LG V20 and Removable Batteries

[MDMcAtee]

Well, there are many factors such as heat and the ones I already mentioned. But a battery shouldn't degrade that much in 8 or 9 months under regular usage. You may have been unlucky.

No this is not even close to being accurate... All rechargeable batteries degrade when used regularly. This is a fact, and not anything else.

If you have a rechargeable battery and use it regularly and it doesn't see any degradation, then you are the lucky one...or just don't use your phone very much.

While there are factors that may cause a battery to no longer hold the majority of it's charge over 9 months, all batteries loose a good percentage and many are bad from the git go.

I have had 3 bad batteries for my v10 in less than 6 months when I first bought it and all were straight from LG too not some junky knockoff.

One other thing that I think should be said.. By whose usage or standards do you think "normal usage" should be judged? What is perfectly normal to 1 may be totally abnormal to another... Also fwiw both the phone and the oem charging cradles shut off the power to the phone and the cradle so it isn't overcharging. They did this on the v10 and on the v20. I've tried to bump charge both without success. If you can on yours it most likely is a battery problem that isn't holding a full charge.

BTW.. I used the hell out of mine on the v10.. Ran them down till the phone off, and these still hold over 90%.. So while I've done that, I have also charged at 50% regularly on 1 just to see how much longer it will last .. It was at 87% last time I checked it when the phone was in use.

My instincts tells me it's more of a quality control issue because not all batteries are equal.



Mac

 

[Mooncatt]

Re: It's true, batteries WILL degrade overtime..

Also fwiw both the phone and the oem charging cradles shut off the power to the phone and the cradle so it isn't overcharging. They did this on the v10 and on the v20. I've tried to bump charge both without success. If you can on yours it most likely is a battery problem that isn't holding a full charge.

Mac

All Li-ion chargers are designed to shut off charging, and most monitor and top off as needed. For phones, that means your battery will be kept at a full charge during use, and doing so will accelerate wear on it. Li-ion batteries don't like being held at a full charge.

 

[lucfig]

Re: It's true, batteries WILL degrade overtime..

No this is not even close to being accurate... All rechargeable batteries degrade when used regularly. This is a fact, and not anything else.

If you have a rechargeable battery and use it regularly and it doesn't see any degradation, then you are the lucky one...or just don't use your phone very much.

While there are factors that may cause a battery to no longer hold the majority of it's charge over 9 months, all batteries loose a good percentage and many are bad from the git go.

I have had 3 bad batteries for my v10 in less than 6 months when I first bought it and all were straight from LG too not some junky knockoff.

One other thing that I think should be said.. By whose usage or standards do you think "normal usage" should be judged? What is perfectly normal to 1 may be totally abnormal to another... Also fwiw both the phone and the oem charging cradles shut off the power to the phone and the cradle so it isn't overcharging. They did this on the v10 and on the v20. I've tried to bump charge both without success. If you can on yours it most likely is a battery problem that isn't holding a full charge.

Mac

I never said there is no degradation.

I consider myself a heavy user and most days my device can't hold the whole day without an extra juice. I also charge my phone overnight (not the best thing to do) everyday.
With that in mind I have never seen a degradation of 60% in 8 months not in any smartphone I had nor my family.

This is my experience and what I refered as normal usage, although this is quite heavy.

 

[MDMcAtee]

As I said above (I was adding to my post when you posted) I still feel it is a quality control issue with the manufacturers.

Your right I forgot that some people's phones are still chewing data on not in heavy doze mode.. But mine isn't doing this. I can charge it completely, take it off the charger and it's still at 100 % many hours later with no usage. It doesn't drop like a rock either in the first 30 minutes of syncing either.

I guess if one has to be connected 24/7 constantly syncing, constantly updating everything, then they are not going to get good battery life. I'm old school in this area and won't let my phone do this.. I don't think that this is a abnormal usage, but I suppose some people would consider it to be. I wonder though... If you don't need to be connected 24/7 why have everything syncing. Is it to inconvenient to manage your phone instead of having someone else decide how it operates?

Mac

 

[Almeuit]

As I said above (I was adding to my post when you posted) I still feel it is a quality control issue with the manufacturers.

Your right I forgot that some people's phones are still chewing data on not in heavy doze mode.. But mine isn't doing this. I can charge it completely, take it off the charger and it's still at 100 % many hours later with no usage. It doesn't drop like a rock either in the first 30 minutes of syncing either.

I guess if one has to be connected 24/7 constantly syncing, constantly updating everything, then they are not going to get good battery life. I'm old school in this area and won't let my phone do this.. I don't think that this is a abnormal usage, but I suppose some people would consider it to be. I wonder though... If you don't need to be connected 24/7 why have everything syncing. Is it to inconvenient to manage your phone instead of having someone else decide how it operates?

