It has always been possible to change power plan settings in recent versions of the Windows operating system to save and extend battery life. There are dozens of software around that claim to improve battery life. That good news is that you no longer need to go for third-party battery-saving software as Windows 10 ships with a built-in Battery Saver feature.
Battery Saver is one of the hundreds of new features introduced with Windows 10. As the title of the functionality goes, the function is designed to extend the battery time of devices running Windows 10 operating system.
By default, the feature gets automatically activated when the battery level falls below 20%. And when the Battery Saver is active, you can see a small green icon on the battery icon located in the system tray to indicate that the Battery Saver feature is active.
According to Microsoft, Battery Saver limits background activities to improve the battery time. Additionally, Windows Store, Calendar, and People apps do not sync. Windows 10 reduces the computer’s screen brightness by 30% to save the battery (you can turn off this under battery settings). When the Battery saver is turned on, Windows 10 doesn’t download non-critical Windows updates. Lastly, Windows 10 also blocks most of the telemetry.
As mentioned above, with default settings, Battery Saver is turned on only when the battery level goes below 20%. You might want to change this default setting to 40 or 50% to improve the battery time in Windows 10.
It’s important to note that Battery Saver is turned off while charging even if the battery level is below the specified percentage. Needless to say that the Battery Saver functionality is not available on computers without batteries.
Quickly turn on the Battery saver in Windows 10
Step 1: Click on the battery icon in the system tray area of the taskbar to see the battery flyout.
Step 2: Move the slider to the Best battery life position (extreme left) to turn on the Battery saver feature.
Turn on Battery Saver in Windows 10
By default, the Battery Saver kicks in when the battery charge goes below the 20% mark. But if the feature is not getting activated automatically, you can use this method to enable the feature.
Step 1: Open the Settings app. Navigate to System > Battery.
Step 2: Here, in the Battery saver section, make sure that Turn battery saver on automatically if my battery falls below option is turned on. If not, select the option to turn on the Battery saver feature when the battery level falls below 20%. To turn on the Battery saver now (irrespective of the battery level), turn on Battery saver status until next charge option.
To completely disable Battery Saver in Windows 10
Step 1: Navigate to Settings > System > Battery.
Step 2: Here, uncheck the Turn battery saver on automatically if my battery falls below option to disable the Battery saver.
To enable or disable Battery Saver in power options
UPDATE: This method doesn’t work in the newest version of Windows 10.
It’s possible to enable or disable Battery Saver for a particular power plan. Here is how to do it:
Step 1: Type Power Options in the Start search box and then press Enter key. Power Options window can also be launched by clicking on the battery icon and then clicking Power Options.
Step 2: Under Power Options window, click or tap Change plan settings link next to your desired power plan.
Step 3: Click or tap Change advanced power settings to open the small Power Options dialog.
Step 4: Here, expand Energy saver settings, and then expand the Charge level.
Step 5: Change On battery (Percent battery charge) value to 0 to disable Battery Saver.
I hope this helps you!
Adeyinka says
Started recently, whenever I plugged in my laptop it won’t show any sign of charging expect 0 percent, someone told me the battery has been off or something like that but unable to on it what can do???
Kivalina says
I have same problem as many others do fix please
david blum says
hello, whatever i do i cannot find this menu on my windows 1607 14393.331 build :( is it another menu ? netiher on the desktop or power scheme i GPO.
thanks
Tim says
Hi. Thanks for the above. I’d found my way here to these settings already, but have a problem that I can’t get around, despite trying all obvious combinations. This is my issue:-
(1) I’m using an older notebook to test Win10 – so that I could, well, try it out with no risk
(2) The notebook battery is completely dead i.e. does not take or show ANY charge… It shows battery level as “0%”…… but that is fine for me as it is only used on the mains BUT
(3) The Battery saver is currently stubbornly stuck on “on” despite me having set the settings to “off” by unticking it ….
(4) It seems that the Windows Update routine is unwilling to work while it feels battery saver is on… (Well, that is my guess…)….
The symptoms are that it shows that there are updates ready to download and install, but clicking on the grey “Download” button does absolutely nothing….. Meanwhile the prompt “Battery Saver is on. Plug into mains before you install updates” is showing which is wrong, I AM plugged into the mains….. ! So I seem to be stuck.
I think I have identified a hardwae/SW buggie loop that unsettles WIn10.
Updates can’t happen as it is….. and that is a concern (Obviously I don’t want to buy a new battery just for a test machine !!)
Any ideas ? Thanks