Inspiron 17R

The Dell Inspiron 17R notebook ships with a typical lithium-ion battery, like most modern laptops. While these batteries are great for their ability to hold a relatively large amount of power in a very small space, they do lose charging capacity over time. That's because the special lithium-ion architecture used to provide power to laptops eventually gets overused and simply can no longer produce the same high amount of energy as it did when the laptop was brand new.

Luckily, this is not a death sentence for most Dell laptops. The Inspiron 17R can be made like new again simply by buying replacement Dell batteries. These batteries are essentially OEM construction, or "original equipment manufacturer" parts. This is especially important to pay attention to when shopping for replacement batteries, as generic brands or off-brand products will be dramatically different from original Dell models and may hold less of a charge from the start -- and wear out far more quickly than original Dell batteries usually do.

Dell laptop batteries are made by Panasonic and incorporate that company's own unique lithium-ion charging architecture. These batteries manufactured by Panasonic are well-regarded in the industry (and are used by multiple manufacturers) because of their long life and longer-lasting power supply. Without this high-end technology, lithium-ion batteries will burn through their charge in far less time, diminishing the return one receives on an investment in replacement batteries.