How To Get The Most Out Of Your Phone’s Battery
If you’ve noticed that over time your phone doesn’t hold its charge like it used to, that’s down to the lithium-ion batteries losing how much charge they can hold the more they are used.
Replacing lithium-ion batteries is not easy, so it’s much better to care for them in the right way from the start. Here are some tips for getting the most out of your phone’s battery and extending the life of your phone.
No more 0 to 100
We were once told to allow our phones to drain right down to almost nothing before charging, and then to charge fully up to 100 per cent. This was why most of us charged our phones overnight, and it’s probably why many of us still do. But this advice was before lithium-ion batteries. Old phone batteries worked this way because calibrating their memory with 0 to 100 charges made them work better, but lithium-ion batteries don’t have a memory to calibrate. In fact, they actually experience the most stress when they are either fully charged or at zero. To extend the life of your battery, wait util your phone is around 30 per cent charged – certainly not below 20 per cent – and then charge it to around 80-90 per cent. This keeps your battery at a comfortable level.
Slow and steady
Super-fast and wireless charging are convenient in today’s busy lives, there’s no denying that. But both of these are bad for your battery, and when combined, your battery life suffers. Instead, when you can, opt for a regular charger and let it do its thing slowly. Even better is charging your phone through your laptop or computer – the slow charge puts a lot less stress on your battery and means it lasts longer.
Take your phone’s temperature
If you’ve ever been out on a hot day and noticed your phone spontaneously shut down, or you’ve been out in the snow and noticed the same thing, this is because your battery doesn’t like extreme temperatures. It might not be possible to avoid extremes in temperature all the time, but it’s worth remembering not to leave your phone laying around on the beach with the sun on it. And if it’s cold, keep your phone wrapped in a scarf or in a warm pocket.
Turn down the brightness
It probably comes as no surprise to hear that your screen is the thing that eats up most of your battery. It’s a simple thing, but turning down the brightness on your screen will save energy use and make less demands from your battery. Sometimes you can set it to the lowest level of brightness and still be able to use your phone just fine, depending on the light at the time. But most of us aren’t that obsessive, so turn on the Auto Brightness setting will do the job just fine.
Monitor your battery’s health
Depending which phone you have, there may be an inbuilt function that shows you how your battery is performing. If there isn’t, there’s an app for that. Download a battery health app that gives background information on how your battery’s doing, so you have a better idea of how to extend its life.
Manage your apps
Some apps use more energy than others, and some of the settings on some apps use more energy than they need to. For example, Facebook might be tracking your location and constantly showing you notifications you don’t need to know about. This drains your battery fast, and unless you’re a professional social butterfly, you probably don’t need those extras. Go through your apps and take a look at what’s going on. You can restrict permissions on your apps, or you might find you downloaded some apps you no longer use. Delete any you don’t want clogging up your phone, and set your battery free.
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