Leaving the phone plugged in over night?

**jamesino** · 10-02-2012, 03:22 PM

Is it bad for the battery to leave the phone plugged in overnight?

**Soundtrack to Chaos** · 10-02-2012, 03:27 PM

Originally Posted by jamesino

Is it bad for the battery to leave the phone plugged in overnight?

No, it's fine

On my Samsung galaxy s3 running android 4.0

Because unlike ios, i keep my apps in app drawers, and not in infinite cluttered homescreens

**xlDeMoNiClx** · 10-02-2012, 03:27 PM

From what I can tell Android phones charge until they're at 100% then stop charging and let the battery drop to about 95% then start to charge again and it'll keep doing this until you unplug it from the charger.

Baasically, no it isn't a bad thing to leave your phone charging overnight.

**Suntan** · 10-02-2012, 03:37 PM

The worst thing that would happen is that you may find you want to buy a replacement battery for it after 2 years of use. At which time, I'm sure you'll be able to get them for under $20 (They're $30 right now.) Swapping them takes all of a minute.

Theoretically, if a person religiously monitors battery charge and pulls it off the charger promptly around 90 to 95% of full charge each time they will probably allow the battery to keep a little more charge later in its life. Personally, it isn't worth the hassle to me. Charge it overnight, pull it off in the morning and go on with your life.

-Suntan

**funkylogik** · 10-02-2012, 03:46 PM

i read today that keeping an ip5 or gs3 charged permanently for a year costs under $1
bit off topic i know but hey

the way Jerry from the podcast explains it, these batterys have a life of X amount of charge cycles..
charging it to 50% twice counts as one cycle. leaving it charging over night counts as one cycle and so on. also they dont have "battery memory" like the old Ni-Cad ones so running it right down to 0% isnt important

global s3, UK. Ask me anything and ill reply even if its just an intelligent (or stupid) guess

**A-android-B** · 10-02-2012, 04:28 PM

Actually I'm pretty sure running a lithium ion battery all the way to 0% is worse than charging for days at a time

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**mumfoau** · 10-02-2012, 04:49 PM

I charge mine overnight but it's always powered off when I do so!

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**Bond32** · 10-02-2012, 04:55 PM

I always leave mine on the charge overnight. Provided I haven't had the same phone for the past 3 years (been through quite a few), I have never had problems or directly noticed battery life loss. Like the one poster said, you can get 2 Anker batteries with a charger for $14 right now so its not expensive.

**funkylogik** · 10-02-2012, 08:17 PM

mine is set to alert me with a cool sound of a pump action shotgun cocking then firing when it hits 15% lol.
i dont understand why but it warns you to plug it in at 15% for efficient charging if youre gona use it while plugged in.
also i get a smiley face in status bar when the phones plugged in at 100%... its nice to have my phone smile at me (god im sad and lonely

)

global s3, UK. Ask me anything and ill reply even if its just an intelligent (or stupid) guess

**Suntan** · 10-03-2012, 11:04 AM

Technically, lith ion batteries will last the longest if they are cycled between approx 80% and 40% of their full capacity. Charging them fully to 100% from completely discharged is more damaging than say, charging them twice from 30% to 80%.

That said, I do not know if the phone manufacturers already build some of that overhead into their batteries/charging logic or not. At the company I work for, we do that for our batt powered products, but not completely conservitive to limit the range between 80% and 40%. We'd just be giving up too much usable capacity.

Regardless, plug the thing in when it needs a charge and unplug the next time you get around to it.

-Suntan

**GrooveRite** · 10-03-2012, 11:24 AM

I ALWAYS charge mine over night. No problems with my battery.

**aceinyaface3** · 10-03-2012, 11:25 AM

Batteries can swell from overcharging. Seems a bit excessive to have it charge the whole night, unless you're at close to zero percent or you have somewhere to be first thing in the morning.

A better habit would be to charge it until you go to bed, and charge it when you wake, if you have that luxury.

Currently the owner of a swolen battery due to overcharge.

