Replace PowerBook G4 Battery with Power Bank?

1 post / 0 new
Offline
Last seen: 4 months 3 weeks ago
Joined: Aug 26 2021 - 22:35
Posts: 5
Replace PowerBook G4 Battery with Power Bank?

Hello,

I still love my 15" TiPBG4, and it works flawlessly, except for the lack of a functional battery. I do have a spot welder, so, in theory, I could rebuild a battery pack. But, I was thinking of going another direction, that will be easier to support, in the future.

My first idea is to use a power bank with 24vdc output, and power the machine via the barrel jack. I know that the "24v" banks vary between 21-29vdc, depending on state of charge, and I'm not sure what the specs on the regulator inside of the powerbook are.

My second idea is to build a 14.4vdc replacement battery module from LiPo pouch cells, and insert it into the battery compartment. That is actually pretty easy, especially since I'm not worried about maximum battery life. My concern, though, is that the PB might well not like being unable to communicate with the battery module.

Has anyone tried either way? I did some searching and didn't come up with a lot of results.

Thanks!- Alex