- Windows 7 laptops will by default turn off the screen and go to sleep when their lid is closed. To change that, type "lid" in the start menu and click "Change what closing the lid does".
- Choose a setting under "When I close the lid":
- The dropdown on the left determines your laptop's behavior when it is running "On battery"; the best action is typically "Sleep", which saves battery power but wakes up quickly.
Tip: if you're about to take a long trip, choosing "Hibernate" is best, because it will save nearly as much power as if the laptop were completely turned off (a feature dramatically optimized since Windows 7). But booting takes longer from hibernation than from sleep.
- Because laptop lid closing triggers before touching the chassis, choosing "Shut down" could make you accidentally turn off your laptop quite often, and "cold reboots" are power hungry.
- The dropdown on the right configures the action when "Plugged in" to a power source: the best setting is "Sleep" or "Do nothing" (see below) - because laptops and netbooks are hard to clean, you should keep them closed as often as possible when you don't use them, to avoid too much dust getting into the hinges, between keys of the keyboard, etc.
- "Do nothing" is ideal with an external monitor plugged into your notebook: Windows 7 will automatically switch to the external display as primary monitor without going to sleep.
- Scroll down and click "Save Changes" to apply your new setting, and read on "Power Plans".
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