An515-45-r5rj battery is draining (even when I'm not gaming)

Greetings everyone

About a year ago, I bought this Acer Nitro 5 (An515-45-r5rj) laptop, and lately, for the past 5 days, I'm experiencing a problem. I noticed that the battery level drops from around from 100% to instantly 97% or 94%, or even 85%, even when I'm not playing anything or doing anything that requires heavy load. Now, I'm very much aware about acer's problem regarding it's battery depletion regardless if it's plugged in when gaming, and as some users here had already stated, it is normal when the laptop uses the battery even when connected to power when using laptop at peak levels. But I'm concerned because my laptop battery seems to be dropping while plugged in, even when I'm just using browsers and such, even when the laptop isn't at peak level of performance. I always come across this issue everytime I power on my laptop, and then I plug it in, minutes later, I noticed that my battery suddenly drops to 97%, then 95%, and then 85%. The issue seems to subside when I unplug it and plug it again, and it goes back to normal.

I've read about BIOS updates, and i already updated every driivers on this device, including the battery (which I did a while ago). I'm asking if is it possible that I have a faulty battery or a defective charger? Is this normal for this model, or should I be concerned about such a drop in battery level even when I'm not gaming?

Accepted answers

wasifali758595

It sounds like you’re running into what’s often called “battery discharge passthrough” behavior, but the way it’s happening on your Nitro 5 does raise a couple of flags. A few points to consider:

1. Normal vs. abnormal discharge

On gaming laptops like the Nitro series, it’s normal for the battery to assist the power adapter under very heavy loads (gaming, rendering, benchmarking). That’s why you sometimes see small drops even while plugged in.
However, seeing drops from 100% to 85% while just browsing is not typical. That suggests either the power delivery isn’t stable or the battery calibration is off.

2. Things you can try

Battery recalibration: Let the laptop drain down to ~10%, then charge it back up to 100% without interruption. This helps the controller relearn proper charge levels.
Check Acer Care Center or Windows battery report: Run powercfg /batteryreport in Command Prompt and review the report (especially Design Capacity vs. Full Charge Capacity). If the full charge capacity is much lower than design, your battery may be wearing out faster than expected.
Inspect your adapter: The AN515-45 models usually ship with a 180W or 230W adapter depending on GPU/CPU. If you’re using a lower-wattage adapter (or if the charger is starting to fail), the system may pull from the battery even at light load.
BIOS and drivers: You’ve already updated them, which is good. Also check Windows Power Plans and Acer NitroSense to make sure you’re not on “High Performance” unnecessarily, as that can keep power draw higher than expected.

3. When to be concerned

If the battery drops while idle and only stabilizes after unplug/replug, it could point to either a faulty charging circuit on the motherboard or a battery with degraded cells.
If the battery report shows a very low “Full Charge Capacity” compared to design, then the battery is indeed wearing out and might need replacement (even after just a year).

4. Next steps

Try recalibration first.
Test with another genuine Acer adapter if possible (to rule out the charger).
If the problem persists, I’d suggest reaching out to Acer support while you’re still in warranty (or extended coverage), because sudden drops like 100 → 85% without load aren’t “normal wear.”

👉 In short: small dips during heavy load are normal, but what you’re describing under light use isn’t. Most likely causes: miscalibrated battery, faulty charger, or early battery degradation. Recalibration and testing with another adapter should give you the answer.

All comments

Jack22

@MarsPaz2k03

A battery report from Windows can provide detailed information on your battery's health, usage history, and estimated capacity. This can help you identify if the issue is a failing battery or a change in usage patterns.

Open Command Prompt as an administrator by searching for "cmd," right-clicking the result, and selecting Run as administrator.
Type powercfg /batteryreport and press Enter.
The report, which is an HTML file, will be saved to a folder on your PC. The file path will be shown in the Command Prompt window.
Navigate to the file location and open the battery-report.html file in your browser.
Check the "Battery capacity history" section to compare the "Full Charge Capacity" with the "Design Capacity" over time. A significant drop indicates a degrading battery.

MarsPaz2k03

I actually did that when I initially encountered the problem. However, people in this forum and other platforms had stated that a decreasing battery capacity (full charge capacity) overtime, after use is perfectly normal. The people I asked (me included) don't think what I'm experiencing is completely normal though. But I don't know anything at this point so feel free to correct me, or if you have other suggestions, please feel free to share

Jack22

@MarsPaz2k03

Use the Original Charger:

Always use the charger and cable that came with your laptop for optimal performance.

Adjust Power Settings:

Check your power options and try to use a balanced mode rather than a power-saving mode when plugged in.

Monitor Background Apps:

Use Task Manager or your operating system's battery usage tools to identify and close power-intensive applications.

Update Drivers:

Open Device Manager, expand "Batteries," right-click on the ACPI battery drivers, select "Uninstall," and then restart your computer to allow Windows to reinstall them.

Test with a Different Charger:

If possible, borrow or purchase another compatible charger to see if the issue is with your current charger or a hardware issue with the laptop itself.

