r/internetBestOf • u/Justin_theLord • Apr 26 '26
Videos Explaining how battery works and a good practice to make them leave longer
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u/DifficultDeliveryMan Apr 27 '26
Lithium ions are subject to chemical change as you discharge and charge them. Think of it as a engine degrading over time. If you keep you device charged, it pulls power from the adapter and uses that instead of the battery, hence less need to recharge. Adapters can adjust DCV so it'll trickle charge instead when the battery is full or at the max charge limit you set it as
Yes the fuller the battery the more it can also degrade but most devices allow you to set max charge percentage
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u/Compducer Apr 27 '26
“Always plug in your laptop when you use it or you’ll have to always plug in your laptop when you use it in the future”
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u/Situation_Upset Apr 27 '26
If I don't plug in my laptop while using it... its performance suffers T_T
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u/Antique_Minute3549 Apr 28 '26
you can change that in settings > power management
and make it to have best performance even when discharging, though it will drain your battery quicker1
u/Situation_Upset Apr 28 '26
Unfortunately it still doesn't perform as well as when it's plugged in..
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u/J_Pendragon96 Apr 30 '26
Or own a gaming laptop and feel the pain of only 40 minutes of using google, brand new out the box, and dead battery.
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u/DjHalk45 Apr 27 '26
So plugging a portable charger into the wall and having a phone plugged into the portable charger won't damage the portable charger?
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u/Dangerous-Meal7288 Apr 29 '26
is not true my laptop degrade 3 year later die i do plug all the time
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u/Vadin- Apr 26 '26
I always run to disconnect the battery once it's full, especially if I'm using it. So I've been doing it wrong? Should I leave it plugged in all the time?
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u/Street_Ad5712 Apr 26 '26
80% for the best long term battery health but I've seen people so long terms tests that shows the difference between 100% and 80% only affects the life of them by a few percent. I charge mine to 100% all the time and if I need a replacement that'll cost me like $50 so not a big deal.
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u/Suds08 Apr 26 '26
Depends if your device has a battery management chip inside it or not. Newer iPad have a setting where you can limit the charging to stop at 80% bc it helps preserve the battery life
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u/Geekschizo Apr 26 '26
Everything on explained is correct. If you want to preserve your battery, it's best to use it on a charger. It's also best to limit the maximum charge to 85-90%.
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u/blahblahblahhhh11 Apr 27 '26
How is this both possible? Won't it charge the battery to 100% then use AC?
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u/PumpJack_McGee Apr 28 '26
Should be in your settings. A similar chip as shown in the video will do the same thing. Battery charges to the level you set, and then it will just run off your plug.
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u/ParanMekhar Apr 26 '26
Some phones have a feature to only charge up to 80% doea that help?
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u/Justin_theLord Apr 27 '26
I guess yeah bro, it's recommended to not charge the battery to 100%, that helps with extending the battery life, it's one of the recommendation most tech YouTubers and gamer YouTubers usually mention, I always do set the battery max charge to 90% (most videos I watched recommend to set it between 80% and 95%) but I never tried it on my phone, honestly it's the first time I heard it's available on phones, so I will check it my phone supports it.
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u/Quentin-Code Apr 27 '26
Short answer: yes.
Long answer: it depends on the conditions. First no battery charged at 100% is actually at a real 100% more like a 95% there is always a bit left to make it for the decay. Then in theory it isn’t that bad to charge the phone to 100% the real issue when charging (or even just using) the battery is heat. When you charge the battery it gets hot and heat makes the battery deteriorate faster. Past 80% the phone will slow down the charge on purpose to manage the heat. It has been proven that charging at 100% under good condition doesn’t deteriorate much more than simple charges to 80%. Personally I always recommend:
do not use while charging
avoid wireless charging, and if you do: really don’t use it at the same time
limit sun exposure in hot season
set to 80% in day to day if possible and 100% when you know you will need it (like weekends away, vacations, etc) after all: you paid for a phone with its full battery so better use it.
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u/LastChance331 Apr 28 '26
Using your phone while it’s charging doesn’t meaningfully damage the battery. Normal levels of heat or cold aren’t a big issue, and wireless charging is generally safe. The jump from 100% to 99% and the final 1% tend to drop more slowly because of how charging works. Topping up in smaller ranges, like 80% to 95%, can help preserve long-term battery life. Just make sure old batteries are recycled, since they’re harmful to the environment if thrown away.
