Batteries - again.
 

We've had this before, but as usual ask 3 people and get 7 answers, and my cosy life has just been disrupted by a comment in our national newspaper this morning regarding preserving the life of Lithium batteries - to wit .........

Quote ... Conversely, when being charged and discharged a lot, it is best to keep the batteries as close to the 50 per cent mark as possible. So if you are only charging and discharging batteries a bit at a time, it is much better to do this between 45-55 per cent than between 90-100 per cent.

I use an iPad Mini as an auxilliary to my laptop, but it is interrogated almost daily, mainly to just download e-mails to save having to wait for ever if it has been a day or so since I last switched it on.

I was of the opinion - gleaned from reading various Internet sources - that batteries have a possible 1,000 cycles of re-charging before turning up their toes, therefore, rather than charge a little bit, often, it is better to run them almost flat then fully re-charge to 100 % again. i.e. keep the number of recharging cycles to a minimum.

That is what I do.

In view of the above article, should I change to running the battery between 30 - 50% all the time, which would eat into the 1000 possible recharging counts a lot more quickly than my present practice.

Also - I don't know if my iPad has a Lithium Ion battery or the previous NiCad type.

Grrrrr:(

It won't be a NiCd - they are pretty much extinct.

From what I recall, all the modern Apple stuff uses LiIon batteries. The devices are also clever enough to look after the charging process properly.

My experience with LiIon and NiMH is that their life depends on age, not number of charge cycles. The pundits may have a more precise view. Don't buy a replacement battery with a "manufactured date" several years ago.

Keef, thanks.

I forgot to say that with the iPad available the laptop is almost never moved now, so stays on the desk plugged in 24/7, and that is a Li-Ion battery. Not sure if that is a good thing or not ? My I.T. man told me to do that, but then he also sells batteries ! Cynic ? Moi ?

ExS

According to the information in this link
How to Prolong Lithium-based Batteries - Battery University

it is the depth of discharge that limits the number of cycles, i.e. running from 100% to 0% each time will allow less charge cycles than partial discharges.

The "intelligent" battery management system in my laptop certainly seems to keep the battery in the 40 to 60% range.

The latest gizmo for the household shows this in the leaflet:

If the battery pack is to be stored separately, place it in a dry environment
of a temperature between 10-35 °C and keep it away from direct sunlight.
To extend battery life, we recommend you charge the battery to
approximately 30 to 50% capacity and recharge it every three months to
prevent the battery from over-discharging.

IIRC it also says NOT to keep battery above 90% for any extended period of time, however I cannot find the paragraph now - so [grey matter dislaimer here].

cheers,
FD

According Apple, a cycle is a charging process of 100% the battery capacity. Means, ie, twice from 20 to 70%.
Not the amount of times the battery is connected to the charger. Means ten recharges each by 10% equals one cycle.
Best practice would to recharge the battery before falling below 20%, and possibly stop charging when reaching 80%.

!! As I expected - getting complicated.

Batteries - again.
 

...........

Good source of revenue for journos, but of no consequence whatsoever to the rest of us.

If you ever life out a battery set you've kept the machine right through obsolescence until it is positively obsolete and incapable of coping with the latest internet offerings.

Interestingly, my latest purchase charges in a couple of hours and then the battery lasts eight hours. When the battery icon gets really low there is still two hours left. Wow, I can recall those long lost days when two hours was full charge with a brand new battery.

Don't worry. :8

My laptop Samsung bought in 2010 (and still going strong) at boot up toggled F2 at start up, selected 80% max charge, at times it lights a light when off line. Discharges battery and charges again when back to mains power, this happens about twice per month. One day I'm going (F2) to give it a real boost and see how long the batteries last without mains power.

Never happened with my Commodore 64

ExSp33db1rd, your iPad mini has a lithium-ion polymer battery. While not exactly the same, my daughter had an iPhone that got a usage pounding and the battery would not hold a useful charge. Cost AUD$75 to get a new battery replacement while she waited. I would imagine you will have some local entrepreneur who will run a similar service for you iPad mini when it comes a time when the battery no longer holds a useful charge.

If you are adventurous, then you could download the tear down instructions from https://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/iPad...Teardown/11423 and replace the battery yourself. Personally I am not that brave so I will let others do that what my developing arthritic fingers can not. :)

Thank you !

The local shoe menders now does phone and tablet screens and batteries, while you wait.