Apple Watch long-term (decade or more) battery longevity

[jimmy fudderman]

I tend to hang on to devices that have become outdated and aren't worth much to resell or trade in, but I have a concern with the Apple Watch in regards to the battery. There have been reports of rechargeable batteries in devices such as the PSP swelling and sometimes bursting as they age. Is there a chance this could happen with the Apple Watch?

I have a Series 1, for example, and the trade-in value is not high, so I'd rather just keep it in my collection, but I don't enjoy the prospect of finding it some day in 5 years with the screen popped off and the battery leaking all over the shelf. What do?

 

[weaztek]

Good question. I own a ton of battery-powered electronics. The only battery bursts I've ever had are on my 2008 MacBook Pro. The OEM and 3rd party replacement battery both burst (without incident).

 

[wilberforce]

Yes, there are reports of swollen AW batteries.

Apple Now Offering Free Repairs of 42mm Apple Watch Series 2 Models With Swollen Batteries

Apple will repair select Apple Watch Series 2 models that do not power on or have a swollen battery free of charge as part of a new service policy. ...

www.macrumors.com

Apple Sued Over Swollen Batteries in Apple Watches

New Jersey resident Gina Priano-Keyser has filed a proposed class action lawsuit against Apple this week in U.S. district court, accusing the company...

www.macrumors.com

I would not count on AW battery more than 5 years. It is not a good collectible - at least not as a functioning collectible.
You can get the battery replaced ($79 in U.S., for example), but battery replacement may not be supported once the watch is considered obsolete by Apple.

 

[jm31828]

Yes, there are reports of swollen AW batteries.

Apple Now Offering Free Repairs of 42mm Apple Watch Series 2 Models With Swollen Batteries

Apple will repair select Apple Watch Series 2 models that do not power on or have a swollen battery free of charge as part of a new service policy. ...

www.macrumors.com

Apple Sued Over Swollen Batteries in Apple Watches

New Jersey resident Gina Priano-Keyser has filed a proposed class action lawsuit against Apple this week in U.S. district court, accusing the company...

www.macrumors.com

I would not count on AW battery more than 5 years. It is not a good collectible - at least not as a functioning collectible.
You can get the battery replaced ($79 in U.S., for example), but battery replacement may not be supported once the watch is considered obsolete by Apple.

And that $79 battery replacement is more than the series 1 is worth.

I have a series 1 that I bought in 2016, and so far so good- the battery seems to last almost as long as it did when I got it.

 

[BigMcGuire]

I tend to hang on to devices that have become outdated and aren't worth much to resell or trade in, but I have a concern with the Apple Watch in regards to the battery. There have been reports of rechargeable batteries in devices such as the PSP swelling and sometimes bursting as they age. Is there a chance this could happen with the Apple Watch?

I have a Series 1, for example, and the trade-in value is not high, so I'd rather just keep it in my collection, but I don't enjoy the prospect of finding it some day in 5 years with the screen popped off and the battery leaking all over the shelf. What do?

I had an AW3 for several years and it was then that I wanted to upgrade, so we did to the AW5. From the AW5 we traded these in to Apple and got AW6.

The swelling battery issues are rare. There is a chance this could happen with the Apple Watch - imo, it's rare. I see it here on Macrumors but do not know anyone that has had that happen to them outside of macrumors (I know quite a few AW owners).

As others have stated, I don't think Apple Watches make great collectors items. If you want to keep it for a long time, just let the battery drain and put it up somewhere. These things are not designed to last a long time imo - not like normal watches anyway.

I imagine heat stresses the battery significantly. So as long as you don't leave it in the sun should be fine? I know friends who have old phones - they just let the battery completely drain and put it in a drawer. Seems to last pretty well that way.

 

[nickdalzell1]

With all the devices I have that use Li-Ion batteries, the only time one has pillowed out on me was when I had my Galaxy S5 doing duty as an internet hotspot before I got a full-on cable modem. It sat there plugged in 24/7 with hotspot mode on and I never paid it any attention and one day I caught it tilted to one side, picked it up, and the battery had popped the back cover off. I replaced the battery (removable battery FTW Samsung!) and everything's fine, and I don't leave things plugged in like that anymore. Could have ended badly if I weren't careful though.

Usually a battery needs physical abuse to swell up like that, such as severe overcharging, physical force, or a dead-short. This video is a great example of #2, at the very end. Hilarious too

 

[wilberforce]

The swelling battery issues are rare.

Swollen batteries on Macbooks are fairly common. Or at least it used to be. Happened to my 2015 Macbook Pro, and I replaced the battery myself with a third party battery before it had done any real damage. First the bottom of the Macbook starts bulging out, then if ignored it starts pushing up the trackpad, at which point it is toast.
I have seen swollen batteries in Airpod cases, too.
Keeping a device permanently on a charger at 100% greatly increases the risk of a swollen battery. Fortunately this is not usually the case for the Apple Watch, but is a caution for those that think that leaving an Apple Watch on a charger for an extended time (like weeks) is a good idea: it is not.

Apple says this, quote:

If you want to store your device long term, two key factors will affect the overall health of your battery: the environmental temperature and the percentage of charge on the battery when it’s powered down for storage. Therefore, we recommend the following:

• Do not fully charge or fully discharge your device’s battery — charge it to around 50%. If you store a device when its battery is fully discharged, the battery could fall into a deep discharge state, which renders it incapable of holding a charge. Conversely, if you store it fully charged for an extended period of time, the battery may lose some capacity, leading to shorter battery life.
• Power down the device to avoid additional battery use.
• Place your device in a cool, moisture-free environment that’s less than 90° F (32° C).
• If you plan to store your device for longer than six months, charge it to 50% every six months.

 

[nickdalzell1]

Since mine is only on the charger for an hour after I wake up, I suppose I'm not doing anything wrong.

 

[edit]

I tend to hang on to devices that have become outdated and aren't worth much to resell or trade in, but I have a concern with the Apple Watch in regards to the battery. There have been reports of rechargeable batteries in devices such as the PSP swelling and sometimes bursting as they age. Is there a chance this could happen with the Apple Watch?

I have a Series 1, for example, and the trade-in value is not high, so I'd rather just keep it in my collection, but I don't enjoy the prospect of finding it some day in 5 years with the screen popped off and the battery leaking all over the shelf. What do?

My advice would be given my experience and tests I've done :

- keep the battery charged, don't let it go down to 0% and forget about it for very long periods of time (many months)

- charge the battery to 70-75% turn the watch off and try to recharge it before it goes all the way down to 0%. Ideal would by to charge it to 50% but it goes down pretty fast even if the watch is off... I don't think you have the stamina to check and charge the watch every 3-4 weeks. For instance on my AW5 the battery drains like 0.60-0.70% per day when the watch is off. That translates to around 18-21% per month... so it will need a recharge every 2 months to keep the battery very happy

- keep the watch at a good temp between 50 and 80F if possible