Is a phone supposed to run in the 90s F even at rest?

[JnEricsonx]

So I'm turning my old Note 4 into my music player for work, as I can't have my actual phone on me. Between my audio books, my Google music, and now I have my Amazon music on there, all downloaded as it has no data plan and my job has no wifi, I've got to wonder, why is the phone's battery temp still reading in the high 80s-low 90s right now when it's doing NOTHING? Or is it just a sign that my near 3 year old phone is just dying?

 

[belodion]

Does the battery actually seem that warm to the touch, assuming that you can remove the back to try?

 

[JnEricsonx]

Well, I had switched out batteries earlier, and be honest, no, it really didn't. Could the temp sensing app just be messed up? I mean, at one point it said 93 F, and I'd taken the battery out moments later, and it didn't feel like it. Have different one in there now.

 

[belodion]

I'm inclined to think a false temperature indication, yes.

 

[Rukbat]

If you're not in airplane mode, it may be searching for any kind of signal - and with none there, that could warm the battery up.

 

[Mooncatt]

Ambient temp can play a role too.

With the phone being so old, the battery is also surely showing its age. Over time, their internal resistance goes up, which in turn generates more heat than a fresh battery with the same load on it.

 

[JnEricsonx]

Yeah, I got everything to calm down. It is a older phone, and the battery is probably a year odd old too.

 

[Mooncatt]

Yeah, I got everything to calm down. It is a older phone, and the battery is probably a year odd old too.

That's good. While you may have bought the battery a year ago, it was probably manufactured 2-3 years ago and already at reduced capacity when you got it.

 

[JnEricsonx]

Well, it's redundant. I noticed that after two hours of charging, the battery had gone from 75-82%, so I shut it down and tried a different battery. Couldn't start it back up under 3 different batteries, or even get a sign of charging. My first device since I started buying smartphones and tablets in 2011 is pretty much dead. Thankfully I have my Note 8, and may buy a Tab A 10.1 with S-Pen off Amazon tonight or tomorrow. My other tablets are the Note 2012 and the Galaxy Tab 3 Sprint version.