Batteries and Power Management 
Managing Power Consumption 
 
48  Reference Guide 
 
Managing CPU power 
If your notebook contains a multispeed processor with Intel SpeedStep Technology, the 
processor can automatically switch to lower, power-saving speeds or to higher-
performance speeds according to its workload and power source.  
You can customize SpeedStep to best suit your working environment: click Start, Control 
Panel, Performance and Maintenance, Power Options. On the Power Schemes tab, select 
a power scheme. This scheme automatically controls the processor speeds: 
?? The Max Battery scheme uses the lowest processor speeds while running on battery 
power, but uses medium and high processor speeds on AC power. 
?? The Portable/Laptop option uses medium and high processor speeds on battery and 
AC power. 
?? The Presentation option uses the lowest processor speeds on battery and AC power. 
To manage power manually 
In addition to allowing the notebook to enter its power-saving modes automatically, you 
can also put it into any of the following three modes whenever you need to. 
Power mode  Does this…  Use when…  To enter this mode… 
Standby 
Maintains your current 
session in RAM, and turns off 
the display and other 
components. 
You will be away 
from your notebook 
for up to several 
hours. 
Click Start, Turn Off Computer, 
Stand By 
– or – 
press the power button. 
Hibernation 
Saves the current session to 
disk, then shuts down. 
Provides maximum power 
savings while still allowing you 
to recover the current session. 
You will be away 
from your notebook 
for a day or more, 
but want to continue 
your session. 
Click Start, Turn Off Computer, then 
press and hold Shift and click 
Hibernate. 
Off 
Turns off your notebook, 
providing maximum power 
savings. The current session 
will not be saved, and any 
unsaved data will be lost. 
You’re done with 
your work. 
Click Start, Turn Off Computer, 
Turn Off. 
– or – 
press and hold the power button for 
about four seconds. (Do this only if 
the Start menu procedure doesn’t 
work.) 
You can also turn off the display by closing the lid. 
In addition, you can configure the notebook so that closing the lid or pressing the power 
button puts the notebook on standby or into hibernation, or turns it off—see “To manage 
power manually” on page 48.