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bballers29

macrumors member
Original poster
Mar 10, 2014
76
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I just bought the new SE and already have a wireless charging pad. I hear mixed things about wireless charging harming a phone's battery. I definitely love the idea of wireless charging but would avoid it if I knew I was degrading the battery at a faster rate. Thanks.
 
It's not the wireless charging that degrades the battery but the heat generated during charging.

Heat is one main consideration. You have to look at it in cycles. How many times is the user charging the phone on the wireless charger on a daily basis? So when you have the inconsistency of somebody that charges the phone let’s say ‘9x day on the wireless charger throughout the day, you have that constant cycle of where the battery is exposed to levels of higher heat, then removed, rinse and repeat. That’s what’s unhealthy for the battery, it’s not just the heat, but the cycles of exposing the battery to elevated thermal and then taking it off the charger.

Wireless charging has its advantages, but long-term effects, I would not recommend it. I actually just prefer ‘wired charging‘.
 
Heat is one main consideration. You have to look at it in cycles. How many times is the user charging the phone on the wireless charger on a daily basis? So when you have the inconsistency of somebody that charges the phone let’s say ‘9x day on the wireless charger throughout the day, you have that constant cycle of where the battery is exposed to levels of higher heat, then removed, rinse and repeat. That’s what’s unhealthy for the battery, it’s not just the heat, but the cycles of exposing the battery to elevated thermal and then taking it off the charger.

Wireless charging has its advantages, but long-term effects, I would not recommend it. I actually just prefer ‘wired charging‘.

That’s interesting to hear. I usually put my phone on a wireless charger right before I go to bed at anywhere from 20-40% battery life left. It’s just as easy to plug it in, so maybe I’ll go back to that method. I don’t charge at all throughout the day.
 
That’s interesting to hear. I usually put my phone on a wireless charger right before I go to bed at anywhere from 20-40% battery life left. It’s just as easy to plug it in, so maybe I’ll go back to that method. I don’t charge at all throughout the day.

In your situation, that’s probably fine. Charging it before you go to bed and then leaving it there shouldn’t have any ‘negative direct’ effect long-term. If you’re charging your device continuously on/off throughout the whole day on a wireless charger, I would say that’s more damaging Short-term then say leaving your phone for XYZ hours consistently before you’re ready to use it again.
 
I wouldn’t count on anecdotes. While wireless charging produces a higher temperature potentially many devices get warm with normal cable charging too.
On the upside it feeds the battery much slower which may be an advantage by itself.

Unless somebody comes up with a field study with a proper sample size there’s no real take away here.
 
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In your situation, that’s probably fine. Charging it before you go to bed and then leaving it there shouldn’t have any ‘negative direct’ effect long-term. If you’re charging your device continuously on/off throughout the whole day on a wireless charger, I would say that’s more damaging Short-term then say leaving your phone for XYZ hours consistently before you’re ready to use it again.

Thanks for the thoughts!
 
I tend to charge my phone overnight connected to a cable.
I have a wireless charging stand on my desk for the off top up, and I do notice it gets quite warm when wireless charging, so I don't use it as much TBH.
 
One might think the entire purpose of wireless charging is to promote forum discussions, it will keep coming up again and again. And again. X will offer his view and Y will strongly disagree, that's how it goes.
To the OP I say this, use your phone how you want to use it, charge it however you choose. Whatever, it will have a finite life and then you get the (possibly slightly guilty) pleasure of choosing a new one. Luvvly jubbly.
 
Does charging from 20-30% to 100% generate more heat because charging will take longer time compared to frequent short recharges?
Heat is one main consideration. You have to look at it in cycles. How many times is the user charging the phone on the wireless charger on a daily basis? So when you have the inconsistency of somebody that charges the phone let’s say ‘9x day on the wireless charger throughout the day, you have that constant cycle of where the battery is exposed to levels of higher heat, then removed, rinse and repeat. That’s what’s unhealthy for the battery, it’s not just the heat, but the cycles of exposing the battery to elevated thermal and then taking it off the charger.

Wireless charging has its advantages, but long-term effects, I would not recommend it. I actually just prefer ‘wired charging‘.
 
At $50 to replace the battery, I've come to the conclusion that it doesn't make any sense for me to worry about the health of my battery. I keep my phones for 4 years and get a battery replacement after 2. Problem solved. My launch day XS Max is at 92% right and will be getting a battery replacement 4 months from now. Could I be at 96% had I taken better care of the battery? Maybe, but what does it matter?
 
No. It even should be healthier for your battery because it charges your phone slower.
 
I remember reading an article from a reputable source which said that over time wireless charging effects the battery if heat is created
 
Hi all,

My experience with wireless charging with a new iPhone SE. In fact, my first experience of wireless charging ever.

Bought a dodocool cheapie wireless charger. Was recommended on digital trends website.

Not impressed, I can see why Apple are taking their time perfecting their wireless charging pad!

