a lot of homework on this one. Many sellers out there sell REFURBISHED batterys, used units that they run through a reconditioning process. They may or may not last long. You may find out thaqt any warranty from these guys is worthless. Some sellers tell you the batteries are reconditioned, but many don't. Some sell both new and used units, with a large difference in price.

Some new batteries may be new, but may also use old cells. Many people have problems with Dell compatible batteries which are NOT Dell batteries. They look the same, but..... There are many complaints that these batteries do not work because the laptop can't determine what battery is installed, and won't allow the battery to charge. Others may not have the control circuity in the battery that controls the charge, and either won''t charge or overcharge.

I would try to buy one from a known good supplier such as Newegg, although the warranty will still be by the distgributer/manufacturer.

 I just finished working on a womans laptop, I installed a bigger hard drive and updated windows xp with sp3. When I first got the laptop, the battery was almost dead. I plugged it in and it charged right up.

 When I finished with it, it was running great. A week later she calls up and is saying that the laptop won't do anything. I then find out for some reason she had purchased a rayovac battery and put it in herself. Or had someone else do it.

 So now I have her laptop back and am trying to figure out why it won't do anything. The new battery is not an exact match. I think she might have fried the mother board. Just because it fits in the hole doesn't mean it is for your unit. The volts are the some but the dell is 3000 mah and the new one is 4000mah. I am not sure what that means. I have posted this problem on this site. I haven't any responses yet.

 I have ordered a mother board for it and I am sure I am going to get hosed on this one.

My Latitude D630 battery also stopped holding a charge very long, and I also researched on-line replacement batteries. 

IF ordering on-line, I'd try to go through highly rated 3rd party company via Amazon marketplace (or similar)...that way if  its not a perfect battery that doesn't hold up for at least a year, or the company doesn't give great customer service, Amazon (plus your credit card supplier) give you more recourse for help....BUT....

JUST before ordering on on Amazon I contacted Dell Technical Support.  Turns out my OEM battery had a 1 year warranty through Dell, and after going through a few diagnostic checks with the tech help person (used IM chat with him) he ordered a replacement battery for me, which showed up 3 days later, along with  a pre-paid return envelope for the original one.  DEFINITELY worth checking with Dell tech support to see if you qualify, particularly if your laptop is under 1 year old!  I don't like to "ask for help", but this saved me a LOT of money, and the new battery is lasting 3 1/2 hours!  The tech support service was excellent...polite, efficient, and solved the problem!

The system does not detect the battery, So, someone can help about that? What do i have to do? Thanks

Not detecting the battery means its dead.

Considerably more is because you are getting a new battery with guarantee.

There are Chinese Vendors that sell "cheap" batteries on Ebay but with battery fires et al I wouldnt trust anything but a guaranteed to work

battery from an american based company.

Duracell and APC and Eveready etc also sell replacement batteries.

http://www.duracelldirect.com/

Microcenter/Bestbuy etc have a 3rd party vendorS as well.

http://www.microcenter.com/search/search_results.phtml?keyword=dell+battery&category=

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9047248&type=product&id=1218012139544

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9049521&st=Battery+for+Dell+&type=product&id=1218012117186

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9049549&st=Battery+for+Dell+&type=product&id=1218012117115

http://www.lenmar.com/Web/BatteryFinder.aspx?MenuID=3

For UK readers, I bought a Dell badged battery for my Inspiron 6400 from laptopsandspares.com for less than half the price of the same spec battery from Dell. Six months on, it is still excellent, giving me about 5 hours of use off-mains

I have bought multiple Dell batteries from an internet retailer called ReplacementPower.com. They have a good selection (Dell Laptop Batteries) They have a one year warranty and all of their stuff is brand new. I have read in forums that eBay batteries are often refurbished and/or the exploding batteries that have made it back into the market. One bit of advice... make sure there is a phone number with a live person on the other listed somewhere on the website. More and more sellers are not displaying phone numbers and making communications impossible.

Dear Akohn:

I am in the same position.  Would love to know whether you found or someone recommended a reputable vendor for a replacment battery for your Dell laptop.  Dell wants $156 for mine, which is a rip off.  I have an Inspiron 6400.  Thanks.

Tar Heel

@Alkohn and @Tar Heel

I tried the 6 cell Amazon replacement batteries but they only rate at 4400mAh/48Wh (about 2hr of run time) and die out after a year some times sooner.  

The best discount replacement battery I have found is a brand called Max Capacity I get them as replacements for personal use and my office users and would highly recommend them.   They use some advanced cells from Panasonic that lasts about 3 years and provides longer run times.  A typical 6 cell battery rates at 6200mAh /66Wh. They work very well and last a long time.

Here is the battery store that I use to order them. http://SafeBatteries.com