Smartphone owners told not to charge to 100% as expert gives surprise reason
An expert has warned smartphone users not to charge their devices to full capacity as it can actually cause it some harm.
An expert has revealed the way to make your mobile phone battery last longer. Interestingly, you are not advised by some experts to charge your phone all the way to 100 percent. It is frustrating when your phone battery starts running low and you don't have a wall socket nearby. It can actually cause quite a bit of stress, especially when we need our smartphones to make payments and get directions.
However, you shouldn't charge your mobile phone to 100 percent, according to one expert. Mark Patrick, Director of Technical Content at Mouser revealed that smartphone batteries are typically designed to hold a certain number of charges before they start to die for good. Users will notice this happening when their battery drains rapidly and their phone dies faster than it used to. However, there are ways we can better preserve our phone batteries, saving us money on battery replacements and even new devices.
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Mark revealed: "Most smartphone batteries are designed to handle around 500 to 800 full charge cycles.
"A charge cycle means using 100% of your battery’s capacity, whether that happens all at once or in smaller periods throughout the day. After those 500 to 800 cycles, your battery’s ability to hold a charge naturally begins to decline.
"So, if you’re charging your phone every day, you’re wearing out your battery in as little as 500 days, so under two years, which is why it suddenly feels like your phone can’t keep up anymore."
Instead of charging it all the way, Mark said that it is best to charge your phone up to around 80 per cent. Additionally, you shouldn't let it get below 20 per cent too often.
The tech expert revealed that going all the way to 100 percent or letting your battery hit zero introduces additional stress.
Although there are battery management systems inside your phone to help protect the battery, Mark says that sticking to the charge "sweet spot" between 20 and 80 percent keeps it happier for longer.
He also advises smartphone users to utilise their device's low battery mode feature when the phone is sitting idle, so it uses less battery power when you don't need it.
Additionally, Mark says that we should keep our phones up to date with the latest upgrades to make sure that it is taking advantage of smart energy use.