Puraw

Hi MarsPaz2k03

Your Nitro AN515‑45 is a 2021 gaming laptop designed to run at full performance when connected to AC power. It’s normal for the battery to discharge slightly under heavy load even while plugged in — this is by design to supplement the power adapter during peak demand.

For best performance and battery management on this model, keep the power adapter connected whenever possible, especially during gaming or other high‑load tasks. Modern lithium‑ion batteries in gaming laptops are not harmed by being left plugged in 24/7, and the system’s charging logic will prevent overcharging.

To check the battery’s health, don’t just look at the percentage drop — run a Windows battery report (powercfg /batteryreport) and examine the drainage profile. On a healthy battery, the discharge slope is steep (near vertical) under load, meaning it holds charge well. As performance deteriorates, that slope becomes shallower. Under normal conditions, you should expect at least 3–4 hours of backup. If runtime drops below 1 hour and wear is over 50%, it’s time to replace the battery.

After four years of use, some capacity loss is normal. What you’re seeing is not a unique “Acer problem” — it’s a combination of normal battery wear and the way high‑performance laptops manage power.

wasifali758595

It sounds like you’re running into what’s often called “battery discharge passthrough” behavior, but the way it’s happening on your Nitro 5 does raise a couple of flags. A few points to consider:

1. Normal vs. abnormal discharge

On gaming laptops like the Nitro series, it’s normal for the battery to assist the power adapter under very heavy loads (gaming, rendering, benchmarking). That’s why you sometimes see small drops even while plugged in.
However, seeing drops from 100% to 85% while just browsing is not typical. That suggests either the power delivery isn’t stable or the battery calibration is off.

2. Things you can try

Battery recalibration: Let the laptop drain down to ~10%, then charge it back up to 100% without interruption. This helps the controller relearn proper charge levels.
Check Acer Care Center or Windows battery report: Run powercfg /batteryreport in Command Prompt and review the report (especially Design Capacity vs. Full Charge Capacity). If the full charge capacity is much lower than design, your battery may be wearing out faster than expected.
Inspect your adapter: The AN515-45 models usually ship with a 180W or 230W adapter depending on GPU/CPU. If you’re using a lower-wattage adapter (or if the charger is starting to fail), the system may pull from the battery even at light load.
BIOS and drivers: You’ve already updated them, which is good. Also check Windows Power Plans and Acer NitroSense to make sure you’re not on “High Performance” unnecessarily, as that can keep power draw higher than expected.

3. When to be concerned

If the battery drops while idle and only stabilizes after unplug/replug, it could point to either a faulty charging circuit on the motherboard or a battery with degraded cells.
If the battery report shows a very low “Full Charge Capacity” compared to design, then the battery is indeed wearing out and might need replacement (even after just a year).

4. Next steps

Try recalibration first.
Test with another genuine Acer adapter if possible (to rule out the charger).
If the problem persists, I’d suggest reaching out to Acer support while you’re still in warranty (or extended coverage), because sudden drops like 100 → 85% without load aren’t “normal wear.”

👉 In short: small dips during heavy load are normal, but what you’re describing under light use isn’t. Most likely causes: miscalibrated battery, faulty charger, or early battery degradation. Recalibration and testing with another adapter should give you the answer.

MarsPaz2k03

hello @Puraw , thank you for the reply. Regarding your comment about this:

"It’s normal for the battery to discharge slightly under heavy load even while plugged in"

my concern about this particular issue is that, I'm not putting my laptop in under heavy load (e.g. playing games, editing videos, using 3D modeling software like Blender, etc.), and yet my laptop still seems to deplete, even when plugged in (from 100% to 97% and 85%). As I've said in my post, this problem only subsides when I unplug it, and plug it again, then it goes back to normal

MarsPaz2k03

how "low" is "too low" for the Full Charge Capacity if I may ask? Because the full charge capacity as of now is at 49,018mwh, while the Design Capacity is 58,751mwh. Is this normal?

Puraw

Hi MarsPaz2k03

On a thin‑and‑light business laptop, “light load” really does mean very low power draw — the AC adapter easily covers it, so the battery stays at 99–100 % unless a charge‑limit setting is active.

Your Nitro AN515‑45 is different. Even when you’re just browsing, the high‑power iGPU in this Ryzen/GeForce platform can consume well over 100 W in certain conditions. Background tasks, display refresh rate, and GPU activity can all keep the system draw high enough that the battery briefly supplements the adapter. That’s why you see small drops (100 → 97 → 94 %) even when you think you’re under “light” load — it’s the power delivery system doing its job, not a fault.

Your reported 15 % wear after one year is within the normal range for a lithium‑ion pack in a gaming laptop. The only time to be concerned is if:

The discharge slope in a Windows battery report is shallow even under moderate load
Backup time is under ~1 hour and wear is over 50 %

For best performance, keep the adapter connected whenever possible. Modern charging logic prevents overcharging, and small percentage drops under load are expected behavior on this class of hardware.

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