How to Increase Battery Life for Gaming Laptop

As we all know, the popularity of laptops is because of portability, and these days laptops are made with high configuration, especially with extended gaming facilities, but unfortunately, within all these highly configured built-in components, yet laptop’s battery life does not meet the satisfactory level for gaming laptop users. So the common question from most gamers is: Is it really possible to increase battery life for gaming laptop.

Yes, it is surely possible to increase at least 25 to 35%  battery life for gaming laptop with some proven settings and adjustments.

In this article, we will learn how to increase battery life for gaming laptop with the help of a real gamer from his many years of experience in gaming.

Let’s begin.,

How to Increase Battery Life for Gaming Laptop: 9 Proven Settings

Settings 1 : Reduce Power Drain

First and simplest option to boost gaming laptop’s battery life using built-in power setting. Using this settings, battery life  can be increased by 10-20%.

How to do so?

Windows Laptop:

• In the search bar, type  Control Panel and click to open Power Options.
• Change the Setting to Power Save option. Power Save is built-in option to consume less battery life.
• In addition changing the power setting by components , Go to Change advanced power settings under change plan settings. Ex: Lowering the processor’s maximum state to around 55-70% can highly increase battery life while playing game.

For Mac Users:

• Step 1: Go to the Apple Menu and Click on System Preferences.
• Step 2: Select Energy Saver. Look for options to adjust power settings for battery and adapter usage.

Settings 2:  Reduce Screen Brightness

The second highly recommended option is reducing screen brightness, which can truly increase battery life without lowering your gaming performance. Reducing screen brightness and battery life can  increase by 10–15%. 

With 3 options, you can reduce screen brightness:

For Windows Users:

• Option 1: For my HP laptop, I can adjust brightness using the Fn + F5 keys. For your laptop, maybe it’s different; check your laptop’s manufacturer’s website or search online.
• Option 2: For HP laptops, you can use the brightness slider in the taskbar, generally located in the lower right corner. Keeping the brightness level around  35% to 45% is good enough.
• Option 3:  In most laptops, go to Settings > System > Display and manually reduce the brightness.

For Mac Users:

• Option 1: Use the brightness keys on the keyboard to adjust the brightness level.
• Option 2: Go to System Preferences > Displays to find the brightness slider and set it to a lower level.

Settings 3:  Close Background Applications

Check the applications you are not using or not related to gaming; close them all, especially when you are planning an outing; background applications consume high battery life. Closing unwanted applications can increase battery life  to 10-15%.

For Windows Users:

• Type Task Manager in windows search bar or keyboard shortcut Ctrl + Shift + Esc or right-click on the Windows logo and select Task Manager.
• Click the Processes tab to see all running applications. Find the applications that hold high CPU and memory.
• Right-click on unwanted application and select End Task to close them.

For Mac Users:

• Step 1: Open Activity Monitor from the Utilities folder (or search for it using Spotlight).
• Step 2: Check for apps using significant CPU, GPU, or memory. Click the X in the upper-left corner to force-quit apps.
• Step 3: To prevent apps from reopening after reboot, go to System Preferences > Users & Groups > Login Items and remove any unnecessary startup programs.

Settings 4: Turn Off RGB Lighting

We all want our laptop to look cool and stylish for this most gaming laptop using RGB backlight, but it consumes laptop battery faster. Luckily, you can turn off the backlight or any other RGB facilities to save your laptop’s battery life. Disabling RGB light can increase battery life  to 3-5%.

For Settings on Most Laptops:

• Most gaming laptops come with apps to manage RGB lighting. Open the app and check the settings for Lighting.
• Disable or turn Off the lights or choose less power-consuming settings.

Settings 5: Switch to Integrated Graphics

Most gaming laptops come with dedicated and integrated graphics where you can switch to integrated graphics when you’re not gaming. This will save a ton of battery life. Switching to integrated graphics can Boost battery life  to 20-30%.

For NVIDIA Optimus Laptops:

• Right-click on the desktop and open NVIDIA Control Panel.
• Move to Manage 3D Settings.
• Under Preferred Graphics Processor, select Integrated Graphics.
• Apply the changes. You can switch back to the dedicated GPU when playing games.

