New Battery for HP Notebook PCs Lives Up to Three Times Longer Than Conventional Batteries

GENEVA, Switzerland, Aug. 26, 2009 – HP today announced the HP Long Life Battery for its commercial notebook PCs, providing customers with an increased battery lifespan and reduced cost of ownership versus standard batteries. HP is offering the industry’s only three-year limited warranty on the long-life battery, when used with selected commercial notebook PCs, enabling customers to maximise their PC investment and reduce the costs associated with replacing batteries.

Today’s common laptop batteries start to degrade after 300 charges, which can lead to additional costs for customers to replace the battery and potentially more battery waste. Based on Boston-Power’s Sonata® Lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery cell technology, the HP Long Life Battery can be charged over 1,000 times before the battery’s capacity begins to noticeably degrade. That’s a charge a day for three years – or four years if it’s only used on weekdays, lasting between three and five times longer than traditional batteries. Additionally, the battery can be charged to 90 percent of its capacity in 90 minutes, which is useful for travellers who only have a limited amount of time near an electric outlet. The Long Life Battery also offers significant environmental benefits as the need to replace batteries less frequently means that fewer batteries need disposal and fill up landfills. Boston Power is the first and only provider whose rechargeable Li-ion battery cells have earned the prestigious Nordic Ecolabel accreditation.

“From the beginning, our goal has been to help notebook computer users benefit from optimal mobility with dependable, high-performance, environmentally sustainable batteries,” said Dr. Christina Lampe-Onnerud, Founder and CEO, Boston-Power. “HP’s endorsement of Sonata is a great step forward in popularising this battery technology.”

“Our Long Life Battery is a win-win product for everyone, said Charl Snyman, Vice President, Personal Systems Group, HP Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA). “It helps us continue to meet our goals for delivering environmentally friendly products, and also delivers significant costs savings for our customers.”

HP customers with compatible notebooks can purchase Sonata-powered batteries to replace their existing batteries or use as a spare on long trips or plane flights. No system changes are required.

The HP Long Life Battery is available as an accessory throughout EMEA, from September 1, 2009 at a recommended street price starting at 139€. It supports the HP EliteBook 6930p and HP Compaq’s 6730b, 6530b and 6735b Notebook PCs. It will also be available on future selected commercial and consumer notebook PCs.