Lots of posts about running battery too low

[B. Diddy]

I sure have been seeing a lot posts on this forum about people using their Nexus 7 until the battery runs out, with subsequent problems like having difficulties starting it up again even with the charger plugged in, as well as strange "static" or pixelated screen junk. May I make a suggestion? Please do not make a habit of running your battery out--it's not good for the battery, and it has become evident that the N7 doesn't really like it either. Although all decent devices are supposed to shut down automatically when the battery gets to a certain level, it sounds like some people are actually getting down to zero or close to it, and it's worth mentioning that if a lithium battery gets to zero, it's dead, as in ruined. Since the battery is not easily replaceable, that means your N7 is also ruined.

So if you see the battery down to 20 or so, stop using it and start charging it!

 

[kimikookskookis]

My iPhone runs down to 0% But as with all devices 0% is actually 5% Just enough to shut the device down without causing any damage (e.g. when an important file is being accessed, it will be closed in that time).

And about the "it won't turn on, even with the charger plugged in" - lots of devices do that. My PS Vita does that. Once it's completely out of battery and turned itself of, it takes about 10 minutes on the charger before it turns on again. Even my iPhone does that. But at least both are nice enough to show that they aren't ready yet. The iPhone shows the battery symbol and turns off after a few seconds, while the PS Vita blinks orange, and as soon as the orange light stops blinking and stays on, it is ready to be turned on again. I guess the Nexus 7 just stays black or shows that "static pixel flicker".

 

[B. Diddy]

Good points, but I've been reading posts from people who've had problems even after their N7 has been on charger for an hour or more.

Regardless of whether 0% actually means 0% or 5%, it's still not a good habit to get into. If it shuts down at a true 5% level and you are unable to plug it in or forget to, then you may actually reach true 0% as the battery continues to discharge even while powered off. Then, in the immortal words of Pvt Hudson, "Game over, man, game over!"

 

[kimikookskookis]

Who even lets a device run that low? Unless you're going somewhere and use it all day long I don't see why I wouldn't charge it when it reaches under 20% when I have the chance to do so.

Well, I feel like there is a problem that at times the Nexus 7 doesn't even know how charged it is. If the battery needs at least 5% for Android to operate, but it takes an hour for it to register that it already has 30%... then let's hope this is a software bug and not a problem with the battery failing to report the right numbers :|

 

[B. Diddy]

Who even lets a device run that low? Unless you're going somewhere and use it all day long I don't see why I wouldn't charge it when it reaches under 20% when I have the chance to do so.

Exactly. But I've seen a number of posts along the lines of, "I was using my Nexus 7 and the battery died on me ..." Hence, my original post.

 

[kimikookskookis]

Exactly. But I've seen a number of posts along the lines of, "I was using my Nexus 7 and the battery died on me ..." Hence, my original post.

Usually those posts start with "I left my Nexus 7 in sleep mode over night and the next morning it was dead". That said, it's usually when you least expect it to die.

 

[Eduardo06sp]

I think letting your battery die once a month will re-calibrate my battery chart, no?

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Android Central Forums

 

[B. Diddy]

I'm not an expert when it comes to the whole question of battery recalibration. I've read a number of posts advocating it, but I've also read others saying it isn't all that helpful. I would guess that if it is helpful at all, it probably only needs to be done once in a while, so monthly seems a little excessive. This widely quoted site (Battery Calibration – Battery University) advocates calibrating once every 3 months.

If you're going to be careful about the battery discharge/recharge cycle for recalibration, and make sure that you recharge immediately without letting it run down any further, then that's probably not going to cause any problems. The problems arise when people heavily use their devices without any close attention to how much juice they have left, let it die, and then forget to charge it up promptly.

 

[Raptor007]

Well actually today I found my device at 8% battery life and I had not even used it at all. I put it on the charger yesterday after I got the screen protector on it and I purchased it on Saturday. So it was fully charged on Sunday evening and I Put it in my bag well I took it out at lunch to find it at 8% because even though it was in airplane mode the GPS is still active. So I ask WTF Google, why, just why would you have the GPS function working during airplane mode? Makes no real sense to me and if the device is asleep shouldn't it put the radios to sleep if the battery gets too low or shut down if it gets too low.

