Gateway 200 series User Manual

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Managing Power
While your notebook is running on battery power, you 
should manage power consumption to get the most use out 
of the battery. Read this chapter to learn how to:
■Check and recharge the battery
■Recalibrate the battery
■Change batteries
■Extend the life of the battery by conserving battery 
power and using alternate power sources
■Change power-saving settings 
						

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Monitoring the battery charge
Closely monitor the battery charge. When the battery charge gets low, change 
the battery or connect to AC power immediately to prevent losing any unsaved 
work.
Monitor the battery charge by:
■Double-clicking the power cord icon  or battery icon  in the taskbar. 
The Power Meter dialog box opens.
■Pressing FN+STATUS to view the power status box, which opens in the 
upper-left corner of the screen. The power status box shows the current 
power source, the battery charge level, and the power management mode.
■Looking at the battery charge indicator:
■LED green - battery is fully charged.
■LED orange - battery is charging.
■LED blinking green - battery charge is very low.
■LED alternating green and orange - battery is malfunctioning.
ImportantIf the power cord or battery icon does not appear on the 
taskbar, click the show hidden icons button. If the icon 
still does not appear, make sure that Always show icon 
on the taskbar is checked on the Power Options 
Properties Advanced tab. See “Changing advanced 
settings” on page 153 for more information.
ImportantThis LED only lights up when the notebook is connected 
to AC power. For the location of the battery charge 
indicator, see “Front” on page 2. 
						

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Recharging the battery
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■Pressing the battery meter button on the battery. The battery meter lights 
indicate the percentage of battery charge remaining.
■Waiting for a Low Battery warning message to appear.
If your battery charge indicator displays what looks like an inaccurate charge, 
you may need to recalibrate the battery. For more information, see 
“Recalibrating the battery” on page 144.
Recharging the battery
The battery recharges while it is installed and your notebook is connected to 
AC power. While the battery is recharging, the battery charge indicator turns 
orange and the battery icon in the taskbar has a lightning bolt .
ImportantIf the power cord or battery icon does not appear on the 
taskbar, click the show hidden icons button. If the icon 
still does not appear, make sure that Always show icon 
on the taskbar is checked on the Power Options 
Properties Advanced tab. See “Changing advanced 
settings” on page 153 for more information. 
						

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Recalibrating the battery
If your notebook unexpectedly goes into Standby mode while you are using it 
but the battery charge is not low, you may need to recalibrate your battery. 
You should also recalibrate the battery periodically to maintain the accuracy 
of the battery gauge.
To recalibrate the battery:
1Disconnect the AC adapter
2Turn on your notebook.
3As soon as it starts and you see a startup screen, press F2. The BIOS Setup 
utility opens.
4Open the Advanced menu.
5Highlight Smart Battery Calibration, then press ENTER. When prompted, start 
the recalibration program.
6After the battery has been fully discharged and your notebook has turned 
itself off, re-connect the AC adapter and fully recharge your battery. 
Recharging may take several hours. After the battery finishes recharging, 
the battery meter displays the accurate battery charge. If the battery meter 
does not show an accurate charge, contact Gateway Technical Support.
ImportantDo not interrupt the battery recalibration process. If 
recalibration is interrupted, you must start the process over 
again. 
						

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Changing batteries
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Changing batteries
If your notebook is connected to AC power, you can change the battery while 
the notebook is turned on. If your notebook is not connected to AC power, 
you must turn the notebook off while changing the battery.
Replacing the battery
To replace the battery:
1If your notebook is on and is connected to AC power, go to Step 2.
-OR-
If your notebook is on and is not plugged connected to AC power, save 
your work and turn off the notebook.
2Close the LCD panel.
3Turn your notebook over so the bottom is facing up.
WarningDanger of explosion if battery is incorrectly replaced.
Replace only with a Gateway 200ARC battery. Discard 
used batteries according to the manufacturer’s 
instructions.
The battery used in this device may present a fire or 
chemical burn hazard if mishandled. Do not disassemble, 
heat above 212°F (100°C), or incinerate. Dispose of used 
battery promptly. Keep away from children. 
						

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4Slide the locking battery release latch (the left latch in the following 
picture) to the unlock position.
5Slide and hold the remaining battery release latch (the right latch in the 
preceding picture) and slide the battery out of the bay.
6Slide a recharged battery into the bay. Make sure the battery is fully inserted 
into the bay.
7Slide the locking battery release latch to the locked position.
8Turn your notebook over.
9Open the LCD panel and press the power button. 
						

