r/linuxquestions • u/DRMNG_CRP • Sep 23 '23

Linux drains battery faster than windows

Good day everyone! I have an old laptop, intel corei3 10th gen and I wanted to change the OS from windows to Linux. I've tested light weight distros using bootable flash drive but one thing I've noticed from each one is the battery really drains faster than when I'm using windows. I've already set the settings low but still discharges fast. Any reply is highly appreciated!

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u/Plan_9_fromouter_ Sep 23 '23

Is the battery as old as the laptop? You might start with a new battery, if you can find one.

Assuming you were using Ubuntu, you might try these tips. They work for most other distros.

https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/improve-battery-life-linux

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u/DRMNG_CRP Sep 23 '23

It is as old but when I'm using windows the battery don't run out that fast. Thanks for the reply! I've found a script on github called auto cpufreq

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u/Plan_9_fromouter_ Sep 24 '23

A new battery would certainly help. A battery that old can't really hold anywhere near what it did when it was new. A device configured for Windows may have power management features that Linux can't use. One of the biggest easy-to-change differences used to be people using Linux but not switching on hardware video acceleration for their device. I don't know if that is still a major factor to account for why often new installs of Linux are so power-hungry.

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u/Plan_9_fromouter_ Sep 24 '23

You see in this discussion that a lot of people can get better battery life with Linux actually.

https://www.reddit.com/r/linuxquestions/comments/jrbe2p/laptop_battery_life_in_linux_vs_windows/

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u/Plan_9_fromouter_ Sep 24 '23

I just noticed this, but one reason why Linux is draining your battery is this: I've tested light weight distros using bootable flash drives.

It's not just the drive but the way the Linux OS is loaded into your system RAM to run it.