HP touts better batteries for notebooks

The new long-life notebook batteries will be available from next year

HP is planning to offer a new line of long-life notebook batteries.

The company revealed on Wednesday that it would be using batteries from startup firm Boston-Power as an optional extra on some of its 2009 models. The batteries will work with older notebooks as well, the firm said.

The Sonata batteries manufactured by Boston Power are said to be superior to current lithium-ion battery cells in a number of areas. The maker claims that the batteries can be fully charged in about 30 minutes and will not lose charge before the notebook is powered on.

Additionally, the Sonata battery cells are designed to have a much longer shelf life, guaranteeing at least three years of performance at 100 per cent of the battery's original capacity.

"HP is known around the world for delivering breakthrough technologies and meaningful innovation to consumers," said HP director of consumer notebooks Jonathan Kaye.

"By partnering with Boston-Power, we are able to offer our customers batteries with a longer lifespan and help reduce the amount of technology waste in landfills."

HP hopes that the new battery line will help give the company an edge in what most pundits agree will be a very tight market in 2009 as both consumers and enterprise IT buyers will be faced with tighter budgets.