Learning Centre: Extend your mobile phone’s battery life
by edit@cnet.com.au (CNET staff)
There's little in life more frustrating than having your mobile phone run out of battery in the middle of the day when you've left your charger at home. But you don't just have to accept this - follow these simple tips to extend your phone's battery life and avoid being caught short.
Tip 1: Features and settings
Watch out for 3G and Wi-Fi
3G and Wi-Fi are now standard features in most new phones, and while they are essential for anyone who keeps tabs on work email while away from their desks, or Twitters about the bad smell on the train ride home from school, they are also one of the great battery life sinks in a mobile device. Because these are features which won't affect you making or receiving calls you should figure out how to turn these both off and make sure you only switch them on when you need them. Most phones feature a "GSM only" options, and switching to this could double or triple your battery life, depending on the phone model and on your usage.
Turning off a phone's 3G radios can significantly increase battery life
(Credit: Screenshots CBSi)
Turn off your Bluetooth when you're not using it
One of the most infamous battery-draining culprits is Bluetooth, which can be left on unintentionally. Bluetooth is a radio standard that can receive and transmit information, but to do this it consumes battery power. Unless you're using a Bluetooth headset, transferring files or sending information to someone, then you should turn it off and only use it when you need to.
Lower your screen's brightness
Another feature that you should keep an eye on is your screen's brightness. Some phones adjust the display's brightness automatically according to the ambient light, but most don't. The majority of mobile phone displays will be set to full brightness when you first switch them on and, unless you change it manually, they will stay on that setting.
You don't usually need full brightness to view the screen properly and setting it as low as possible will save plenty of energy. Some phones also have an option letting you adjust how long the backlight stays on for. It's best to keep the backlight on for as short an amount of time as possible, so turn it down to around 15 seconds, or less if you can to save your battery.
Adjusting your screen's brightness may also give you back a few hours
(Credit: Screenshots CBSi)
Keep it plain and keep it quiet
Screensavers and moving wallpapers may look pretty but they use up battery power, so turn them off. A loud ring and the vibrate mode also use up a lot of power, so turn down the volume and turn off the vibrate mode if you don't need it.
Use your phone sparingly and turn it off when you don't need it
If you restrict your phone usage to text messaging or phone calls and turn it off when you don't need it, your battery will last much longer. It may be fun playing games or browsing the Web at the bus stop, but your battery may well run out by the time you get to work.
There's little in life more frustrating than having your mobile phone run out of battery in the middle of the day when you've left your charger at home. But you don't just have to accept this - follow these simple tips to extend your phone's battery life and avoid being caught short.
(Credit: CBSi)
Tip 2: Signal strength
If your phone is constantly straining to find a network signal it will use more power than if it's not. When your phone is in an area with poor network coverage it will use more power to force a connection with the nearest mobile mast base station. Because of this, it's best not to leave your phone in areas of the office or house where the signal is poor. Also, when you make a call, try to make sure that you have three or more bars of signal on your phone.
If you're underground or in another area with no signal, turn your phone off. Turn it on again when you know you'll have a signal, or turn it on every now and then to check.
In summary:
- Make sure your phone has a good signal even when you're not using it
- If you need to make a call, try and find an area with as strong a signal as possible
- Turn your phone off if you're in an area with no signal for a long period of time.
There's little in life more frustrating than having your mobile phone run out of battery in the middle of the day when you've left your charger at home. But you don't just have to accept this - follow these simple tips to extend your phone's battery life and avoid being caught short.
Tip 3: Understand your battery
Most mobile phone batteries these days are lithium-based rather than nickel-based. While nickel batteries had to be charged for over 10 hours before first use (to prime the battery), lithium batteries only need to be charged until the mobile phone says the battery is full.
Measuring an average battery cycle is essential to getting the most from the battery.
(Credit: CBSi)
Don't let the battery run flat too often and apply regular charges
Another advantage of using a lithium battery is that it doesn't suffer from "memory" - a charging issue that affects nickel batteries. If nickel batteries are charged randomly and aren't fully discharged regularly, then large crystals will form on the internal cell plates, which causes it to underperform.
A lithium battery can be charged whenever it needs it. Full discharges are not needed - indeed, they are inadvisable. Instead, let the battery run down to around a third of its capacity and charge it on a regular basis rather than running the battery completely flat.
If your phone is not displaying the correct amount of energy left in your battery, then let it run completely flat and this should solve the problem.
Keep the battery cool and don't leave it in the sun
Lithium batteries come with built-in circuitry that protects them from overheating, so leaving a phone to charge overnight or over a couple of days won't damage it. However, if a lithium battery is over-charged for too long (eg. a week) it will start to heat up. Overheating is a lithium battery's main enemy and could result in permanent damage to the battery. The battery can also get overheated if your mobile phone is left in the sun or near a radiator, so avoid doing this as well.
After about two years buy a new battery for your mobile phone
A lithium battery only lasts for around 300 to 500 charges, so if you have been using the same battery for more than a couple of years you may need a new battery. Buying a spare battery is not advisable unless you use it on a regular basis because lithium batteries deteriorate even when they're not being used.
For additional information on batteries visit: www.batteryuniversity.com
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