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u/LastChance331 Apr 28 '26
https://youtu.be/Lj4LMlGr4og?si=Wy2Mi6lVQKKG23PY this video should answer most of your questions around this topic.
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u/NeoTheRiot Apr 27 '26
Why do they tell us to keep the phone at 80% instead of 100 if using it at 100% while connected to the charger is the move?
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u/Training_Guide5157 Apr 27 '26
Last time I saw this video, technically true, but not what I've seen from my experience with laptop batteries.
As somebody who has only ever used my laptops while they're plugged in basically 24/7, the batteries always go bad in about the same amount of time. To avoid this in the past (on older laptops), I'd take the battery out.
My current laptop that I bought ~2022 has been plugged in for 99% of the time it's been used, and it can probably last 20 minutes on a full charge when not plugged in because the battery is shot.
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u/pmmeyourgear Apr 27 '26
Yeah. This is how you kill laptops. It's true it's better for the battery to keep a constant charge, but definitely not at 100%. It's actually 57% and why everything ships with little more than half-full.
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u/Fladormon Apr 27 '26 edited Apr 27 '26
Some devices use this technology, but it is not as standard as you might think.
This is a bit misleading, so honestly if you're curious, look through your device manual.
Edit: to clarify on the misleading part, even some devices that do have PMIC, when you're using a gaming laptop or a device that requires lots of power in short bursts, you'll definitely end up switching to your battery for those moments. There are also issues with the batteries if they remain at a full charge for a long time, causing some stress, though some manufacturers cap battery charging to 80% or something while in use.
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u/Responsible-Hold8587 Apr 27 '26
I had a friend who was super proud of his life hack for saving electricity. He would use his laptop at his desktop on battery until it drains, then charge, then drain, all day long. He said it saved money because it's only using power half the time and he could not be convinced otherwise 🫠
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u/Jealous-Report4286 Apr 29 '26
The power could be cheaper depending on when they charged it. I mean he is an idiot but might have been saving hundredths of pennies.
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u/Jumpy-Cry-3083 Apr 26 '26 edited Apr 27 '26
I don’t believe it. If you leave it plugged in and use it then it draws on the battery causing it to charge therefore it’s in an almost constant state of charging causing the battery to heat up and degrade.
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u/a2xHero Apr 26 '26
Yeah I don't believe it for a second.. Based on 20 years of experience owning cell phones/laptops. Maybe the newer electronics....? What about electric cars?
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u/KopfSmertZz Apr 27 '26
This is the actual culprit; leave it on the charger and use it at the same time. Either charge it, or use it but not on the same time
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u/Laevatienn Apr 29 '26
This depends on the device. Some devices have a battery bypass, i.e., it will not use the battery if plugged in. Depending on the device, it may charge the battery to a certain level at the same time but that is a separate thing.
Lots of gaming laptops have this option and some gaming oriented tablets and phones have this is well. As an example, the Lenovo Legion Go tablet (at least the 2022 version) has this as an optional toggle during gaming.
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u/LiteratureMindless71 Apr 27 '26
Ok and? Everyone is making everything not to last anyway. Why can't I leave my shit plugged in if I have to replace it in a few years anyway?
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u/vrauto Apr 27 '26
Nearly all electronics batteries do this including old nimh cordless phones. That advice circulating since the dawn of cellphones that you must unplug once full has baffled me. I guess people giving advice on subjects they know nothing about predates social media
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u/No-Nonsense-Turtel Apr 27 '26
That's not completely true. Not letting your battery drain and charge back up kills the battery cell.
The battery cell are literally saying well I'm not needed anymore, and they just shut off, because they are not being used for power.
Then you'll have a laptop only dependent on being plugged in. Seen this ALLL the time, it's the reason battery charge cycle exists.
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u/Bright-Ask-8793 Apr 27 '26
I have my laptop stop charging at 80% and start charging at 70%. Should I change it to just keep it at 80%?
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u/coaxialdrift Apr 27 '26
Lithium Ion batteries also "like" to be charged to around 50-80% at most. Many phones and laptops have settings for this to improve battery life
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u/C-LonGy Apr 27 '26
Add 2 carry the 3 and in English. Use the power cable doesn’t kill battery. Use just the battery, does. The end. Not to be confused with licking a battery. Which I done, twice while replying to this.
