8 myths about batteries in gadgets

Let's explore the most widespread myths and misconceptions about one of the most discussed aspects of mobile electronics and the OS Android in particular.

I propose to unravel a club of contradictory facts, sort all the information on the shelves and find out how each of us can increase the efficiency and duration of the device from a single charge. The focus of the material is on smartphones, laptops and other devices with non-removable batteries.

Myth: non-original chargers are harmful.

Part of me is inclined to believe that this myth was launched (or at least actively exaggerated) by phone manufacturers. Profit from the sale of modern smartphones is very small compared to 1000% of the income from the sale of such accessories. Ignore those who warn you against using non-original accessories. In fact, you should be wary of accessories that imitate analogues of well-known brands and are sold for 25% or more cheaper. However, alarmists have already managed to sow panic in society. Every now and then there are stories of users whose phone caught fire or even exploded after plugging in a non-native charger.

I would like to call this a myth, but it is not. Similar events occur due to the use of cheap imported chargers, non-original or fakes that can copy your original charger. In such accessories, materials of inadequate quality may be used and the manufacturer does not care about aspects such as safety, operability or compliance with the wiring diagram. In fact, fakes can have completely different values ​​of the rated current and voltage, and it is not at all a fact that they are applicable to your device. Such changes can lead to overheating, fire and sometimes even explosion. Now that I really scared you, I want to reassure you: there are many quality accessories on the market. The discerning buyer may well be satisfied with the offerings of Belkin or Amazon Basics (your options).

Myth: avoid using your device while it is charging.

Using a smartphone or tablet while charging is harmless to the battery, and bending in different directions and strange postures that allow the use of a device connected to a meter cable can pass as exercise.

All jokes, but the myth that you can't use the device when charging is not supported by anything. The only negative effect I've found is due to common sense and logic: the device will charge more slowly if used at the same time. The speed will depend on the nature of the interaction with the device, but the very fact of the dependence of the charging speed on parallel use is quite obvious. There are two reasons for this:

• Using a battery istes its charge
• Your phone will regulate its temperature rise during charging and during interaction (information from the representative Apple, with whom I spoke about one of the following myths).

At the same time, even if you do not use a gadget connected to the charger, then with a high degree of probability it can be argued that it still uses the battery in its work. When the device is turned on, the battery is 'wasted' by any active process, be it syncing with the cloud, downloading updates, or simply running background processes.

Myth: Always fully charge batteries before use (do not charge until they are fully discharged)

This had to be done at a time when NiMh and NiCd (nickel-metal hydride and nickel-cadmium) batteries were installed in phones, tablets and other mobile devices. The so-called 'memory effect' of the battery took place. This concept is still supported, I think there was confusion here due to the fact that some manufacturers advise periodically to completely discharge the battery. But this has almost nothing to do with the battery itself or its non-existent memory, it is rather a matter of how the device reads the level of charge consumption. This 'reboot' serves solely for recalibration so that the device will later provide more accurate battery usage data.

Most users do not understand that, in fact, the danger to the battery lies in the number of full charge-discharge cycles. Each battery is rated for a specific number of such cycles, beyond which performance and battery life will degrade. The life cycle of your battery can be extended by keeping the charge level in the 50-80% range to avoid many full charge cycles. It is worth adding that even if you completely ignore this advice, the battery in your device can last for several more years. Even without any 'help', modern batteries are very durable.

Myth: Don't Leave Gadgets Charging Overnight.

There are many conflicting arguments on this issue. In the course of my research on several reputable resources, I found several opposing opinions about whether it is acceptable to leave the device on a charge for 8-9 hours while you sleep.

Instead of diving into the problem on my own, I decided to call for help from experts from the camp iOS and Android. Так как изначально неясно, кто же из них прав, я позвонил в техническую поддержку Apple и затем решил еще раз уточнить информацию в техподдержке AT&T, крупнейшего продавца Android в США, чтобы убедиться, что with Android the situation is similar. And so it happened, both representatives of the technical support lines assured me that there is nothing negative for the battery in this nature of charging. There is another dangerous point: if the device is covered with a pillow, blanket or something else, then it can overheat. Most phones are in carrying cases, which does not promote proper heat distribution throughout the body, which can damage the battery.

Myth: Task Managers Extend Runtime

Such applications are not only pointless, they often lead to performance degradation, which is a bigger problem than applications that 'eat up' RAM. It is worth abandoning the use of such applications, they have more negative impact than benefit. Both Android and iOS are quite successful in dealing with how they allocate resources for background programs, usually consuming a fair amount of system resources. The fact is that if additional resources are required for active applications, the device will automatically redistribute them from unused applications. Besides that, RAM is good. Here's what they write on the Android Developers Forum about the reallocation of resources:

'Empty RAM is meaningless. The full memory is actively used in application caching. If Android more memory is required, then the unused user application will be forcibly closed, and this happens automatically, without any task managers. '

Myth: You don't need to turn off the device (you can damage the battery)

You can turn off your device at any time if you do not download or install system updates. In fact, this needs to be done from time to time to give the device a 'rest'. There are no dogmatic refutations for this myth, but the generally accepted opinion boils down to the fact that sometimes it is worth turning off the phone, because the “life” of the device's components is not eternal.

Myth: Turning off Wi-Fi / GPS / Bluetooth helps conserve battery

GPS is a service that runs in the background and does nothing special until a user contacts it to find a route, add a location to emails, social media posts, or work with other GPS-enabled services. Wi-Fi uses even less battery power. than maintaining a cellular signal. Representatives Apple advise leaving Wi-Fi on in order to conserve battery power. How do you like this destruction of the myth? Modern smartphones use Bluetooth 4.0 and the Low Energy protocol, which allows you not to worry about battery power when Bluetooth is on.

Any process, even in the background, affects the battery consumption. But such processes cannot be called the cause of serious charge consumption. If you really want to save a little battery, then lower the brightness of the display and let your eyes rest as well.

Myth: calls / internet / file downloads consume the fastest charge

The truth is that the 'palm' in this aspect belongs to games and other processes with an emphasis on the active use of graphics. Also, among the leaders are streaming video or online games. All other scenarios are not comparable. This myth is the most widespread, and it seems to be with us for a long time.

Original article by Brian Clarke

Elir: Users tend to notice only the outer side of technical evolution: most will notice the redesigned camera lens and body material, but do not even think about what battery the device is running on and what the size of the transistors in the processor. Because of this, there is a tendency to carry over some myths from past user experiences. Battery life is often of decisive importance when choosing a device, however, it is worth remembering that in addition to the economy modes added by the manufacturer, we are able to squeeze out some more battery life, and the methods are quite simple. What myths about gadgets have you met, dear readers?

twitter