Mac

I figure why worry about battery life so bad to the point of turning off syncs which help when I do go to use the phone.. versus me having to manually go initiate the sync to get my updates?

I'd rather charge my phone a little more versus disabling syncs in order to have it be at 100 percent versus.. 95 or 93 when I pick it up hours later.

 

[Ejjba]

You folks with removable, do you still use best practices for charging levels (keep it between 40% and 80% as much as possible) or do you let it drain super low before swapping or charging?

 

[Ejjba]

You folks with removable, do you still use best practices for charging levels (keep it between 40% and 80% as much as possible) or do you let it drain super low before swapping or charging?

I just use the phone and plug it in when it needs a charge. Have seen no degradation in 3 months. The v10 was much much worse 2 batteries gone in about 16 months.(bootloop)

 

[flyingkytez]

You folks with removable, do you still use best practices for charging levels (keep it between 40% and 80% as much as possible) or do you let it drain super low before swapping or charging?

I usually swap around 25% or earlier. I charge it to 100% using the external charging cradle.

 

[Mike Dee]

You folks with removable, do you still use best practices for charging levels (keep it between 40% and 80% as much as possible) or do you let it drain super low before swapping or charging?

I recharge whenever.... I pay no attention to where it is. I just judge when I need to top off to get me through the day.

 

[VN750]

You folks with removable, do you still use best practices for charging levels (keep it between 40% and 80% as much as possible) or do you let it drain super low before swapping or charging?

No, I typically swap out a battery around 20% sometimes less if I'm in the middle of something. The battery is then put in an external charger (never use the phone itself) where it's eventually taken out and stored in a plastic carry case (Samsung OEM Note 4 battery - have five that are rotated through that discharge/recharge cycle as needed). The time in between swapping out can vary from just hours to days depending on use. Upon swapping in a new battery they always read as 100%. Other than that I don't worry about or try to manage the battery's charge level.

On a side note I have to say that 40-80% always makes me laugh. It's so impractical, who wants to have to manage the charge level to that degree in hopes of squeezing out the best longevity of a battery? I guess if you have just that one sealed battery it's probably in your best interest. But to me it's just another reason to stick with user-replaceable.

 

[Mike Dee]

No, I typically swap out a battery around 20% sometimes less if I'm in the middle of something. The battery is then put in an external charger (never use the phone itself) where it's eventually taken out and stored in a plastic carry case (Samsung OEM Note 4 battery - have five that are rotated through that charge/recharge cycle as needed). The time in between swapping out can vary from just hours to days depending on use. Upon swapping in a new battery they always read as 100%. Other than that I don't worry about or try to manage the battery's charge level.

On a side note I have to say that 40-80% always makes me laugh. It's so impractical, who wants to have to manage the charge level to that degree in hopes of squeezing out the best longevity of a battery? I guess if you have just that one sealed battery it's probably in your best interest. But to me it's just another reason to stick with user-replaceable.

I'm not even sure that 40 to 80 percent is better.. I think its more like 39 to 79.

 

[VN750]

Re: R.I.P. to removable batteries, the V20 may be the last..

Removable vs non-removable from a design and engineering standpoint, rather than a consumer preference of that one feature, creates a number of challenges and tradeoffs.

In favor of removable:
Easier for the user to replace
Removable door makes some other components easier to access
Etc, etc

In favor of sealed:
Better device designs are possible
Battery can be placed between the display and board, rather than having to reside on the outside of all components (this can be better for heat management and for making a thinner device, which people seem to like for ergonomics)
Better heat management improves battery life and improves the longevity of other components

How can there be better heat management when the battery is sandwiched between the display and main board where the battery is basically stuck in there to cook (along with all other nearby components)? In comparison with user-replaceable the battery is on top of those components with only the back cover between it and the outside world and where if need be you can pull the cover and battery to let things cool down. In that case you also have the option for a fully charged spare battery that's at room temperature to put back in and go about your way. Meanwhile you let the other battery cool down before charging it again. It's a win-win. Sealed battery you're stuck trying to cool down the entire phone and battery and need to wait to charge again until that happens. Meanwhile all that repeated heat build-up is reducing the life of that one battery. Lose-lose.

 

[Aquila]

Re: R.I.P. to removable batteries, the V20 may be the last..

How can there be better heat management when the battery is sandwiched between the display and main board where the battery is basically stuck in there to cook (along with all other nearby components)? In comparison with user-replaceable the battery is on top of those components with only the back cover between it and the outside world and where if need be you can pull the cover and battery to let things cool down. In that case you also have the option for a fully charged spare battery that's at room temperature to put back in and go about your way. Meanwhile you let the other battery cool down before charging it again. It's a win-win. Sealed battery you're stuck trying to cool down the entire phone and battery and need to wait to charge again until that happens. Meanwhile all that repeated heat build-up is reducing the life of that one battery. Lose-lose.

Example, the Galaxy S7, with a sealed battery and a heat pipe / radiator that they describe as a liquid cooler.

