I'm only using my N800 now as a webcam viewer at my desk, so it is basically on AC 24/7. What can be done to save the battery life, can it be removed and still work off AC? Or does it not get used when AC is on anyway?

No, you can't remove it. I'd just make peace with killing that battery, and maybe try to discharge it a bit once a month or so.

Two choices:

Buy a spare battery so you can use one for mobile and one always plugged in.

Use Android. AFAIK, it runs fine without a battery inserted, at least when I tested it.


Question: If it is only a webcam viewer, then why care about battery life?

While it’s probably less than ideal for the battery, I think you'll be surprised just how little damage to it will do.

The common wisdom that you should let your battery run down before charging applies to Nickel Cadmium batteries, not to the Lithium ion battery in the tablet. In fact running a lithium ion all the way down is worse for it.

I often have my phone plugged in to power for long stretches as it provides internet to my tablet, and I haven’t noticed the battery wearing out any faster than expected.

Probably the best thing you can do, is make sure the screen turns off at night or when you're not using it. The longer you screen is on, the more hours a day it has to spend charging. And hey, it's a tiny bit better for the environment.

I have my n800 always on with AC because it's basically an internet radio device by now, and those times I unplug it the battery is OK and seems to keep charge.

Lithium batteries are sensitive to heat when they're at 100% charge, they degrade a bit then. But the N800 is quite cool so there's not much need to worry. Laptops, on the other hand, are warm enough that running them on mains with the battery in is not good at all.

Well I'd like to keep the battery good on it in case I ever use it for something else or resell it.

Is Android fully functional on the N800 now??

You could probably pick up an old, "useless" battery at shipping cost, and use that while on AC, and put the good battery in the fridge...