Overcharging: Does it destroy your smartphone’s battery?

Smartphones' batteries can be damaged by many factors. But if you take proper precautions, they'll last you long.

Photo credits: ANDROIDPIT
Honor 200 series Ad
Realme Ad

If you change your phone every two years or so, you don’t need to worry about the topic I am going to discuss.

Many of us change our smartphones every now and then, and when we do this, we don’t really notice the battery’s decline. But if we use it for a little longer, our battery capacity decreases exponentially.

Some of us think that leaving our phone charging overnight will damage our battery while others think it is okay to leave them charging overnight. However, it actually depends on circumstances you’re leaving your phone in.

Infinix Note 40 series Ad

But, I have to mention one thing. Smartphones are equipped with chips that can protect devices from excess charging once they are fully charged. So, overcharging can’t really harm your devices, unless under certain circumstances.

I have to mention that most smartphones make use of a technology that makes battery accept current faster. Such technology allows power to pulse into the battery in specific modulations, increasing the speed at which the lithium ions in the battery travel from one side to the other, causing the battery to charge quicker.

The same technology, however, tends to slowly damage the battery via chemical actions. Basically, because of this fast charging, our battery’s condition deteriorates. Note that fast charging here doesn’t refer to the Quick charging capabilities phones have. They simply refer to your battery charging faster than usual. You should also keep your phone’s temperature in mind. Explaining smartphones and their heating, Apple says, “Your device is designed to perform well in a wide range of ambient temperatures, with 62° to 72° F (16° to 22° C) as the ideal comfort zone. It’s especially important to avoid exposing your device to ambient temperatures higher than 95° F (35° C), which can permanently damage battery capacity”.

So how can you stop the deterioration of your battery? It’s simple actually. If your original charger charges your battery faster, use another charger that will charge it slower. Or think of it this way, if you use your iPhone’s charger to charge your iPad, your iPad will charge slowly. Charging your electronics this way could actually save your battery’s life. Furthermore, keep your phone’s temperature in check. Don’t let them overheat. This will make sure that your phone’s battery doesn’t go downhill.

Finally, if you change your device every two years, you need not worry about this because batteries start showing signs of wearing only after two years.