HP nc6140 - Notebook PC User manual

Power
Document Part Number: 396324-001
December 2005
This guide explains how the computer uses power.

Power ii
Contents
1 Power control and light locations
2 Power sources
Connecting the AC adapter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2–2
3 Standby and hibernation
Standby. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3–1
Hibernation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3–2
Initiating standby, hibernation or shutdown. . . . . . . . . . . 3–4
When you leave your work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3–4
When a reliable power supply is unavailable . . . . . . 3–5
When using wireless communication, or readable or
writable drive media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3–6
4 Default power settings
Turning the computer or display on or off . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–2
Using emergency shutdown procedures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–3
Initiating or resuming from standby. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–4
Initiating or restoring from hibernation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–5
5 Power options
Accessing Power Options Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5–1
Displaying the Power Meter icon. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5–2
Setting or changing a power scheme . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5–3
Setting a security prompt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5–3

iii Power
Contents
6 Processor performance controls
7 Battery packs
Identifying battery packs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–2
Inserting or removing the primary battery pack. . . . . . . . 7–3
Charging multiple battery packs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–5
Charging a battery pack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–6
Monitoring the charge of a battery pack . . . . . . . . . . 7–8
Managing low-battery conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–10
Identifying low-battery conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–10
Resolving low-battery conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–12
Calibrating a battery pack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–14
When to calibrate. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–14
How to calibrate. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–14
Conserving battery power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–19
Conserving power as you work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–19
Selecting power conservation settings. . . . . . . . . . . 7–20
Storing a battery pack. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–21
Disposing of a used battery pack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–22
Index

Power 1–1
1
Power control and light
locations
The following illustration and table identify and describe the
power control and light locations.
Component Description
1Display switch Puts the computer in standby if the display
is closed while the computer is on.
2Power lights* (2) Green: The computer is on.
Blinking green: The computer is in standby.
Off: The computer is off or in hibernation.
(Continued)

1–2 Power
Power control and light locations
3Power button When the computer is
■Off, press to turn on the computer.
■In standby, briefly press to exit standby.
■In hibernation, briefly press to exit
hibernation.
If the computer has stopped responding
and Microsoft® Windows® shutdown
procedures cannot be used, press and hold
the power button for at least 5 seconds to
turn off the computer.
4fn+f3 Initiates standby.
5Battery light Amber: A battery pack is charging.
Green: A battery pack is close to full charge
capacity.
Blinking amber: A battery pack that is the
only available power source has reached a
low-battery condition. When the battery
reaches a
critical low-battery condition, the
battery light begins blinking more quickly.
Off: If the computer is plugged into an
external power source, the light is turned
off when all batteries in the computer are
fully charged. If the computer is not
plugged into an external power source, the
light is turned off until the battery reaches a
low-battery condition.
*There are 2 power lights. Both display the same information. The light on
the power button is visible only when the computer is open; the other power
light is always visible on the front of the computer.
Component Description

Power 2–1
2
Power sources
The computer can run on internal or external AC power. The
following table indicates the best power source for common
tasks.
Task Recommended Power Source
Work in most software
applications
■Charged battery pack in the computer
■External power supplied through one of
the following devices:
❐AC adapter
❐Optional docking device
❐Optional power adapter
Charge or calibrate a battery
pack in the computer
External power supplied through
■AC adapter
■Optional docking device
■Optional power adapter
ÅDo not charge the computer battery pack
on board aircraft. Charging the battery
pack may damage aircraft electronic
systems.
Install or modify system
software or write to a CD
or DVD
External power supplied through
■AC adapter
■Optional docking device
■Optional power adapter

2–2 Power
Power sources
Connecting the AC adapter
ÅWARNING: To reduce the risk of electric shock or damage to
your equipment:
■Plug the power cord into an AC outlet that is easily accessible
at all times.
■Disconnect power from the computer by unplugging the power cord
from the AC outlet (not by unplugging the power cord from
the computer).
■If provided with a 3-pin attachment plug on your power cord, plug
the cord into a grounded (earthed) 3-pin outlet. Do not disable the
power cord grounding pin; for example, by attaching a 2-pin
adapter. The grounding pin is an important safety feature. It is
possible to receive an electric shock from a system that is not
properly grounded.
To connect the computer to external AC power:
1. Plug the AC adapter into the power connector on the
computer 1.
2. Plug the power cord into the AC adapter 2.
3. Plug the other end of the power cord into an AC outlet 3.

Power 3–1
3
Standby and hibernation
Standby and hibernation are energy-saving features that conserve
power and reduce startup time. They can be initiated by you or by
the system. For more information, refer to “Initiating standby,
hibernation or shutdown.”
Standby
ÄCAUTION: To avoid a complete battery discharge, do not leave the
computer in standby for extended periods. Connect the computer to an
external power source.
Standby reduces power to system components that are not in use.
When standby is initiated, your work is stored in random access
memory (RAM), and then the screen is cleared. When the
computer is in standby, the power lights blink. When you resume
from standby, your work returns to the screen where you left off.
ÄCAUTION: To reduce the risk of information loss, save your work
before initiating standby.

3–2 Power
Standby and hibernation
Hibernation
ÄCAUTION: If the configuration of the computer is changed during
hibernation, resuming from hibernation may not be possible. When the
computer is in hibernation:
■Do not dock the computer in or undock the computer from a
docking device.
■Do not add or remove memory modules.
■Do not insert or remove hard drives or optical drives.
■Do not connect or disconnect external devices.
■Do not insert or remove an external media card, such as a
MultiMediaCard or a PC Card.
Hibernation saves your work to a hibernation file on the hard
drive, and then shuts down the computer. The power lights are
turned off. When you restore from hibernation, your work returns
to the screen where you left off. If you have set a power-on
password, you must enter that password to restore from
hibernation.
ÄCAUTION: To reduce the risk of information loss, save your work
before initiating hibernation.

Standby and hibernation
Power 3–3
You can disable hibernation. However, if hibernation is disabled
and the system reaches a low-battery condition, the system will
not automatically save your work while power is on or when
standby has been initiated.
Use Power Options in Microsoft® Windows® Control Panel to
reenable hibernation:
»Select Start > Control Panel > Performance and
Maintenance > Power Options > Hibernate tab.
Be sure that the Enable hibernation check box is selected.
To set the time interval after which the system initiates
hibernation:
1. Select Start > Control Panel > Performance and
Maintenance > Power Options > Power Schemes tab.
2. Click one of the intervals in the System hibernates list.