If there’s one thing business travellers want in a notebook computer, it’s longer battery life. Oh, and lighter, thinner, more portable computers.

Unfortunately, the two can’t always go hand in hand. Battery technology is advancing quickly (see Notebook Notes, Spring 1999), and Toshiba is driving this research. In the meantime, Toshiba is committed to maximizing battery life through advanced power management, the process of making the best possible use of a notebook’s power resources.

The latest innovation in power management is the Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI) specification developed by Intel, Toshiba and Microsoft. ACPI makes information about the status of hardware components such as CD-ROMs, network cards, hard disk drives and printers available to a PC’s operating system. Effectively an interface between the operating system and the PC’s hardware, applications and peripherals, ACPI allows the PC to turn its components on or off as required. The notebook can reduce its own power consumption by putting devices that are not in use into a lower-power mode.

ACPI also applies to consumer devices connected to the PC, such as VCRs, TVs, phones, and stereos. ACPI allows a notebook to be placed into a sleep mode that uses virtually no power until it is “awakened.” The PC can be turned on and off by external devices, so that the touch of a mouse or the press of a key will wake up the machine.

By employing intelligent, operating system-driven power management technology to ensure that notebooks use no more power than needed to get the job done, Toshiba is bridging the road warrior’s dual expectations of battery life and portability. It’s all part of our mission to improve the overall experience of working on the road.