Lithium Ion battery technology, I am pretty sure most people on this forum have a love/hate relationship with it. However, I am hoping that some more knowledgable members of this forum would be able to assist me on this topic.
My current phone is an htc one m7 which was purchased new in September of 2013 (roughly a year and a half old). As of recently I have noticed major drops in battery percentages while the phone is discharging, something very visible on lollipops battery graph. I chalked this up to the death of the cell in my phones battery and their inability to hold the charge as they once did. To be sure of this I recalibrated my phones battery and while this did not improve battery life it has at least made the battery % indicator more reliable.
From what I have read lithium ion has about 500 charge cycles or normally 2 years or so of cell phone use. Obviously my phone seems to fit on the lower end of that median unfortunately. I was already contemplating updating to the new m9 being released this coming March however it seems I am more being forced to upgrade now rather than it being optional. This now leads me to my question:
With the newer generations of phones featuring bigger batteries and more power efficient components will this improve the overall longevity of cell phone batteries or will they still be limited to the 2 year (or in my case less than 2 year) lifespan? This is a major concern for my phone purchase in the coming weeks as I dont want to be in the same perdicement again. As much as I love HTC and have replaced a couple iphone batteries in my day HTC phones are notoriously horrible to take apart and I may opt against them for my new purchase even though Im a raving fan of what I have seen from the m9 leaks so far. Any help with my question or general battery technology knowledge would be of great assistance!
Also I forgot to mention my phone currently gets about 6hrs to 6.5hrs of usage on a charge. Running the newest lollipop liquidsmooth and a custom kernel. Cpu is undervolted and running smartassv2 and noop, furthermore I keep brightness as low as possible and have things such as bluetooth and nfc off. Please note 6 to 6.5hrs is if Im connected to wifi for most of the day if im running on 4gLTE Im lucky to get 4 to 5hrs before it dies.
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My phone has a dinky little TI OMAP 180mhz chip and the battery life still seems short to me. The battery is a no name chinese 2000mah made in 08. Using wifi with the screen on the lowest readable backlight setting I get about 4-6 hours of usage with light browsing. High backlight, about 2 hours at most. I was just thinking though, all of these new phones have 1000-1500 mah batteries and much more powerful processors yet still retain usability. Pretty much if I do anything other than talk on the phone, I will have to charge the phone every day. Would I benefit from a name brand battery?
Also the first half of the battery life really feels like 80% of the battery life. That last half has nothing!
oic0 said:
My phone has a dinky little TI OMAP 180mhz chip and the battery life still seems short to me. The battery is a no name chinese 2000mah made in 08. Using wifi with the screen on the lowest readable backlight setting I get about 6 hours of usage. High backlight, about 2 hours at most. I was just thinking though, all of these new phones have 1000-1500 mah batteries and much more powerful processors yet still retain usability. Would I benefit from a name brand battery?
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I'd say a BIG yes to that. To see the difference try using a new battery. Even if its within the 1500mAh limit. Your bound to see a world of difference. My phone the HTC touch has an 1100mAh which i'd definitely call small by the current standards. Yet it gives me about two days worth of usage on a single charge. The battery is about a year old. If your using a genuine HTC handset, needless to say invest in a good original battery. Very useful.
Sadly it isn't an HTC I hang out here a lot because of all of the useful software the forum goers make and all of the useful general knowledge.
It's a no name Chinese phone.
The battery is a GB/T 18287-2000 but when I look that part number up they all look different and even have the terminals in different spots (what use is a part number if it means nothing?). Guess I am stuck with these crappy no name batteries that probably don't put out their spec. It really is a huge battery though. Seems to be about the same dimensions as my screen (3.2inch). A shame it doesn't last long.
use omap clock and downclock if you want more battery
I switched to samsung about a year ago after having htc phones for years mainly because I was disappointed with the battery life.
Has it improved at all or do the latest models still only last about a day with light / medium use? (bluetooth on, phone calls for 2 hours tops, gps for 30 mins)
I think this board only talks about HTC devices.
But today the battery life of the devices are smaller, because the OSs and applications are using too much the processor.
I'm asking about the htc models. I'm a bit disapointed with some of the samsungs hardware and features (even though battery is great) and am thinking of returning to the htc brand, just wondering if the battery life has been improved on the later htc models.
Thanks
Huh, sorry.
They are improving with the use of the new Snapdragon chip set like on the HD2. See the Leo section for it's battery comments & details...
battery capacity of the smart phone always is a problem due to its high processor usage !
i think it is a good idea to return to HTC from samsumg, at Andriod in HTC is more attractive.
Did you ever consider to buy an extended battery for ur high usage?
