If you have to switch between different power plans regularly in the Windows operating system, you'd probably noticed that the switching options are not really that comfortable.
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You may want to switch between different plans depending on your work situation. Switch to power saving mode if your device is not connected to a power source and to high performance or balanced mode if it is. While Windows recognizes power sources and may switch to another plan based on that, it is not as flexible as using a third-party application.
To switch to a different power plan, you need to open the Windows control panel, select the Power Plan applet, and select a different power plan from the list of available plans.
Easy Power Plan Switcher
A program like Easy Power Plan Switcher improves the power switching process significantly, by moving it from the Control Panel to the system tray area instead. It is in this regard similar to Laptop Power Plan Assistant for Windows 7 and newer versions of the Windows operating system.
Once you have installed the program, you will notice the new system tray icon that you can access to switch the active power plan. The program picks ups all existing power plans, and makes them selectable with a single click.
A single-click on one of the available power plans makes it the active plan right away. You also see which plan is active right now in the interface, which may be helpful to determine whether everything is configured right, or if you need to change plans.
The program does not automatically start with the system. If you want that, you can configure it to do so with a click on the on entry under the run at system startup option.
If you have not configured additional power plans yet, you can use the system tray context menu to open the Windows Power Management applet to do so. All plans that you add are automatically displayed by the program, and changes that you make to exiting plans, are life immediately as well.
Easy Power Plan Switcher is only compatible with Windows Vista and newer versions of the Windows operating system, and not Windows XP or earlier. The program furthermore requires the Microsoft .Net Framework 4.0 to be installed on the system.
Closing Words
Easy Power Plan Switcher is a useful program for Windows users who need to switch between different power plans regularly.
I do not know about the WIndows Vista ot Windows 7 options, but in Windows 2000, Windows XP, and Windows Server 2003 family operating systems, a power options system tray icon can be used to select power schemes and show battery/plugged-in status.
This can be done by selecting the “Always show icon on the taskbar” option from the “Options” section of the “Advanced” tab of the Power Options dialog box.
I do not know about the WIndows Vista ot Windows 7 options, but in Windows 2000, Windows XP, and Windows Server 2003 family operating systems, a power options system tray icon can be used to select power schemes and show battery/plugged-in status.
This can be done by selecting the “Always show icon on the taskbar” option from the “Options” section of the “Advanced” tab of the Power Options dialog box.
I use BatteryCare for this, plus it shows temp of hdd and cpu.