Help Please, Dell Latitude D600

[angelina]

i have a dell latitude D600 laptop, today i unplugged the charger and brought it downstairs, plugged it in again and the battery sign flashed up as though needing to be charged, so i turned it on and its still flashing, even though it says its 97% charged, when i do unplug the charger my laptop shuts down! do i need a new charger or Battery??

[rmm59]

From the User Guide to the D600

Health Gauge
The battery operating time is largely determined by the number of times it is charged. After hundreds of charge and discharge cycles, batteries lose some charge capacity, or battery health. To check the battery health, press and hold the status button on the battery charge gauge for at least 3 seconds. If no lights appear, the battery is in good condition, and more than 80 percent of its original charge capacity remains. Each light represents incremental degradation. If five lights appear, less than 60 percent of the charge capacity remains, and you should consider replacing the battery

[PIPER]