I have an unrooted N1 with latest 2.3.4. Device is a year old and I believe my battery is getting tired. In spite of various battery life techniques and apps, many days it doesn't last through the day, and have it die at inopportune moments. I need to come up with a battery strategy. I googled on this and it's pretty inconclusive. I'm open to buying a direct replacement battery, an OEM flavor of some sort, an extended life battery, or one of the expensive 3200mh batteries that require a replacement cover.
I'm also open to rooting the device if that would allow me to regulate the battery better.
I'm looking for practical advice.
Im wondering this to if its the hardware of an htc or the android os that its lacking the optimized efficieny of the outcome which in fact derailing its competiton comparison to an iphones battery use. I was eagered to grasp an android phone when noticing a huge decline in web browsing or scrolling compared to my outdated ios as of now am missing its quality structure it had possesed.
i suggest getting the stock battery, or going with an aftermarket thru seido or mugen. yes there are cheaper knockoffs, but they dont always work well.
the link in my sig is a project we did for nexus one batterys where we were able to crack open the chip inside your batt and re-programm it for increased capacity.
this let us test every battery we could get our hands on. the cheap batterys have the chip inside that is "locked" and doesnt work right. the better batteries have the fully working chip.
inside the chip is a parameter called "age scalar" which counts down with each charge. after this gets down to 80% your battery is considered dead. if you root you can use the app to check your age etc and configure your batt. either way i would stick with the known brands.
Your have opinions on the Mugen Extended life battery (the one with the alternate back cover)? I would love to not have to think about my battery...
kendoori said:
Your have opinions on the Mugen Extended life battery (the one with the alternate back cover)? I would love to not have to think about my battery...
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yes my opinion is its a very good option. the 3400 mAh truly has the claimed capacity according to what we pulled from the chip in that one, plus the people using it experience the full capacity range. its worth the purchase if that's what you want, you cant go wrong.
A kind person @ HTC is hooking me with a replacement battery. It will be interesting to see how much better a fresh battery does in my device. After considering the various options of extending a charge, I've decided to be an external USB battery charger device from Trent (http://www.amazon.com/New-Trent-IMP500-External-Blackberry/dp/B0013G8PTS). Since I'm almost carrying some sort of bag, no issue stashing this device and carrying it with me for those times when I need extra juice. I will report on performance of that device.
If you are open to rooting, many times a custom ROM and kernel can provide you with significant battery improvements.
In the nightly threads for CyanogenMod (nightlies are test builds and CyanogenMod is one of the more popular 3rd-party ROMs), people have said that with the latest nightlies and a custom kernel by RedStar, they are getting less than 1% per hour battery drain when the phone is idle.
My phone running the nightlies (although the stock kernel that comes with CM), I consistently get between 18-20 hours of use unless I do some crazy battery intensive things. If I hardly use the phone at all, I can easily get two days out of the battery (although I don't do this much). And this is with my battery age at 82% (it is getting close to the official "dead" part).
Plus there are a lot of cool features that are in some custom ROMs.
bassmadrigal said:
If you are open to rooting, many times a custom ROM and kernel can provide you with significant battery improvements.
In the nightly threads for CyanogenMod (nightlies are test builds and CyanogenMod is one of the more popular 3rd-party ROMs), people have said that with the latest nightlies and a custom kernel by RedStar, they are getting less than 1% per hour battery drain when the phone is idle.
My phone running the nightlies (although the stock kernel that comes with CM), I consistently get between 18-20 hours of use unless I do some crazy battery intensive things. If I hardly use the phone at all, I can easily get two days out of the battery (although I don't do this much). And this is with my battery age at 82% (it is getting close to the official "dead" part).
Plus there are a lot of cool features that are in some custom ROMs.
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for sure. i'm even seeing better than that, i get 1% drop every 3 hours a lot of the time on the recent nightly from cyanogen.
kendoori said:
A kind person @ HTC is hooking me with a replacement battery. It will be interesting to see how much better a fresh battery does in my device. After considering the various options of extending a charge, I've decided to be an external USB battery charger device from Trent (http://www.amazon.com/New-Trent-IMP500-External-Blackberry/dp/B0013G8PTS). Since I'm almost carrying some sort of bag, no issue stashing this device and carrying it with me for those times when I need extra juice. I will report on performance of that device.
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Did you call HTC? if so what number did you call? I need a new battery as well and have heard that the oem ones are the best bet.
@chrisonline1991 Called main HTC #s list here: http://www.htc.com/www/support/nexusone/ If you are under warranty, they will likely send you a new battery. I am out of warranty....calling them led to a dead end.