So I was able to finally charge it up enough via a UBS port and do my software updates but I was seriously ticked off and was considering returning it. Its a great device, great price and full of great features but some of the most basic design principles were missed like battery management. I have a 2 year squaretrade warranty going on it anyways just in case.

 

[B. Diddy]

It sounds like GPS isn't widely considered to cause problems with RF interference, so therefore it isn't automatically turned off in Airplane Mode on the Nexus 7. See this link, although I can't be entirely sure how accurate it is: GPSRFI

I don't keep GPS on for any of my devices specifically because of additional battery drain. If you need to use it on demand, I suggest using the stock Power Controls widget, or installing a 3rd party toggle widget like Power Toggles.

 

[retsaw]

The GPS is a receiver, since it doesn't transmit anything it shouldn't cause any interference when it is on, and therefore there is no reason to have it off in airplane mode.

That said, I don't like being tracked, so I have it off unless I need it for navigation, in which case Google having my location data is my payment for using their navigation services.

 

[AndroidOsAppsandMore]

B. Diddy,

I am going to have to disagree with the last part about the battery not being easy to replace. There are several videos showing it only takes a few steps to remove the back cover of the Nexus 7. Once that is done the batter can be removed rather simply. it is just one cord. I would suggest using tools specifically made for doing both parts of the process. They don't cost much.

A replacement battery can be purchased. There are third party sources that sell batteries. The one I found with a quick google search sold used ones.

It is probably possible to contact Asus about obtaining a replacement as well.

Though it is certainly not as easy a process and replacing double AA batteries, the entire process is fairly easy enough for all but those with 0 ability and fixing anything.

 

[KenDavidson]

My battery has gone dead one time on my N7. I had a charger that went bad while the device was left on and the charger plugged in. When I went to take it off the charger to use I had nothing. I connected the USB cable into my Chromebook and still nothing when pressing the power button until about 10 minutes past, then the N7 powered on and worked fine. I think as @kimikookskookis states above that this is primarily the same as many other devices operation that once the battery reaches a critical low level it must receive some charge before allowing itself to be turned back on.

I also use Battery Magic - available in the Play store to cycle my battery once a month and it works great to ensure long full life of your battery on the N7

 

[B. Diddy]

B. Diddy,

I am going to have to disagree with the last part about the battery not being easy to replace. There are several videos showing it only takes a few steps to remove the back cover of the Nexus 7. Once that is done the batter can be removed rather simply. it is just one cord. I would suggest using tools specifically made for doing both parts of the process. They don't cost much.

A replacement battery can be purchased. There are third party sources that sell batteries. The one I found with a quick google search sold used ones.

It is probably possible to contact Asus about obtaining a replacement as well.

Though it is certainly not as easy a process and replacing double AA batteries, the entire process is fairly easy enough for all but those with 0 ability and fixing anything.

Fair enough. I think there are quite a few people on this forum who wouldn't feel comfortable taking their N7 apart, so my post was directed a little more at them. I'll keep your advice in mind if/when mine dies!

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Android Central Forums

 

[begoss]

There is a documented problem for many Nexus devices on 4.2.1, my Nex7 included. See: code.google.com Issue 39145 - android - Nexus 7 crashes when battery drops to 30-40% since updating to Jellybean 4.1.2 - Android - An Open Handset Alliance Project - Google Project Hosting

Since this update, somewhere around 40% battery my Nexus 7 suddenly behaves as if it were at 0% and does the low battery auto shutdown thing resulting in a crash where the screen displays static and "static sounds" from speaker. See: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSpgQn3lcYU&feature=youtube_gdata_player

It also charges painfully slow (yes, on stock charger). There are other issues like slow scrolling, low or no speaker volume, bluetooth fails. Many are reporting and documenting similar issues.

 

[loftysmyth]

I have the issue shown on the video with my nexus. When I charge it it automatically turns on and then runs its battery out and this happens over and over again. What can I do?