Phone takes forever to charge?

[StrawberryRoad]

Hello Android people.

For some backstory, this past summer I noticed my phone could no longer hold sufficient battery power, and would drain really fast. I thought there was a problem, at first, with my charger itself so I replaced it, but it didn't solve the problem. Last month I bought a new battery for it, and it held life the way it's supposed to. The only problem is that it takes a millennia to charge (obvious hyperbole, but y'know).

For example, my phone might be on 25% when I go to bed at 10:30, and when I wake up at 6 it'll only be on 60%. This is a problem because I have school (I'm a HS senior) and they don't give you many chances or places to charge your phone, because having technology is a cardinal sin.

This morning I woke up to find my phone on 9% despite it being on 11% when I set it up to charge before bed. My FFA leader taught me the "hack" where you turn Airplane Mode on to help charge. I had had AP mode on last night.

My phone is a Samsung Galaxy s5 Mini, and I've had it since 9th grade. I selected the phone because it's small, as I hate the big tablet like phones that won't fit in pockets. Yes, the phone is an older model and I'm likely eligible for an upgrade, but this is the only problem I've ever had with the phone. There's not even a nick on the screen. I don't want to have to get a new one because I'm using my savings to buy all the stuff that seniors are forced to buy, and I hate it when people spend money on me, so I don't want parents to help out. It was hard enough getting rid of my Galaxy Slide.

The phone holds life well, it just takes 500,000 years to charge. When I got the phone new years ago, the battery wasn't like this. Thank you for the help.

 

[Mooncatt]

If the battery is new and you're still using the new charger/USB cable, then it's likely either the port itself or another part of the internals going bad in the phone itself.

 

[StrawberryRoad]

What is wrong with my battery, charger, or phone?

Hello everyone. I tried to post this earlier but I'm not sure it went through. If I did post it, my apologies.

Backstory: This past summer I noticed my phone wasn't charging well and would barely hold battery life. I also noticed by charger was shot, so I got a new one, and it fixed it. Later on in the summer the problem arose again, even with a new charger. The phone would drain in about an hour, even without me using an app, Wifi, or data. I bought a new battery, and once again the problem was fixed, only now my phone would take 500,000 years to charge (hyperbole of course but that's what it feels like).

For example, my phone would be on 25% when I went to bed at about 10:30, and when I get up at around 6 the following morning it would only be on 64%. The battery life would last quite a long time, but charging it past 20% seems to be like climbing Mt. Everest.

And now last night, when I put my phone on the charger for bed it was at 11%. When I got up this morning at 8, it was on 9%. This was interesting because my phone was set to airplane mode, as a teacher told me putting your phone on APM would help it charge.

I've left my phone alone all day, even turned it off while I tidied the house. I went back earlier to the phone and it was on 25%- an improvement. I decided to take the battery out of the phone to "refresh it" so to speak, and when I put it back in, the battery life now read as 40%. Strange. I then left it alone even longer, and just now I went back to check and it's at 30%.

My phone is a Samsung Galaxy s5 Mini, and yes I know it's outdated and I'm up for an upgrade, but this is the only time I've had a problem with this phone. There's not even nicks on the screen. I chose this phone because it's a smaller one (I don't like those phones that are basically tablets that won't fit in your pocket). I'm a senior in high school so I'm using my savings to pay for all the mess they force seniors to pay for, and I hate it when people spend money on me, so I don't want parents to help. Also, I'm just a waitress now that my second job ended (it's a summer job) and the pay isn't good. That's why I don't want a new phone.

Thank you.

 

[belodion]

[Threads merged.]

 

[SexyLi]

You'd better use the original charger and cable to charge it, or you can see the current and voltage of your original charger and then use the same current and voltage to charge it.

 

[Rukbat]

Install Ampere. That will show you what the phone is drawing from the battery (when the charger isn't connected). Now plug in the charger and see how much current is going into the phone. If less is going in than was being drawn, the battery isn't getting any charge. If only a little bit more is going in than is being drawn, the phone is getting very little charge. In either case, look in Settings/Battery to see what's draining all that current.

As a side note, NEVER let the battery discharge below 40%. If you can't charge it at that point, carry a power pack (at least 4200mAh, so you can get 2 charges from it without discharging the power pack below 40%). Or you'll just have to get used to turning the phone off until you go home.

Lithium batteries are not deep-discharge devices, and bringing it down to 25% for a year can kill it completely. You're lucky that yours still had some life left. (There are batteries that can constantly be drained to 0, and still work for years, but lead is heavy and lithium is the lightest metal - and the industry went for "light", not "long life and very heavy".) Keep draining the battery down to 25% and you'll be replacing it again pretty soon.