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Protect your data while traveling
Learn how to protect your smartphone and its precious data.
How to charge your cell phone
Most people believe that the answer to this potential problem is dead simple: you plug in the charger over the night, and that's it! In fact, many device manufacturers will recommend people to use this charging method. However, by doing that, I guarantee that you will significantly reduce your phone's battery life. Here's how to do it properly.
First of all, phone batteries thrive when they are charged as slowly as possible. So, if you want your phone battery to last longer, be sure to charge it slower. There are a few options here.
1. Disable fast charging.
Your modern smartphone may have a "fast charging" option, which will help you charge the battery to 50% within 30 minutes or so. While this option may be helpful sometimes, it makes no sense to keep it on at all times, because it will diminish battery life. So, be sure to disable fast charging; you should see this useful option in your phone's "Device care" settings. Various cell phone manufacturers will probably use different names for this setting, but I'm sure that you've got the picture.
2. Use an underpowered power adapter.
If you've purchased another phone in the past, chances are that you still have its charger. Alternatively, you can purchase a low-intensity phone charger. Let's assume that your fast charger provides 3 Amps; by using a 1 Amp charger, charging time will increase threefold, but your phone's battery life will be significantly prolonged.
3. Use a wireless charger.
It looks like wireless chargers are here to stay, and one of their side benefits is the fact that they're charging our phones much slower. So, purchase a wireless charging pad, and then plug your phone's power adapter into it. This way, the battery will live a longer, happier life.
4. Plug an underpowered power adapter into your wireless charger.
This is my favorite solution, because it makes overnight charging satisfactory. Simply plug a 1 Amp power adapter into your wireless pad and you'll reduce the battery charging current to acceptable levels. By doing that, you can expect to have charging rates of about 5-15% from the battery capacity per hour, and this will boost battery life a lot.
Another essential aspect is to make sure that the battery is only charged to 90-95% of its capacity. To do this, you will have to keep an eye on your phone while it is charging. It baffles me to see that phone manufacturers haven't come up with a simple solution to notify us that we need to unplug the chargers. Fortunately, there are several clever app developers who have created custom applications such as AccuBattery, which can sound an alert when the battery is almost (but not fully) charged.
Okay, I know that sometimes you'll need to pump some extra juice into your phone's battery – and do it really fast! Here are several ways to achieve that result; don't forget that by doing this, you will diminish your phone's battery life.
1. Use a charger.
Don't plug the phone into your PCs USB port, which can only deliver 0.5 Amps (USB2) or 1 Amp (USB3). Use a real charging adapter, preferably the one that came with your phone.
2. Turn your phone off.
If that's not possible, at least keep its screen off! If your phone needs 0.7 Amps to run and the charger delivers 2 Amps, you're only going to charge it with 2 – 0.7 = 1.3 Amps per hour, get it?
3. Use a high capacity external battery.
These giant batteries can provide a lot of power; sometimes, they'll be able to charge your phone faster than its original adapter! So, be sure to plug that external battery into your phone. You should note that this method will only work fine if the external battery has a capacity of at least 5 Amps, though.