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Extending battery life
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Extending battery life
Conserving battery power
While using the battery to power your notebook, conserve power by:
■Dimming the display as low as is comfortable.
■Removing PC Cards when you do not need them. Many PC Cards use a 
small amount of power while inserted, even if they are not being used.
■Modifying the power management settings for maximum power savings. 
For more information, see “Changing power settings” on page 149.
■Closing the LCD panel to turn off the display while you are not using your 
notebook. The display stays off until you open the panel again.
■Using Hibernate mode for maximum power savings while your notebook 
is not in use. For more information, see “Activating and using Hibernate 
mode” on page 154.
■Using the CD, DVD, or recordable drive only when necessary. These drives 
use a large amount of power.
■Recharging the battery often, taking an extra battery, and fully recharging 
the batteries before traveling. For more information, see “Recharging the 
battery” on page 143 and “Changing batteries” on page 145.
■Using an extended-life battery. You can purchase an extended-life battery 
from the Accessories Store at accessories.gateway.com
Extended-life
battery
Standard 
battery 
						

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Using alternate power sources
To extend battery life, use alternate power sources whenever possible.
■If traveling internationally, take electrical adapters. Save the battery for 
times when you cannot use a power adapter. If you plan on taking your 
AC power adapter, also take a single-plug surge protector.
■If you will have access to an EmPower™ in-flight power receptacle or an 
automobile cigarette lighter, use an airplane/automobile power adapter or 
power inverter. Save the battery for times when you cannot use a power 
adapter.
■To find AC power outlets in airports, look for them next to support pillars, 
in large areas such as boarding gates, and under banks of telephones.
Changing power modes
You can use the following power modes to lengthen the life of your notebook’s 
battery:
■Standby - while your notebook is in Standby, it switches to a low power 
state where devices, such as the display and drives, turn off.
■Hibernate - (also called save to disk) writes all current memory (RAM) 
information to the hard drive, then turns your notebook completely off. 
The next time you turn on your notebook, it reads the memory 
information from the hard drive and opens the programs and documents 
that were open when you activated Hibernate mode. For more information 
on using Hibernate mode, see “Activating and using Hibernate mode” on 
page 154.
Using power saving modes
Always save your work before using Standby mode. In Standby mode, your 
notebook reduces or turns off the power to most devices except memory. 
However, the information in memory is not saved to the hard drive. If power 
is interrupted, the information is lost.
When in Hibernate mode, your computer saves all memory information to the 
hard drive, then turns the power completely off. 
						

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Changing power settings
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Changing power settings
You can change the function of the power button, Standby system key, and 
power-saving timers by changing power settings on your notebook.
You can customize power settings from the Windows Control Panel by selecting 
power schemes, setting power alarms, adjusting advanced power settings, and 
activating Hibernate mode.
Power schemes (groups of power settings) let you change power saving options 
such as when the display or hard drive is automatically turned off. You can 
select one of the defined power schemes or create a custom power scheme. In 
Windows XP, power schemes also set the speed of an Intel
® 
SpeedStep™-equipped processor. For more information, see “Changing 
SpeedStep settings” on page 156.
Alarms can alert you when the battery charge is low.
Advanced power settings let you assign different power saving modes to the power 
button and Standby system key. You can also select which power saving mode 
is activated when you close the LCD panel. If your computer 
is......and you want to... ...then
On Enter Standby mode Press FN+STANDBY.
-OR-
Close the LCD panel.
On Enter Hibernate mode 
(must be activated)In Windows XP, click Start, then click 
Tu r n O f f C o m p u t e r. Press and hold 
SHIFT, then 
click Hibernate.
- OR -
In Windows 2000, click Start, then click Shut 
Down. Click the arrow button to open the What do 
you want your computer to do list, then click 
Hibernate. Click OK.
In Standby or 
Hibernate modeExit Standby or 
Hibernate modePress the power button. 
						

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Changing the power scheme
To change the power scheme:
1In Windows XP, click Start, then click Control Panel. The Control Panel 
window opens. If your Control Panel is in Category View, click 
Performance 
and Maintenance
.
- OR -
In Windows 2000, click 
Start, Settings, then click Control Panel. The Control 
Panel window opens.
2Click/Double-click the Power Options or Power Management icon. The Power 
Options Properties dialog box opens.