Check out this thread: http://www.nexusoneforum.net/forum/nexus-one-accessories/12295-need-lowdown-battery-replacement.html
bassmadrigal said:
If you are open to rooting, many times a custom ROM and kernel can provide you with significant battery improvements.
In the nightly threads for CyanogenMod (nightlies are test builds and CyanogenMod is one of the more popular 3rd-party ROMs), people have said that with the latest nightlies and a custom kernel by RedStar, they are getting less than 1% per hour battery drain when the phone is idle.
My phone running the nightlies (although the stock kernel that comes with CM), I consistently get between 18-20 hours of use unless I do some crazy battery intensive things. If I hardly use the phone at all, I can easily get two days out of the battery (although I don't do this much). And this is with my battery age at 82% (it is getting close to the official "dead" part).
Plus there are a lot of cool features that are in some custom ROMs.
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Curious, where do you get battery age from? Is that part of CM7 or a stat in Android I've missed somewhere?
Thanks
khaytsus said:
Curious, where do you get battery age from? Is that part of CM7 or a stat in Android I've missed somewhere?
Thanks
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No, not part of CM7 or Android. It is an app that was created only for the N1's.
Thread about it is here.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=765609
khaytsus said:
Curious, where do you get battery age from? Is that part of CM7 or a stat in Android I've missed somewhere?
Thanks
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The age is read from the chip inside your specific battery and our app can pull that value.
Be sure to get a real OEM battery or one from a trusted manufacturer. I got a battery on eBay that was sold as OEM and looks like OEM but the chip did not work and the battery life was terrible. I'm not sure what the chip does but I can confirm that having a working one is required to get good battery life. My new battery with broken chip was giving about 8-10 hours of battery life before hitting the 15% warning. My over 1 year old battery with working chip lasts 16+ hours with room to spare.
I recently started testing ch33ybutt's SS4N1 script. I am running the default settings and yesterday after 19 hours i still had 34% remaining when I hooked up the charger before bed.
I use my phone with auto-brightness, bluetooth on, GPS on, and 3G enabled. I turn on/off WiFi as desired but don't leave it on all the time since I'm really only around a hotspot at home. I am definitely not playing around with settings to save battery. Which is great because I don't want to have to mess with that or always be on the look-out for a charger.
Also a subject I haven't mastered yet. But I do know ebay is a very misleading source when it comes to batteries
Sent from my Nexus One
I have read so many reviews regarding the HTC One and Galaxy S4 my head is spinning. I think both are great phones but the thing that stands out for me is the removable battery for the S4.
I doubt most reviewers/editors actually use these devices for 2 years (normal contract) to actually experience a decline in battery life so I was hoping I could get some opinions from you guys on the subject.
My last few smart phones have always experienced some kind of degraded battery over time. Whether that is a few hours of life versus the new original battery or the battery is totally dead and causing random reboots and bulging to show issues with the cells.
Due to these past experiences having the ability to replace a battery over the phones life time is not a want but a need.
The ideal situation would be for phones that do not have a removable battery to warranty it for the normal contract span of two years. Or for battery tech to progress to a point where this is no longer a concern.
What have your experiences been? Do you agree or do you think in the last couple years they have made leaps and bounds in battery reliability? I currently have a GS2 so I'm a couple generations behind but I have not seen anything mentioning new battery tech in the latest devices. Thanks.
In my experience 3 different HTC desires and my old nexus one from 2-3 years old still had at least 3/4 of their original battery life. I traded the nexus for a desire HD and it needs a new battery, vibrator motor, and USB port (dishonest seller) so I've found many can go a few years on an original battery but usage habits can effect that too.
Non replaceable batteries are still replaceable so if u want to keep it a long time its probably not a huge deal to open it up and replace.
Sent from my Desire HD using xda app-developers app
For the first time ever on my phone, I'm babying the battery on the Pixel 3. I'm only allowing the battery to be in the 50-80% range. Occasionally it will get out of that range but I try not to let that go on for too long. Will this have a noticeable impact on the longevity of my battery? Has anyone ever tried it on a Pixel or Android phone?
I do this on my devices religiously... And while my wife does not, after 18 months with our previous Pixel 2's... Mine carries a noticeable advantage in battery over hers.
On occasion, I will let it fully charge, but not for very long, and never plugged in overnight.
Use your phone and enjoy it. I don't think any efforts like this are worth it, personally.
fury683 said:
Use your phone and enjoy it. I don't think any efforts like this are worth it, personally.
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You are not wrong.
