Technology
You’re using your iPhone WRONG – simple mistakes ruining your battery forever
FAILING to take care of your iPhone’s battery and getting a replacement is a costly business you can easily avoid.
Apple charges £69/$69 to fit a new one if your handset is out of warranty – but if you just treated your battery a bit better, you wouldn’t have to pay anything at all.
AlamyTaking care of your battery could save you money[/caption]
All phone batteries degrade with time, but here are some tips that will help you get as much life as possible out of yours.
Avoid high heat
Ever noticed how your phone really burns up in the summer or on holiday?
Apple itself warns that very hot conditions can permanently shorten battery life.
The best temperature is between 0º and 35º C (32º to 95º F).
Aside from exposing it to extreme temperatures, there are several mistakes which make it even worse.
For example, leaving your iPhone out in the car during a hot day screen side up, or charging your iPhone when it’s already baking.
Where possible, put your iPhone in a cool, shaded place that’s not exposed to the Sun.
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Don’t drop the battery down to zero
Once upon a time it was a good idea to let your phone’s battery go down all the way to zero.
But today’s tech works differently, and allowing it to fall to zero is not the best way anymore.
Nowadays, it’s much better to keep your phone charged up with a decent amount – though you shouldn’t just leave it on charge constantly either.
Don’t charge to 100% if putting your iPhone into storage
If you’re planning to put an iPhone into long-term storage for some reason, it’s not recommended to charge it fully beforehand.
This can damage the battery and reduce performance when you dig it out for use again in the future.
It’s better to let the battery run down a bit to between 50% and 80%.
Remove cases during charging
While cases are ideal for protecting your iPhone from drops, leaving them on during charging can generate too much heat.
As explained before, high temperatures aren’t good for the battery.
So if you notice your phone is heating up too much during charging, it’s better to remove the case.
Keep iPhone up-to-date
The latest versions of iOS usually include better battery optimising tech, so it’s good practice to make sure you’re installing updates.
Why does heat damage batteries?
Here’s what you need to know…
Hot temperatures can cause permanent damage to batteries
That’s because batteries contain fluids, and work through chemical reactions
When heat is applied to a battery, the fluid inside starts to evaporate
This damages the internal structure of the battery
Components like the voltage indicator can be affected by heat
This can allow batteries to charge at too high a rate, which can lead to a loss of electrolytes
This can reduce battery life over time
As batteries heat up, chemical reactions inside will also occur faster
Excessive chemical reactions can reduce long-term battery life
AlamyKeeping your phone up-to-date also helps[/caption]
In other news, the naughtiest emoji combinations have been revealed.
Tinder has revived the classic ‘blind date’ experience with a virtual twist.
And TikTok has announced new rules, banning users who deadname or misgender others.
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