 

[MDMcAtee]

What are you going to do?

If LG kills off the removable battery and does not bring it back next year with the v40?

I've already am planning to keep my v20 for as long as it holds up but I am really getting disgusted at the prospect of of not having a replacement phone with a removable battery. I have grown accustomed to using just my phone for just about everything these days and I am not sure how this will work out for me.

I have had so many different types of smartphones and really don't like having to lug around multiple devices to do what I want to do....

What say you all.. What is everyone else going to do?

Mac

 

[nickdaman]

Re: What are you going to do?

I have a LG G4 I came from and then bought a LG V20 so I will stay with these 2 devices till they bite the dust if no other good phones have a removable battery.

I refuse to spend good money on a device that will have the battery degrade over time and then have to pay a shop to switch in a new battery or tear it a part myself just to change a battery out. I buy my phones out right and keep them so switching phones every year is not something I'm interested in or spending money monthly on.

 

[joewoo]

Re: What are you going to do?

I will keep my v20 as long as possible... But you have to understand we are the minority... People are very used to having phones on a payment plan... Many switch after a year.... That's just the current trend...

 

[Ejjba]

Re: What are you going to do?

Agreed, keeping v20 as long as possible. More for the reason that I can't see any real reason to change. Also own phone outright. There is really nothing new that I need for the way I use my phone. I also have a drawer full of phones, don't want to add more to collection
Lots of people are going to switch, just not me.

 

[Guyinbox]

Re: What are you going to do?

I was really hoping the v series would retain the removable battery for at least one more generation. While my v20 still does everything i need it to do, it doesn't have the radio bands for the new spectrum TMobile purchased and should start implementing at the end of the year. I hate knowing that I'll have to upgrade to a sealed battery device just for the improved network performance.

I spent 7 months on the s7 edge and i never did get over not being able to swap batteries, so it's definitely not something I'll just get used to. I may check out the Moto z force since you can at least use it's battery mod sort of like a removable battery, and it's shatterproof display would alleviate the need for a case.

 

[flyingkytez]

Re: What are you going to do?

If LG kills off the removable battery and does not bring it back next year with the v40?

I've already am planning to keep my v20 for as long as it holds up but I am really getting disgusted at the prospect of of not having a replacement phone with a removable battery. I have grown accustomed to using just my phone for just about everything these days and I am not sure how this will work out for me.

I have had so many different types of smartphones and really don't like having to lug around multiple devices to do what I want to do....

What say you all.. What is everyone else going to do?

Mac

Nothing you can really do about it. Reason why a lot of Note 4 owners still have their phone, they love the removable battery very dearly, as well as the classic Samsung "non-glass" design. I asked my friend who has a Note 4: "What are you going to do now? The Note series will not go back to removable batteries. His response, "I don't know..."

I guess I'll hang on to the V20 forever until it dies. If I do upgrade, it would only be because I want a better camera, though the V20 take exceptional shots, it's just lacking in low-light focus speed. I'll still keep my V20 as a back up, and I'll watch my current flagship's battery crap out, then I'll switch back to the V20 and buy aftermarket batteries if needed. I just feel so limited with a sealed back, mainly because we all know batteries won't last forever, unless they can come up with a battery that won't go bad after hundreds and thousands of cycles. Ask anyone who owned a phone in the beginning, and then ask them 1-2 years later how's the battery performance and they'll say it dropped at least 35%, that's when people start investing in bulky external battery chargers. I don't really want to upgrade every year because it's a waste of money, but with sealed batteries, it seems like I must. If you don't ever experience poor battery performance after 8 months, you probably aren't using your phone as much.

There's also a theory that manufactures don't want you to keep your phone more than 2 years. Flagship phones made 2-3 years ago still qualifies as great mid-rangers. If you can switch out the battery, why buy a new phone? It still works, especially with a fresh new battery. People not upgrading means a drop in sales. Manufactures also give a final os "update" that ends up slowing down your phone to the point where it's too slow to use..

 

[flyingkytez]

Re: What are you going to do?

I was really hoping the v series would retain the removable battery for at least one more generation. While my v20 still does everything i need it to do, it doesn't have the radio bands for the new spectrum TMobile purchased and should start implementing at the end of the year. I hate knowing that I'll have to upgrade to a sealed battery device just for the improved network performance.

I spent 7 months on the s7 edge and i never did get over not being able to swap batteries, so it's definitely not something I'll just get used to. I may check out the Moto z force since you can at least use it's battery mod sort of like a removable battery, and it's shatterproof display would alleviate the need for a case.

Although they are upgrading their bands, I'll stick with the V20 regardless. I don't really need super fast LTE, just reliable. T-Mobile is very good, despite what people think (probably haven't tried T-Mobile in a decade). I did a speed test and it was faster than Verizon on a Galaxy S8 Plus.