Charging while on Power Saving mode

[Deathunter-M8]

So I kinda kept the Power Saving mode on for several days, thinking that it can't harm, in which it shouldn't.

However, it was on even while charging, so one day while I was charging I smelled something burning.

I removed the cable from my M8, and it turned out that the micro-usb port has burned out.

Luckily no damage happened to my M8, and even the charger is still working, and yes they are the original cable and charger.

Well, I guess I can't save power while charging, so I just want to give everyone a heads up

Now, I bought what I though an original HTC cable, as looked exactly the same as the one that got burned, but when I got hope and plugged to the original charger I got the Slow charge message indicating that I am not using the original charger, which is not true, as I only changed the cable.

That got me to put the original burnt cable and put it side by side with the new cable for comparison, it turned out that the new cable is a little longer than the original, meaning the new one isn't original.

Didn't care about it first, but now I am a little anoyyed by that (Slow charge) message, as even though I disabled the pop-up message, the message still appears for me on the notification centre, and a warning icon to go along with it on the statusbar.

And what anoyy me even more, is that the charging speed is exactly the same as it was with the burnt original cable, as I am still using the original charger after all.

Any thoughts on how to permanently get rid of the (Slow charge) message would be truely appreciated.

Sent from my HTC One M8

 

[Android Optimizer]

I've heard of some phones not detecting battery levels properly, and not charging fully with power saving modes enabled (mainly Samsungs), but this is the first I've read/heard of soemthing burning. Where do you normally charge your phone? (Near a sink, or on a carpet). Have you taken your phone near any moist areas (in a bath room with the shower running fogging up mirrors, outside in humid weather)? What carrier are you with, and what power saving mode are you referring to specifically? (Extreme Power Saving?, Location - Battery Saving?, etc?) Other factors may have been involved. Many people have been charging with the power saving options enabled since they were released, and haven't had issues.

 

[Deathunter-M8]

I keep it on my chair next to me while watching TV, nothing moist and no liquids ever got near it, and when that happened I wasn't using, it was simply charging on my chair. The normal power saving mode was on.

Now, as I mentioned only the micro-usb port got burned, the other end wasn't damaged, and the charger didn't got damaged either.

It is like my M8 was resisting getting charged, what makes it more strange is that it wasn't even fully charged.

Sent from my HTC One M8

 

[kilskev]

I've always used that mode since June when I got this phone stays on charge at night never a problem. Check the rating of your power brick need more than1 amp otherwise it's a. Usb charge

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk

 

[Deathunter-M8]

I've always used that mode since June when I got this phone stays on charge at night never a problem. Check the rating of your power brick need more than1 amp otherwise it's a. Usb charge

Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk

The one I got has a 1.5 amp output, and it is the one that came in the M8 box.

Sent from my HTC One M8

 

[MDMcAtee]

I would check the polarity of your outlet and see if it's correct. I had a Samsung do this once over at a friend's house1 time and when checked it was reversed. Do know for certain that this will cause this or not,but I have never had it happen again.

Posted via Android Central App on my HTC M8

 

[Deathunter-M8]

I would check the polarity of your outlet and see if it's correct. I had a Samsung do this once over at a friend's house1 time and when checked it was reversed. Do know for certain that this will cause this or not,but I have never had it happen again.

Posted via Android Central App on my HTC M8

Nope, my charger can't be used reversed

Sent from my HTC One M8

 

[MDMcAtee]

Wasn't talking about the charger,but the ac receptacle

 

[Mooncatt]

AC power doesn't have polarity. The positive and negative forces are constantly switching back and forth, hence the name alternating current. Probably not the most technical answer, but good enough for the purposes of this thread. It looks like the OP's outlets can't be plugged into in "reverse" like they can in the U.S. Even in the U.S. with a two prong plug, you wouldn't harm anything by turning it around (unless it has one wider spade, which would prevent it).

