What does this laptop key do?

[nite_monkey]

Its driving me crazy! I got a new laptop recently, and I noticed this one key on it that I have no clue what it does. I looked all over the interwebs, but couldn't figure it out. It is on the F2 key, and it looks like a battery with a lightening bolt inside it. I have tried pushing it both on battery power, and on ac power and it doesn't seem to do anything. the little moon button beside it works, so it isn't that the Fn keys don't work, so can someone tell me what it does?
edit: made the image smaller... and added "pretty" arrows to it.
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[Deozaan]

On my netbook, it puts the machine into Battery Saver mode, which dims the contrast and makes the netbook go to sleep after a minute of inactivity.

[nite_monkey]

hm, I turned the brightness up to max and pushed it, but it didn't change the brightness, I will see if it makes the computer go to sleep after a minute
edit: I dunno, it doesn't seem to do anything on mine

[mouser]

note: the button might be ignored when the laptop isnt on battery power.

[nite_monkey]

note: the button might be ignored when the laptop isnt on battery power.

I tried it while on battery power.

[40hz]

On most machines I'm familiar with, that key is either mapped to the power management control panel or an OEM variant of the same. I have also seen it set up to display a pop-up battery meter.

[ljbirns]

F2 on my computer turns wireless on or off

[mouser]

it might require special software to do anything -- if you've done a new OS install without the drivers and utilities that came with your laptop, it's possible that it currently has no effect.

[nite_monkey]

It came straight from dell's website, and I have all the drivers still installed. I did change the power settings though, but I wouldn't think that would change it. Are those Fn keys mapped in the registry somewhere? I know that the media keys on my desktop keyboard are mapped in the registry.

[40hz]

it might require special software to do anything -- if you've done a new OS install without the drivers and utilities that came with your laptop, it's possible that it currently has no effect.

It came straight from dell's website, and I have all the drivers still installed. I did change the power settings though, but I wouldn't think that would change it. Are those Fn keys mapped in the registry somewhere? I know that the media keys on my desktop keyboard are mapped in the registry.

Didn't Dell have (or used to have) a utility called Quickset that, among other things, allowed you to map various things to the function keys. If I recall correctly that was what assigned all the little "icon" function keys (i.e. <Fn> + <icons on the keyboard>).

Is Quickset installed?

[Jimdoria]

If it's a new machine, with all the factory-installed stuff from Dell, why don't you just open up the user guide app that Dell installs and look up what the function keys are for?

In other words, RTFM.

[40hz]

If it's a new machine, with all the factory-installed stuff from Dell, why don't you just open up the user guide app that Dell installs and look up what the function keys are for?

In other words, RTFM.

Actually, I don't think it's listed in the User Guide.

(Does that make it more like a FRTM? )

[Deozaan]

hm, I turned the brightness up to max and pushed it, but it didn't change the brightness, I will see if it makes the computer go to sleep after a minute
edit: I dunno, it doesn't seem to do anything on mine

The button on my netbook actually looks different than the one in your picture. I think my wife's laptop (also from Dell) has a button like yours and it doesn't do anything either. But we've done a full wipe and reinstall on her machine since she got it.

[nite_monkey]

Didn't Dell have (or used to have) a utility called Quickset that, among other things, allowed you to map various things to the function keys. If I recall correctly that was what assigned all the little "icon" function keys (i.e. <Fn> + <icons on the keyboard>).

Is Quickset installed?

I think that is a used to have utility, because both mine, and my sister's (which is a year or two old) doesn't have that.

I guess it isn't to big of a deal anyways.

[steeladept]

It came straight from dell's website, and I have all the drivers still installed. I did change the power settings though, but I wouldn't think that would change it. Are those Fn keys mapped in the registry somewhere? I know that the media keys on my desktop keyboard are mapped in the registry.

Actually, it depends on what you changed.  It may well have something to do with it.  This is only a trigger key to impliment some power setting changes as defined in the power settings configuration.  If you turned those settings off, it will trigger nothing and hence appear to do nothing.  To see it, you likely want to setup the power settings to Portable/Laptop, with the monitor, hard drives, and most of all system standby set to some time - 10 minutes maybe.  If this does what the buttons on my keyboard used to do, it will shortcut those times and put it in a lower power setting in less than the 10 minutes it shows.

Of course you can always remap it yourself to whatever you want.   Me, I would just have it open the properties so I could change them manually, or use it as a hotkey for another power manager to change to a different saved scheme all together.