**worwig** · 10-03-2012, 12:15 PM

Originally Posted by aceinyaface3

A better habit would be to charge it until you go to bed, and charge it when you wake, if you have that luxury.

Bad idea for a few reasons:
1. You are more likely to wake up to a dead battery.
2. You are more likely to deep cycle the battery often which WILL shorten the battery life.

Leave it on charge. I have with my LiIon devices for about 10 years now with zero issues.

As for the swollen battery. That is very unlikely. The phone itself has electronics to prevent an overcharge. The chargers are smart, they know what to do. Then the battery pack itself also has safety electronics to prevent an overcharge (and an undercharge or high currents).

Plug the thing in.

If leaving it plugged in overnight shortens the battery life from 3 years to 2 years, so what. I need it charged and batteries aren't that expensive.

**pappcam** · 10-03-2012, 01:15 PM

This misinformation in this thread is amusing.

I guess I'll have to set my alarm for 2am to unplug my phone and then 5am to plug it back in from now on.

**GrooveRite** · 10-03-2012, 02:58 PM

Originally Posted by aceinyaface3

Batteries can swell from overcharging. Seems a bit excessive to have it charge the whole night, unless you're at close to zero percent or you have somewhere to be first thing in the morning.

A better habit would be to charge it until you go to bed, and charge it when you wake, if you have that luxury.

Currently the owner of a swolen battery due to overcharge.

Perhaps you had a bad battery?!?! If what you said holds true for everyone, then we'd all have swollen batteries due to overcharge.

**paradroid** · 10-03-2012, 03:28 PM

Originally Posted by aceinyaface3

Batteries can swell from overcharging. Seems a bit excessive to have it charge the whole night, unless you're at close to zero percent or you have somewhere to be first thing in the morning.

A better habit would be to charge it until you go to bed, and charge it when you wake, if you have that luxury.

Currently the owner of a swolen battery due to overcharge.

Wow, way too much work and room for error. The beauty of an overnight charge while using it as an alarm clock system is that I never forget to charge my phone or misplace it around the house causing a frantic search in the morning.

**worwig** · 10-03-2012, 05:10 PM

Originally Posted by pappcam

This misinformation in this thread is amusing.

I guess I'll have to set my alarm for 2am to unplug my phone and then 5am to plug it back in from now on.

Perhaps an alarm that goes off with any charge greater then 60%, and any discharge less then 40%. Then you can keep it in the perfect long life zone.

That would be OCD for sure.

**funkylogik** · 10-04-2012, 06:23 AM

Originally Posted by pappcam

This misinformation in this thread is amusing.

I guess I'll have to set my alarm for 2am to unplug my phone and then 5am to plug it back in from now on.

lol so whats your take on whats right and wrong mate? i kinda stand by what podcast jerry says coz he's a megageek prime

global s3, UK. Ask me anything and ill reply even if its just an intelligent (or stupid) guess

**karsdroid** · 10-04-2012, 05:00 PM

These are tools to enjoy and use....i live in fear of being caught somewhere without a charge, in fact bought a small external battery pack just to be safe. (what if i'm bored and i cant play tetris

) I just charge and go, if i need a new battery so be it.

**hrbib21** · 10-04-2012, 05:33 PM

Charge it when you can, unplug it when you need it. Simple. Seems to have worked for every phone I've ever owned and I've never felt the need to buy a battery because I charged it too often.

**jcp007** · 10-04-2012, 05:52 PM

Charge mine overnight powered off.

Sent From My Samsung Galaxy S3 Handheld Device

**funkylogik** · 10-04-2012, 06:26 PM

good points by the last few folk. why worry about it, its an amazing gadget and tool. just enjoy it

global s3, UK. Ask me anything and ill reply even if its just an intelligent (or stupid) guess

**Kizzmocat** · 10-04-2012, 07:17 PM

Id say the only thing you shouldn't do is keeping it charging overnight and under water!, you may run into problems! You're welcome for the sound advise! :banghead:

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