This sounds like a pure hardware failure with either the cable plug or the port on the phone. Fyi, the cable doesn't have a "port," as the OP eluded to in post #3. A port would indicate a female receptacle, such as on the phone or a charger. So some clarification is needed on the original post. Is it the port on the phone, or the micro-USB plug of the cable that seems burnt?

Either way, I'm guessing something shorted out, which could have potentially damaged the phone's port even if the problem started with the cable plug. I'd take it to an authorized dealer and see if they can let you try a known good official HTC M8 cable to see if you get the slow charging notice. My guess is you will, which would indicate a problem with the phone. While it's true a longer cable will have more internal resistance and lower the current the phone can pull, I don't think it'd be enough to trigger the warning unless the cable is a lot longer than stock. I could be mistaken, but that's why you need to try a known good OEM cable to diagnose this. This may qualify for a warranty claim. I'd be hesitant to plug it in to anything if the malfunction damaged the port internally.

Having the phone on power saver wouldn't have had any bearing on this issue (and I wouldn't mention it to the store or HTC just to avoid any potential hassles). If that were the case, phones would be burning out ports and cables any time they were charged while the phone is off and using even less (I.e. zero) battery power. The phone is designed to function with up to 1.5A input. That is split between using whatever is necessary to simply run the phone, with the rest going to charge the battery. As the power requirements of the phone go down, more current can flow to the battery and charge it quicker... To a point. The phone's charging circuitry will also limit the current to prevent over charging the battery even if there is excess current available. It's the same reason why you wouldn't get faster charge times by using a 2.1A charger.

TL; DR version. This is a hardware problem, not software, and you should get it fixed asap before any more damage is done.

 

[Deathunter-M8]

Yep, it is the cable micro-usb plug that got burned, and it happened during charging.

When I smelled something burning the charging sign was still showing on the battery icon of the status bar.

When I removed the cable the micro-usb was a little melted from the inside.

My M8 was really hot, and it micro-usb port (hope I used it right this time) smelled like smoke.

Next thing I did was switching off my M8, and I kinda cleaned its micro-usb port with a tooth pick, and blow air inside, then kept it to cool down.

After my M8 cooled down while still turned off, I took my chances and plugged it into a power bank, fortunately for me it started charging normally.

After that I bought what I thought an original HTC cable, I started using it with an iPhone charger that has about 0.7 amp output if I am not wrong, which is why charging was really slow.

That is why I decided to take my chances again, and this time using the new cable with original charger, and fortunately for me again, it started charging normally, but while still getting the Slow charging message.

Now, unfortunately me, there is no tech support for HTC in my country, so even I used my warranty to see what is wrong, they will have to send it outside to have it checked, in which will take a long time. That is why I am not looking forward to do so.

Sent from my HTC One M8

 

[Mooncatt]

I don't blame you on not wanting to send off for warranty, but it's still probably the best course of action for safety's sake. Just as long as you understand you're taking a risk of further damage by still using it without knowing what went wrong or the true extent of the damage. At the very least, I'd start being very thorough with making backups just in case the worst happens and the phone goes up in flames.

 

[Deathunter-M8]

I don't blame you on not wanting to send off for warranty, but it's still probably the best course of action for safety's sake. Just as long as you understand you're taking a risk of further damage by still using it without knowing what went wrong or the true extent of the damage. At the very least, I'd start being very thorough with making backups just in case the worst happens and the phone goes up in flames.

Ummm, could the weather condition be the reason for my problem?! as where I live the temperature is currently minimum of 36℃ with a minimum humidity of 50%

 

[Mooncatt]

Ummm, could the weather condition be the reason for my problem?! as where I live the temperature is currently minimum of 36℃ with a minimum humidity of 50%

That isn't anything real extreme, so I doubt it. Now what that will do is allow the battery to heat up easier when using it. A hot battery will charge slower once about 35-37°C internal. I've had my battery up to 40°C while charging, and even then I didn't get a slow charge warning. I can't verify this, but I think the phone can distinguish between when a battery is charging slowly due to heat or low input current. I've had my cable pull slightly loose from the charger before and got that warning, which is why I'm thinking this way.