Settings 6: Limit Game FPS

While playing game, limiting frame rate set to 30-60 FPS reduces GPU workload, which can extend battery life

How to Limit Frame Rate in Games:

In Game Settings: Most of modern games come with FPS limiters or V-Sync option that can cap your FPS. To do the settings:

• Step 1: Open your game’s settings menu.
• Step 2: Navigate to the Graphics or Display settings.
• Step 3: Look for the V-Sync or Frame Rate Limit option and enable it. This will typically cap your FPS at your monitor’s refresh rate (e.g., 60 Hz = 60 FPS).

NVIDIA GPU Settings: If you have an NVIDIA GPU, you can set an FPS limit globally or for specific games through the NVIDIA Control Panel.

• Step 1: Right-click on your desktop and select NVIDIA Control Panel.
• Step 2: Under Manage 3D Settings, go to the Global Settings tab to limit FPS for all games, or the Program Settings tab to set it for individual games.
• Step 3: Scroll down to find Max Frame Rate. Click on it, enable the setting, and set your desired FPS limit (e.g., 30 or 60 FPS).
• Step 4: Click Apply to save your changes.

AMD Radeon Settings: AMD GPUs also offer options to limit FPS using the Radeon Software.

• Step 1: Open AMD Radeon Software by right-clicking on your desktop and selecting it.
• Step 2: Click on Settings (gear icon) in the top right corner, then go to the Graphics tab.
• Step 3: Scroll down to find the Frame Rate Target Control (FRTC) option.
• Step 4: Set your desired FPS limit (e.g., 60 FPS) and click Apply.

Third-Party Software Settings: You can also use third-party software like RivaTuner Statistics Server to limit FPS manually.

• Step 1: Download and install RivaTuner Statistics Server (usually bundled with MSI Afterburner).
• Step 2: Launch RTSS and select the game you want to limit from the drop-down menu (or set a global FPS limit).
• Step 3: In the Framerate Limit box, enter the desired FPS (e.g., 30 or 60).
• Step 4: Launch the game, and the FPS will be capped according to your RTSS settings.

Settings 7:  Update Software and Drivers

Backdated software and drivers reduce laptop’s performance and also consume battery life. Ensure your application and drivers are up-to-date.

For Windows Users:

• Type Device Manager in windows search bar click on Device Manager to open, Right-click on devices you want to update, then click update driver.
• For Windows updates, go to Settings > Update & Security and check for available updates.
• For graphics drivers, visit the NVIDIA GeForce Experience or AMD Radeon Software These programs can automatically check for and install updates.

For Mac Users:

• Step 1: Open the App Store and check for system updates in the Updates tab.
• Step 2: Click Update All to ensure everything from your operating system to hardware drivers is up to date.

Settings 8:  Disable Wi-Fi and Bluetooth

If your game don’t require to be Online Turn off the WiFi and Bluetooth; disabling Wi-Fi and Bluetooth can help consume less battery life.

For Windows Users:

• Click on the Wi-Fi or Bluetooth icon in the system tray and toggle it off when not needed.
• Alternatively, switch to Airplane Mode from the notification center.

For Mac Users:

• Click on the Wi-Fi and Bluetooth icons in the menu bar and toggle them off when they’re not in use.

 Settings 9: Unplug External Devices

Removing unwanted External devices like mice, webcams, USB hubs, and external hard drives can save your battery life by 2-3%.

Finally

As a gamer, you should keep in mind that Gaming laptops consume more battery life then normal laptops because of its high-configuration components. good news is you can boost gaming laptop’s battery life with above settings and adjustments.

FAQ

How many hours does a gaming laptop battery last?

Generally answered to the question, a gaming laptop battery can last anywhere from 2 to 3 hours maximum in gaming mode. However, this duration can be increased by above settings.

What is the reasons for the poor battery life?

In gaming laptops, poor battery life is due to its high-performance settings, background processes, outdated drivers, excessive resources, etc..