is it normal for the original battery to be completely dead at time of unboxing?

[D_Blumen]

Over the last several years, I have purchased over a dozen flagship phones from Samsung, Apple, as well as LG.

Almost all of their batteries had some charge (anywhere from 30% to 70%, IIRC) when I take the phones out of the boxes for the very first time.

I just received the LG G5 from Best Buy today. I was kind of surprised that the battery was completely dead. I plugged it in and it had to start charging from 0%. Is that normal?

By comparison, the free LG battery/cradle/adapter bundle from Best Buy came with a G5 battery that was almost 80% full when I took it out the first time and plugged it into my new G5.

 

[Aquila]

No, that's not normal and it's unhealthy for the battery. The battery should be shipped with a partial, closer to full than not, charge.

 

[D_Blumen]

No, that's not normal and it's unhealthy for the battery. The battery should be shipped with a partial, closer to full than not, charge.

come to think of it, I've never seen a completely dead rechargeable battery out of the box from any electronic device, dating all the way back to the 1980s when I bought my first camcorder. (a Sony full-size Beta camcorder that rested on my shoulder or the OKI brick phone that I bought in 1987, which was my very first cell phone)

I'm using the battery that came with the free LG accessory bundle. The totally-dead one that came inside the G5 is being charge in the battery charging cradle right now.. seem s to be charging normally, but only time will tell.

 

[Aquila]

I hope it's in good shape, but if not they should be able to replace it for you.

 

[smvim]

That is kind of odd, just left as is, inert, the shelf life (charge-wise) of a typical smartphone battery is several months if not years. Shouldn't be a problem though, it doesn't hurt to occasionally (emphasis on 'occasionally') drain a battery to single digits of charge but keep a close eye on it and if anything at all appears strange be sure to take care of it while you're still covered by a warranty. At least the G5 has a user replaceable battery so it's easier to replace it. Still, considering how new the G5 model that doesn't make sense, unless the battery was just sitting in storage for a really long time before it was actually used. (Leaving a battery without charging it at least every few months isn't good for it's overall useful life either.)

 

[D_Blumen]

I hope it's in good shape, but if not they should be able to replace it for you.

I think I just figured out the reason. I looked at the LG G5 box that Best Buy sent me today. It shows date of manufacture as March 2016, a whole year ago.... no wonder Best Buy was trying to clear out these for just $120.

 

[RapidTurtle]

I picked two up last week from Best Buy also. Both Batteries of my batteries were also dead. So far they both charge to full, and seem to hold a charge all day. I also got the free spare, and haven't even used it yet, as it had to be ordered from the store.
Good luck with the phone. So far I really like it, and really love my $5 a month payment for it.

 

[D_Blumen]

I picked two up last week from Best Buy also. Both Batteries of my batteries were also dead. So far they both charge to full, and seem to hold a charge all day. I also got the free spare, and haven't even used it yet, as it had to be ordered from the store.
Good luck with the phone. So far I really like it, and really love my $5 a month payment for it.

I know, right? $120 for a G5. That was one awesome deal. My other two phones are the Note 5 and S7. I think the G5 is just as good as them. (well, the Samsung does have better screen, but that's only because of the AMOLED)