Is my battery going weak?

[Daniel Gecev]

Is it going weak if I use fast charge every time I charge it?

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[B. Diddy]

I've heard some conflicting information about this, but Battery University (which is a well-respected source) does discuss decreased overall battery lifespan when using fast charging on a regular basis: Fast and Ultra-fast Chargers - Battery University

 

[droidguy1964]

Good question. I've had my edge for over a month now and have never plugged it in. Wireless charging just seems to be too handy.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[Zoostation]

I'm using the fast charger at home unless I'm charging overnight, then I use a standard 1A charger from my previous device. At work just usb connect to my pc if I need to charge.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[Rukbat]

1C charging (charging at the current of the battery capacity - IOW, if the battery has a capacity of 2500mAh, charging at 2,600mA or 2.6 Amps) is considered the normal charge for a lithium ion battery. Most phones charge at half that amount or less. Qualcom Fast Charge 2.0 charges at about 1C, so it's not really a fast charge, it's a normal charge - the "normal" charge is actually a slow charge.

While I fully agree with Battery University, and with B. Diddy's evaluation of them (they destroy batteries at about the rate you breathe [it's Cadex, a manufacturer of battery testing equipment], so if there's something they don't know about batteries, it's probably something it's not possible to know), read the link he gave. Notice that the reference in the graph is 1C. They don't show a line for 0.5C, because it would be so close to the one for 1C that it would use the same pixels. They caution against ultra-fast (anything over 1C) charging, charging batteries that are above or below the normal temperature range for charging and fast-charging defective batteries or batteries near the end of life.

They also caution against fast-charging the battery when the phone is turned on! You could overcharge the battery that way, and that not only risks the battery life, it could be dangerous - overcharging a lithium battery could cause a sudden heat rise and a fire or, if the rise is fast enough, an explosion. So if you're going to quick-charge, turn the phone off first. If you have to have the phone running, use the normal charge rate.

 

[jschu22]

I'm not an expert but I can't help doubt some of the suggestions on this subject. Maybe one day I'll read about a phone that exploded due to fast charging but there are a lot of Note 4s out there and there aren't any reported issues that I know of.

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