There are battery saving options you can set. Go into "my computer" to find. Shut down HD, slow processor, dim display, etc. 

Another option may be a larger battery 9 cell.

If your'e adventurous go to www.cnet.com & look for speedup my PC. Scour the registry file & others to cut down file access and other background tasks that make the PC "feel" smoother.  

I bought a bottom end HP last year & get 1.5 hrs with the smaller battery & no power saving features activated. (I usually have it plugged in.)

If you really want longer battery life get a business grade laptop they have lower power processors, 13" screens, cost more, etc. Not much for movies or pictures but will power a word or excel file a long time.