I have been on both sides of this fence over the many years I have been running Android phones. Phones that I ran for 3+ years and swollen/poorly performing batteries if they weren't babied have both went the way of the dodo bird so to speak. My wife and I ran the OG Pixel and Pixel XL pretty much from the beginning until the 3s were released. They basically lived on a charger when not in use, and neither had any depreciation in performance. My only real strict battery usage rule for the past close to 3 years (including some other devices that belong to me, my wife and my sons) is to NEVER use the device while it is charging. The batteries are better as are the chargers and OS battery implementation, and the odds of me using a device long beyond 2 years is pretty slim. Some things like using the right charger and not messing with charging settings are pretty obvious to me. I will admit that I have my own OCD device things like daily reboots and cleanup, but as far as the battery goes I agree with fury that the device is to be used. If I am losing my time and device performance trying to milk a better SoT that doesn't really mean $hit, I am using the device wrong.
terrapin01 said:
For the first time ever on my phone, I'm babying the battery on the Pixel 3. I'm only allowing the battery to be in the 50-80% range. Occasionally it will get out of that range but I try not to let that go on for too long. Will this have a noticeable impact on the longevity of my battery? Has anyone ever tried it on a Pixel or Android phone?
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Yes, that works, but to what end? Are you planning on keeping your phone for 3 years or so you upgrade every year? It's a good technique for those who want to keep their phone for years.
PuffDaddy_d said:
Yes, that works, but to what end? Are you planning on keeping your phone for 3 years or so you upgrade every year? It's a good technique for those who want to keep their phone for years.
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I just find it to be disappointing and a loss of value that I notice clear degradation every six months or so. When your phone is new and you're away from an outlet for 24 hours, no problem! Fast forward 18 months and that same scenario is a major problem. After 24-30, months I feel I HAVE to upgrade because the battery performance is so mediocre (if not outright poor). That's why I want to know if babying the battery pays noticeable gains in the future.
terrapin01 said:
I just find it to be disappointing and a loss of value that I notice clear degradation every six months or so. When your phone is new and you're away from an outlet for 24 hours, no problem! Fast forward 18 months and that same scenario is a major problem. After 24-30, months I feel I HAVE to upgrade because the battery performance is so mediocre (if not outright poor). That's why I want to know if babying the battery pays noticeable gains in the future.
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Why not just spend the $80 and replace the battery after a year or so? If I liked the device that much or I couldn't afford a new one for almost a grand then I'd certainly give that a shot. I think the Pixel 3 replacement is pretty easy and you can do it yourself. I'd drive myself crazy watching the battery level all day long. I think the apps on the device are more important anyway. After a year, a factory reset will probably get more life than a year of what you are doing.
terrapin01 said:
I just find it to be disappointing and a loss of value that I notice clear degradation every six months or so. When your phone is new and you're away from an outlet for 24 hours, no problem! Fast forward 18 months and that same scenario is a major problem. After 24-30, months I feel I HAVE to upgrade because the battery performance is so mediocre (if not outright poor). That's why I want to know if babying the battery pays noticeable gains in the future.
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I think that's a hard correlation to make. Usage changes over time. Your battery might last 24 hours no problem on day one, but then you add in a new app that uses more data, or you start playing a game more that uses more battery and you feel like it doesn't last as long. A lot of people say "no, I use all the same apps" and that might be true for 95% of the apps, but all it takes is one to change the battery life.
As others said, if you intend to keep the phone for 2-3+ years, the battery life may be a concern, but if you're planning to upgrade once a year or every other year, I don't think you will see any noticeable gains from worrying about the battery.
When my battery is low, I charge it. I have a Pixel Stand on my desk at work and it sits there most of the day. When I get home I use the phone and plop it on a Choetech wireless pad at night so it's 100% in the morning. It's also on power (albeit low/slow) with Android Auto in my car during my commute both ways. I also have days where I'm away from battery for hours and lose about 1% per hour (fairly standard with Always on Display). I've been doing more or less this same routine with all three of my Pixel XL devices (OG, 2 and now 3) with no issues. The only change with the 3 is that it has wireless charging which makes charging much more seamless.
Hope you enjoy your new phone, however you decide to use it! :good:
bobby janow said:
Why not just spend the $80 and replace the battery after a year or so? If I liked the device that much or I couldn't afford a new one for almost a grand then I'd certainly give that a shot. I think the Pixel 3 replacement is pretty easy and you can do it yourself. I'd drive myself crazy watching the battery level all day long. I think the apps on the device are more important anyway. After a year, a factory reset will probably get more life than a year of what you are doing.
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The problem with this is alot of manufacturers will stop producing batteries around the same time they stop producing the phones. With my experience I've had a hard time finding batteries that were oem quality, and even if you do, who knows how long that thing has sat on the shelf?
If you're all curious how your battery is degrading over time, download an app called Battery Health. It's a very simple app that tells you what % of the total battery capacity is still available for use. It only took about 2 months for mine to drop into the 90's.