 

[Deathunter-M8]

That isn't anything real extreme, so I doubt it. Now what that will do is allow the battery to heat up easier when using it. A hot battery will charge slower once about 35-37°C internal. I've had my battery up to 40°C while charging, and even then I didn't get a slow charge warning. I can't verify this, but I think the phone can distinguish between when a battery is charging slowly due to heat or low input current. I've had my cable pull slightly loose from the charger before and got that warning, which is why I'm thinking this way.

Well, my battery temp. is 43℃ at this time, as I am currently outdoor and it is around 3pm

Sent from my HTC One M8

 

[Mooncatt]

Well, my battery temp. is 43℃ at this time, as I am currently outdoor and it is around 3pm

Sent from my HTC One M8

I would certainly try to limit usage to keep the phone as cool as possible in that kind of heat to prolong the life of the battery, but again, that isn't likely the problem causing the burn out. The problem heat causes in a battery is a breakdown of the chemicals and thus lower the capacity. In extreme cases, it could make the battery rupture. In phones with removable batteries, you could inspect it for swelling, which would mean it's defective or at least on its way out. Unfortunately, the average user can't do that with the M8. (Besides, the M8 battery is more technically Li-po based, which I believe are not only very thin, but don't swell much when they go bad) I've read that HTC set the thermal limits relatively low, where it'll under clock the processors, to leave a larger safety margin for protecting the battery from excessive heat. I'm not sure what the actual limits are, but basically the hotter it gets and the longer it stays there, the more damage can be done to the life of the battery.

 

[Deathunter-M8]

Actually, when my M8 gets really hot while I am using it, I turned off completely until it cools down.

Sent from my HTC One M8

 

[Lok52]

Just wanted to share some info, I regularly get a slow charging notification on my phone while using the HTC charger and cord that came with the phone. In different sockets.

Posted via Android Central App

 

[Deathunter-M8]

Just wanted to share some info, I regularly get a slow charging notification on my phone while using the HTC charger and cord that came with the phone. In different sockets.

Posted via Android Central App

So is it safe to say that it is a software bug rather than a hardware problem!

Note:-

I just got back home, plugged my M8 to the charger, got the slow charging message, and while charging I've done the Hardware diagnostics from the Phone Health (Diagnostics)

I've done them all one by one, and when I finished I noticed that the slow charging message has disappeared, I removed the charger and plugged it back in, and the slow charging message still didn't appear for me.

I guess that the problem is solved somehow.

Sent from my HTC One M8

 

[Mooncatt]

Just wanted to share some info, I regularly get a slow charging notification on my phone while using the HTC charger and cord that came with the phone. In different sockets.

Are you saying you get that warning only in certain sockets/outlets? If so, then there's likely something wrong with those outlets and/or wiring. If it's random, try plugging it in and then moving the cable around, especially right behind the micro-USB plug head. If that causes the warning to come and go, then the cable is bad. That's usually the culprit of stuff like this if there's no other obvious symptoms. The wire inside the cables are prone to breaking internally. If that's not it, it could potentially be the charger itself. May want to try a new cable first, then a new charger if that doesn't fix it.

So is it safe to say that it is a software bug rather than a hardware problem!

Note:-

I just got back home, plugged my M8 to the charger, got the slow charging message, and while charging I've done the Hardware diagnostics from the Phone Health (Diagnostics)

I've done them all one by one, and when I finished I noticed that the slow charging message has disappeared, I removed the charger and plugged it back in, and the slow charging message still didn't appear for me.

I guess that the problem is solved somehow.

Interesting. Without knowing what happened to the phone due to the malfunction, I wouldn't rule out being a software glitch now that the warning has gone away. Hopefully you don't have any more problems with it.

 

[Deathunter-M8]

I will keep you updated.

Meanwhile, it would be nice if someone else who is getting the slow charging message can try the Hardware diagnostics while charging and see if the message will disappear or not.

Note:-
I am using the original charger, I only changed the usb charging cable.

Sent from my HTC One M8