How to replace the battery in the HP EliteBook 1040 G10

You can extend the life of the HP EliteBook 1040 by swapping out the battery, and save a lot of money while doing so.

HP’s laptops are some of the best laptops money can buy, and if you’re a business user, you’re no doubt familiar with the EliteBook series. One of the latest and greatest members of the family is the HP EliteBook 1040 G10, a sleek laptop with 13th-generation Intel Core processors and other great specs. However, as great as it is, all laptops age, and in a few years, you might find that the battery in the HP EliteBook 1040 G10 is no longer keeping up, and you might think to replace it.

With most laptops, that’s not always easy, but HP is pretty transparent about how to replace the laptop’s battery. To be clear, the company says an authorized service provider should do this, but if you feel like doing it yourself, we’re here to show you how.

What you’ll need

Before you get started tearing apart your laptop, you’ll have to make sure you have all the tools you need. To get inside your laptop, you’ll need a Philips screwdriver and a non-conductive prying tool to help you remove the bottom cover. These are fairly easy to come by, but iFixit’s Essential Electronics Toolkit is a great way to get everything you need. We’d also advise you to use an anti-static wrist strap to prevent electrostatic discharges inside your laptop while you work on it.

Finally, of course, you need the battery itself, and there are two options available, one being a 38Whr unit and the other a larger 51Whr. You can find these on the HP parts store, which is the most reliable place to buy replacement parts, though you can try to find them elsewhere. The 38Whr battery has part number M73468-005 and the 51Whr version has part number M73466-005, so you can look around for them.

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  iFixit Essential Electronics Toolkit

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  iFixit Anti-Static Wrist Strap

HP also warns that when you remove the bottom cover of the laptop, it’s ideal to clean and replace the thermal material placed on the WWAN (cellular) module, so you might want to buy some thermal paste if you want to follow those steps. If your model doesn’t have cellular connectivity, you can safely ignore this, but you might want some thermal paste if you do have a cellular-enabled version.

How to replace the battery in the HP EliteBook 1040 G10

Now that you have all the tools you need, you’re ready to replace the battery inside the HP EliteBook 1040 G10. During this process, make sure to keep all the screws of the same size together and avoid mixing them.

1. Power off the laptop completely and unplug it from the charger. Close it and lay it upside down with the hinge facing away from you.
2. Use the Philips screwdriver to remove the five screws holding the bottom cover in place.

   

   Source: HP

3. Use a non-conductive prying tool to detach the bottom cover from the laptop, starting around the hinge until it’s fully loosened. Then, lift the cover and remove it entirely.

   

   Source: HP

4. The battery is at the bottom of the laptop. Disconnect the battery cable from the motherboard; it’s slightly to the right at the top of the battery itself.
5. Use the Philips screwdriver to remove the four screws along the top of the battery holding it in place.
6. Lift up the battery from the top and remove it.

   

   Source: HP

7. Insert the new battery in the same position as the old one and secure it with the four screws you removed in step 5. Avoid overtightening the screws so as to not damage the motherboard.
8. Connect the battery cable to the motherboard.
9. (Optional) Before re-assembling the laptop, clean the thermal material on the WWAN module and on the bottom cover area that makes contact with it, then apply a fresh coat of thermal material.
10. Attach the bottom cover in the original position, making sure it snaps completely into place.
11. Secure the bottom cover using the five screws you removed in step 2.

And that’s it! Before using the laptop, you might want to plug it in and let the battery charge for a while to make sure it’s fully functional. Once it’s all done, your laptop will be back to the battery life it used to have, and it can last you a few more years without having to throw it away. This procedure can actually save a lot of money since you don’t have to buy a new laptop when the old battery starts to go. After all, the processor will probably still be pretty good by the time the battery starts degrading.

If knowing this process made you a little more confident in buying an HP EliteBook 1040 G10 for yourself, you can do it below. Or check out other great laptops from HP if this doesn’t seem like the one for you.

Source: HP

HP EliteBook 1040 G10

$1299 $1799 Save $500

The HP EliteBook 1040 G10 is a solid, if somewhat pricey, 14-inch business laptop. It sports the latest 13th-generation Intel Core processors, which offer good performance for work and multitasking. It also offers nice upgrade options, including a Quad HD+ display.