35 minutes, 18% increase in charge, and the phone was warm on the back.

I would not be happy leaving this phone overnight, or alone for ages on this wireless charger. No idea if the heat will get worse as time goes on.

Regards
Martin
 
I’ve got a few that work well, don’t heat up the phone etc however if you want it to charge faster the actual plug part will need to be upgraded from the standard 5w one or the one that came with the wireless charger, as I’d bet both are the same power output.

This is the one I use, no issues at all...

Fast Wireless Charger Fabric 10W / 7.5W / 5W Wireless Charging Stand Compatible with iPhone XR/Xs Max/Xs/X, Fast-Charging for Samsung Galaxy S10/S10+/S9/S9+ Note 10 (Black) https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07X8RXG69/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_MOwTEbEEVEXS4
 
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I’ve got a few that work well, don’t heat up the phone etc however if you want it to charge faster the actual plug part will need to be upgraded from the standard 5w one or the one that came with the wireless charger, as I’d bet both are the same power output.

This is the one I use, no issues at all...

Fast Wireless Charger Fabric 10W / 7.5W / 5W Wireless Charging Stand Compatible with iPhone XR/Xs Max/Xs/X, Fast-Charging for Samsung Galaxy S10/S10+/S9/S9+ Note 10 (Black) https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07X8RXG69/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_MOwTEbEEVEXS4

Hi O,

Does that charger of yours heat up the phone when the room temperature is warm/hot?

I just tried my doodlecool one again first thing this morning, when the room was cool. Left the phone for 40 minutes plus, and the phone charged up a bit, and was markedly less warm than it was yesterday. Seems to be a room temperature issue possibly.

How warm can the phone be before the it starts to damage the battery?
 
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I wouldn’t count on anecdotes. While wireless charging produces a higher temperature potentially many devices get warm with normal cable charging too.
On the upside it feeds the battery much slower which may be an advantage by itself.

Unless somebody comes up with a field study with a proper sample size there’s no real take away here.

There has been multiple studies on this actually and most of the times it seems the degradation rate will only affect user experience after about 2-3 years. Most people who actually bothers to buy a wireless charger replaces their devices by then. So collecting a sample size big enough where users have wireless charges and don’t replace their devices in 3 years is pretty difficult I’d say. This type of studies have to be voluntary. If an organisation paid people to keep their phone for more than they would like to then by definition that study is faulty and not really helpful in the real world. It’s a kind of no win situation really.

Having said that. I use wireless charger at work because it’s easier to just plop the phone on the charger while I’m at my desk and pick it up when I’m going away. I use an Anker charger which doubles up as a stand as well so I don’t need to pick up the device to check notifications.

At home I have a wireless charger but I never use it really.
 
I use wireless charger at work because it’s easier to just plop the phone on the charger while I’m at my desk and pick it up when I’m going away. I use an Anker charger which doubles up as a stand as well so I don’t need to pick up the device to check notifications.

At home I have a wireless charger but I never use it really.
I bought the Belkin Boost wireless charger that doubles as a stand. I have it by my bed for nighttime charging.

I also have one on my desk because I was expecting a battery life like my old SE that drained as soon as you looked at it. For the first couple of days, I popped my new SE on the stand as soon as I sat down. However, over the last couple of days I just haven't bothered because the battery is not draining like my old SE at all. In fact, I end the day with about 50% battery life left despite using my new SE identically to how I used my old SE.

I also picked up an AUKEY power bank with wireless charging so I can charge my new SE without cables when I'm away from home. That might have been a bit overkill (I do have other regular power banks), but I sometimes go crazy for new gadgets. Lol. 😃
 
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At $50 to replace the battery, I've come to the conclusion that it doesn't make any sense for me to worry about the health of my battery. I keep my phones for 4 years and get a battery replacement after 2. Problem solved. My launch day XS Max is at 92% right and will be getting a battery replacement 4 months from now. Could I be at 96% had I taken better care of the battery? Maybe, but what does it matter?

Do you get your battery replaced at 3rd party locations? Otherwise how are you managing to convince Apple to replace your battery at 92% life (even at your own expense)? From my experience, Apple will use their own diagnostic test when a consumer walks in asking for battery service, and will turn away the customer if Apple's test says the battery is over 80%, even if the customer is offering to pay the service price.
 
Do you get your battery replaced at 3rd party locations? Otherwise how are you managing to convince Apple to replace your battery at 92% life (even at your own expense)? From my experience, Apple will turn away anyone offering to pay for battery replacement if their black box test shows that the battery life is higher than 80%.

That’s not my experience. I’ve walked in whenever I wanted and paid for battery replacements.
 
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Once my phone is at 100% over night, my wireless charger stops charging for a while and it only tops it off every once in a while to keep it at 100%. It’s not like it’s always charging. There’s been a lot of times where I take it off the charger and it’s not warm.
 
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