What is an indication that a laptop's battery might be failing?

A key indication that a laptop's battery might be failing is when the battery doesn’t hold a charge for long. As batteries age or develop faults, their ability to maintain a charge diminishes, leading to shorter usage times between charges. Users may find their laptops need to be plugged in more frequently, or they may experience sudden drops in battery percentage. This is a clear sign that the battery’s capacity has degraded, indicating it may be time for replacement.

Other symptoms listed, such as screen flickering, longer boot times, or an unresponsive keyboard, can stem from various hardware or software issues and may not directly relate to battery health. Thus, when assessing battery problems specifically, the ability to hold a charge is a direct and well-established indicator of battery failure.