Ok so I just pulled what I assumed to be an original lithium button cell from a system 3 gottleib board. I wanted to install a holder and replace the cell. I completed the work and wanted to check the voltage for giggles. It tested 3.34 volts yet! 20 yr old cell still good? It looked original, it was soldered in. Still holding memory without a problem, but I hate the unknown. Maybe it had been replaced, but it would’ve had to be done with original replacement parts then. Just blew me away. Wondering if anybody else has had unexpected life results with their batteries.

Just blows me away that lithium’s last so long, and alkalines take a crap after a relatively quick period of time. Maybe it’s because I was dealing with a more modern architecture and it’s power load is less.

Maybe I’ll go nvram route next. For now it has a new onboard button cell holder and battery. So how often should I replace a lithium, every 5 yrs? Also I have lithium aa’s in my bsd. Are those similar or more frequent. I know alkalines are annual, but what about the aa format lithium’s?

The game I changed the battery on is my strikes n spares, which is from 1995, at the end of the run for system 3. This machine was on route when I bought it. Assuming it spent most of its life on route, possibly powered on most of its life, that may account for the long battery life. It just wasn’t draining enough.