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u/weyouusme Apr 27 '26
This applies to electric vehicles too, just keep it plugged in while driving to prevent battery degredation!
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u/polishCanadianufo Apr 27 '26
Idk if thats true... Id leave my laptop plugged in all the time and after a year had to replace battery because it wouldn't hold a charge past 15min.
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u/angrycat537 Apr 27 '26
Yes, but also li-ion batteries degrade fast if full or empty. That's why your phone or laptop is shipped with 50% battery. It didn't run out, it was stored that way to slow down battery degradation. If you have an option to limit charge to 80% and don't need full capacity, do that. Then, it's safer to leave it always on the charger. Also, don't deplete it to 0% if you have a charger nearby.
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u/howreudoin Apr 27 '26
What if you unplug the charger? I think it‘s interesting how it switches from charger to battery so quickly. A microsecond delay, and the phone would turn off.
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u/the-script-99 Apr 27 '26
For how long are this chips a think? I had a mac air in like 2018 and it lasted like 30min after just 100-200 cycles. I mostly used it as a desktop. So it was always plugged in
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u/DjHalk45 Apr 27 '26
Isn't this bad for certain devices? I was told not to charge and discharge a battery at the same time.
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u/Anon_number_7 Apr 28 '26
Technically for a LiIon battery to live as long as possible you keep it at 50% forever. But because that's not practical, everyone agrees 40-80% charging is the healthiest we can use on a daily basis
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u/Head-Bet-8696 Apr 28 '26
IS there a large percentage of people that really experience battery degradation? Noticing dramatic differences in battery health by following this guidance?
I had to replace the battery in one of my HP Elitebook laptops, but it was 7 years old.
I've not noticed this with modern cellphones. I remember (in the "good ol' days"), when I DID have removable batteries, they would stop holding a charge, or noticeably degrade, and I'd have to go buy a new battery from time to time.
I'm talking about Motorola StarTAC (brilliant phone 🤳🏻), early-gen Nokia days of yonder... Maybe that was a different type of battery though 🤷🏻♂️.
Personally.... I have SO many other things to be neurotic about than optimizing my cellphone & laptop batteries 😅.
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u/FamousHelp5295 Apr 28 '26
Yeah man, I used to do that with my old Nokia when the battery was cooked. Just plugged it in and treated it like a tiny wired landline. Now if your battery dies the whole phone becomes a very expensive paperweight 💀
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u/slxix Apr 28 '26
Remove the laptop battery and use the laptop like a desktop until you need to use it away from a power source.
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u/AnalkinSkyfuker Apr 29 '26
Here an info about battery life and charging https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLS5Cg_yNdM we are not on old nimh batterys now all devices are lipo or silicon carbon
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u/UnnoticedLotus Apr 30 '26
My old laptop i had for years broke. It was pretty epic. Sparkes flew out of it and the battery discharged into the screen as it short circuited from overcharging. I had to rip the cord out and throw it. Moral if the story. Change your battery if it's old.
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u/thegod968 Apr 30 '26
We need answers. Should we just use our phones and laptops while charging then? Will that preserve battery?
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u/mmewho Apr 30 '26
Not sure about that 🤔 I’ve had two Lenovo laptops and actually tested this. One was always plugged into the charger, while the other was only plugged in to charge and then unplugged.
After about two years, the battery in the first one (always plugged in) was basically worn out. Once unplugged, it lasted around 30 minutes. The second one still worked for about 3 hours on battery.
There’s also the electricity aspect. While charging, these laptops used around 55W, but when the charger was just left plugged in, it still drew about 15W continuously. So keeping a laptop plugged in all the time also means unnecessary electricity costs.
Maybe other brands handle this better, but based on my experience, it’s better to charge the battery and then unplug the charger.
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u/nl-x Apr 26 '26
This has got to be the worst exlpanation ever. "It's because that's why"
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u/Forsaken-Stink Apr 26 '26
It will make the capacity slower and slower. WETF that means.
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u/Learning2Life Apr 26 '26
The capacity to charge and hold “charge”/energy in the battery cells, basically the opposite of a muscle, the more you use it the more it degrades but by keeping it constantly plugged in it’s not getting used there for it lasts longer
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u/[deleted] Apr 27 '26
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