Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

wannabelean

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Mar 18, 2009
361
10
Does doing so lower the battery performance or life? I'm talking about getting connecting the phone to the power when batt percentage shows like 50,60 or 70.
 
As long as you run the battery to zero once a month it doesn't matter what you do in between.

I didn't know that I should run the battery on my phone to zero once a month as once it gets below 10 %, I usually recharge the phone.
 
I only leave connected to charger during my bed time no matter how much battery is left at the end of day.
 
anytime im home and laying in bed, ill plug it in. and it stays plugged in all night long as well. it wont hurt the battery.
 
I didn't know that I should run the battery on my phone to zero once a month as once it gets below 10 %, I usually recharge the phone.

You don't. More mis-information on batteries than you can imagine. Use your phone. When it's convenient, charge it. Don't leave it on a charger it's entire not-being-used life.
 
so, does that mean you do not have to run the battery to 0 like some suggested?

Running it to 0 once a month or so is for calibration purposes. It's good from time to time to let the phone know what "empty" is. That will help your battery % stay more accurate.
 
Running it to 0 once a month or so is for calibration purposes. It's good from time to time to let the phone know what "empty" is. That will help your battery % stay more accurate.

Ah, thanks for the clarification!
 
I'm not doubting that calibrate stuff is accurate, but for most users, I would bet that plugging it in at bedtime no matter where the battery is at is just fine. If you don't have battery issues, there is no point in worrying about running your battery out once a month. I would also bet that most users do not do this and haven't needed to.
 
I'm not doubting that calibrate stuff is accurate, but for most users, I would bet that plugging it in at bedtime no matter where the battery is at is just fine. If you don't have battery issues, there is no point in worrying about running your battery out once a month. I would also bet that most users do not do this and haven't needed to.
It should be done either way, it's for optimal battery health.
 
I left my MacBook plugged in some years ago on my desk all the time and it toasted the battery. Definitely follow Apple's advice on calibration.
 
As long as you run the battery to zero once a month it doesn't matter what you do in between.

This is good advice for your 1999 battery for your camera, but not really pertinent now.

Sure but you should let the batt. run a full cycle every now and then.

This is probably closer to accurate.

Lithium ion batteries don't wear out based on how you treat them quite like rechargeable camera batteries, instead they have a lifespan over which they are good.
 
interesting ... many of us were educated to let battery runs to zero before recharging .. but i wonder why the info was not in the instruction booklet that came along with my iphone.
 
It should be done either way, it's for optimal battery health.

Wrong.

You run it flat to calibrate the battery charge DISPLAY. It does not calibrate the battery or impact it's health or battery life.

----------

interesting ... many of us were educated to let battery runs to zero before recharging .. but i wonder why the info was not in the instruction booklet that came along with my iphone.

Because its not important.

It's on the Apple website if you really care, but just plug it in and charge it when it needs charging and you will be fine.
 
Letting the battery completely die will kill a lithium ion battery. But when the phone says 0% there is plenty of power left in the battery. Some people will notice if you leave a device on a shelf for a LONG time then goto charge it the battery only last minutes, this is because the battery actually got to or near 0 volts.

For battery longevity charge it above 50%.

Check out this chart.

y3epused.jpg


As you can see charging at 50% is better for the longevity of the battery then at 0%.

Using a charger with lower amps will keep it cooler and aid in battery health too but it will charge slower.

Letting it die will help the % indicator be more accurate as the battery health changes overtime.

Leaving it plugged isn't good for it either. Devices I keep plugged in all the time batteries don't last very long. Like standalone GPS devices, if I were to unplug my Garmin the battery will last about 30 minutes. Check out this link.

http://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/how_to_prolong_lithium_based_batteries
 
What about taking the phone off the charger before it's done charging. Does that affect it's life? Ocassionally need a quick boost to get me through the day but can't let it fully charge.
 
What about taking the phone off the charger before it's done charging. Does that affect it's life? Ocassionally need a quick boost to get me through the day but can't let it fully charge.

Shouldn't hurt anything but it might effect the % meter calibration.
 
I can say that I've been using a plethora of phones mainly since smartphones became mainstream (basically since the launch of iPhone) and no silly charging scheme has ever seemed to help. I like to keep my phones topped up when I can just because I never know when or what I am going to use my phone for without a power source. Use your phone like you want to use it. Charge your phone when you feel it needs a charge. And most importantly don't stress. If need be, buy a battery backup. I use a zagg sparq that I purchased with a coupon code for $50. It stores at least another 3 full iPhone charges and easily slips into a messenger bag, backpack, etc. I've only ever HAD to use it maybe twice, but was glad it was there. Best of all it will charge anything with a USB power cord.
 
You don't. More mis-information on batteries than you can imagine.

This is good advice for your 1999 battery for your camera, but not really pertinent now.

Howdy! I don't want to get into a back and forth, I'm just going by the information on Apple's site regarding iPhone batteries. These threads come up every so often and I post the link above and others post theoretical battery information and others get into fist fights. I've got no skin in the game other than passing along a link.

What's interesting to me is that in the other link posted earlier in this thread Apple states that a charge cycle is using 100% of the battery but not necessarily in one session, e.g., using 50% one day and charging overnight and using 50% the next day is considered a charging cycle. This isn't the same information at the link I posted (excerpt below).

From the link:

Use iPhone Regularly

For proper maintenance of a lithium-based battery, it’s important to keep the electrons in it moving occasionally. Be sure to go through at least one charge cycle per month (charging the battery to 100% and then completely running it down).
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.