Discover Mobility Center in Windows 7

One of the most interesting things about using Windows 7 operating system on a laptop is the most important configuration options of the laptop are separated in a separate utility.

Network Administration - One of the most interesting things about using Windows 7 operating system on a laptop is the most important configuration options of the laptop are separated in a separate utility. This utility, called the Windows Mobility Center, is the place to go first when we want to configure the laptop method to work.

Mobility Center was first introduced in Windows Vista, then continued to be integrated into Windows 7 with some improvements. Before Windows Vista was released, we had to access various areas to configure the laptop, but now we just need to use this utility to set up the necessary configuration.

To launch Mobility Center, go to the Start menu | All Programs | Accessories | Windows Mobility Center as shown in Figure 1. (We can also access the Mobility Center from Control Panel).

Discover Mobility Center in Windows 7 Picture 1

Figure 1: Managing important laptop settings in Windows Mobility Center.

Mobility Center includes several tables with the following settings:

Brightness : Adjust the brightness of the laptop screen.
Volume : Adjust the sound volume.
Battery Status : Displays the current charging status of the laptop while allowing to change the selected power plan.
Wireless Network : Displays the current Wifi status, and allows to enable or disable the laptop's Wifi adapter.
External Display : Allows us to connect a laptop to an external monitor.
Sync Center : Allows us to connect laptops to other devices, such as Flash memory, and synchronize files between these two devices.
Presentation Settings : Allows us to enable special presentation settings for laptops.

In addition to these tables, some other laptop vendors also use their own tables on Mobility Center. For example, Toshiba added some tables for Lock Computer and a utility that supports Toshiba Assist. Other vendors rename some of these tables, as Dell uses Display Settings instead of Brightness tables.

Brightness table

Brightness is the first panel in the Mobility Center, and it allows quick adjustments to the brightness of the screen by moving the slider to either side.

If you move the cursor over the display icon, this icon will turn into a command button. When you click on this button Windows will open the Power Options window, where we can change the brightness on the power settings.

Volume

Next to the Brightness panel in the Mobility Center is the Volume table. This panel includes a slider to adjust the volume and a selection box that allows to quickly turn the sound on and off.
Like the Brightness panel, this table also has a hidden function. When you click on the graphics speaker, then Windows will open the Sound dialog box. Here we can change all audio settings for laptops.

Battery status

Next is the Battery Status panel. This panel performs two functions, which is to display the current charging level for the laptop's battery and to allow the change of Windows power settings.

When operating the battery-operated machine, the display of the remaining battery amount displayed in the form of graphics and percentage (%) is displayed above the display.

The Battery Status panel also allows us to change the Windows Power Plan (power consumption plan) for a laptop. Power Plan is a combination of settings that impact the laptop's power consumption. We can choose an optimal Power Plan for battery life (how to reduce screen brightness), or optimize performance (reduce battery life).

When scrolling down the Power Plan list in the Mobolity Center, we will see 3 Plan options available: Power Saver, Balanced and High Performance. The default settings for each Power Plan are shown as follows:

Power Plan of Windows 7

Install the Power Saver Plan Balanced Plan High Performance Plan

Turn off the screen
(Battery Mode)

3 minutes 5 minutes 20 minutes Hibernation
(Battery Mode)

Screen brightness
(Battery Mode)

Turn off the screen
(AC Mode) 15 minutes

40%

20 minutes 15 minutes

40%

20 minutes 60 minutes

100%

20 minutes Hibernation
(AC Mode) 60 minutes 60 minutes without Screen Brightness
(AC Mode) 100% 100% 100% Function Save battery Save battery and increase performance Run high-performance applications
For most users, Balanced Plan is a perfect combination of battery life and performance. However, Power Saver Plan can help us increase battery life, and High Performance Plan is the best choice when using external power source (AC Mode).

In addition, we can click on the graphic icon of the battery in the system tray to open the Power Options window when we want to edit the parameters of the Power Plan, or create our own Power Plan.

Wireless Network

The Mobility Center's Wireless Network table provides the following three main functions:

First, it displays the status of the current Wi-Fi connection whether we are connected or not.

Second, the Wireless Network panel allows us to quickly turn on and off the connection with just a click of the Turn Wireless Off / Turn Wireless On button.

Third, when moving the cursor on the icon that shows the status of the connection, this icon turns into a command button, when clicking on this button will appear a table listing all existing Wifi connections. There, we can connect to any network on the list, or open Windows' Network and Sharing Center to manage all network connections as shown in Figure 2.

Discover Mobility Center in Windows 7 Picture 2

Figure 2: Existing Wifi network connections.

External Display

If you want to connect an external monitor or a projector to a computer, you can do so via the External Display panel of the Mobility Center. When you click the Connect Display button, the following options will appear:

Computer Only . Only display images on the integrated screen, leave External Display blank. Select this option when you do not want to use an external display device.
Duplicate . Display the same image on the display device in and out. This is an appropriate option if you want to connect the projector to a computer.
Extend . This option allows us to create a large screen including the screen on the computer and the external monitor. We can then move the mouse from one screen to another as if these two screens were combined as one. Select this option when we are using a computer monitor and an external monitor to work.
Projector Only . Only display images on external display devices without using the screen on the system.

Discover Mobility Center in Windows 7 Picture 3

Figure 3: Modes in External Display.

In addition, we can also change the orientation, resolution of the screen inside and outside.

Presentation Settings

Many entrepreneurs often use computers during presentations. Of course, then we don't want the screen saver to automatically activate or the computer will turn itself off if there is no action for a certain period of time. In other words, then we want to turn the laptop into a dedicated presentation tool.

We can do this by activating Windows Presentation Settings. In this mode, the computer will always operate, the screen saver mode is disabled, and all system notifications are turned off, making the presentation uninterrupted.

To activate this mode, simply click the Turn On button in the Presentation Settings panel of the Mobility Center, and click Turn Off to turn it off.

If you want to edit the settings, just click on the projector's graphic icon, then the Presentation Settings dialog box will appear. Here we can choose to turn on or off screen saver mode, volume settings during presentations, and display separate wallpapers.

Discover Mobility Center in Windows 7 Picture 4

Figure 4: Presentation installation dialog box.

Sync Center

The last table in Mobility Center is Sync Center to help synchronize data. The Sync Center allows us to synchronize data between folders in two different addresses, for example, between a home and office network, or between a computer and an external connected play device. To access this feature, click the Sync Settings button to open the Sync Settings window and then follow the instructions on it.