HP LA04 Replacement Laptop Battery | 14.8V 38Wh 4-Cell for Pavilion 14 15 TouchSmart 248 G1 340 G1 Series

Q1: Is the LA04 interchangeable with the LA03 or LA03DF?
No — and this is the most important compatibility check on this platform. LA04 is a 4-cell, 14.8V pack delivering 38Wh. LA03 / LA03DF is a 3-cell, 10.8V–11.1V pack delivering approximately 28Wh. They share the same physical bay and latch mechanism, but the voltage rails are different. A 14.8V LA04 installed in a chassis expecting 11.1V will not be recognized by the BMS — the laptop will report no battery detected and will not charge the pack. The identification method takes five seconds: read the label on the original battery. It will clearly show either LA03 or LA04 and the voltage. Wholesale buyers who instruct their repair shop customers to perform this check before ordering see near-zero voltage-mismatch returns on this SKU.

Q2: Does the LA04 come in both black and silver — and does the color actually matter?
Yes to both questions. HP sold the Pavilion 14-N and 15-N/F chassis in configurations with either a black or silver external battery housing. The color difference is cosmetic, not functional — a black LA04 will operate identically in a silver-bay chassis. However, since the external battery is visible on the underside of the laptop in normal use, color mismatch is a genuine customer complaint in the repair market, particularly for shops that return devices in as-close-to-original condition as possible. We stock both variants. When placing a bulk order, specify the color split required — for example, 70% black / 30% silver — and we pack each variant in separately labeled inner cartons within the master shipment.

Q3: The Pavilion 14-N and 15-F/N are old machines. Is there still consistent wholesale demand for LA04?
Yes, for reasons that are often underestimated by suppliers focused on the North American retail market. First, these machines shipped in very large global volumes between 2013 and 2015 — particularly in Latin America, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe, where hardware refresh cycles are typically 7–10 years rather than 3–4. Repair shops serving these markets see steady LA04 demand that does not appear in US-centric market data. Second, secondary market refurbishers and budget-laptop resellers actively maintain these machines because the hardware still runs modern lightweight software adequately. The replacement battery window for this fleet is wide and not yet closing.

Q4: Some LA04 listings show 41Wh while others show 38Wh — which is correct?
38Wh at 14.8V / 2,600mAh is the HP service specification for the standard LA04 production unit. The 41Wh figure appearing in some listings typically refers to an extended-capacity variant (occasionally listed as LA04XL or simply inflated by third-party sellers). For procurement teams doing incoming QC: test at 0.5C discharge rate with a lab charger — a genuine 38Wh pack returns 36–40Wh at room temperature. Consistent readings above 42Wh on a unit labeled LA04 standard are a signal to verify the cell specification with your supplier before accepting the batch.

Q5: Can we order both black and silver LA04 variants in a single purchase order?
Yes. Mixed-color orders are supported within a single PO. We pack black and silver units in separately labeled inner cartons within the same master shipment, with each color variant identified on the packing list. The Certificate of Conformance covers both color variants as a single LA04 SKU since the cell specification, BMS, and all electrical parameters are identical between the two. For recurring orders with a consistent color split, we can pre-set your account’s default color ratio to eliminate the need to specify it on every reorder.

Q6: What is your lead time and minimum batch size for LA04 wholesale orders?
We maintain standing finished-goods inventory on the LA04 in both black and silver. Standard batch orders ship within 3–5 business days. For accounts with predictable monthly volume, we offer a standing order program with locked per-unit pricing and weekly fulfillment scheduling — this is particularly useful for repair chains and secondary market resellers whose LA04 demand is steady but not easily forecasted in advance. Contact our sales team with your estimated monthly volume to discuss standing order terms and tiered pricing structure.