Compared to the batteries that they largely replaced, the li-ion
cobalt oxide cells used in laptops, cellphones and other compact
electronics are complex in construction, and roiling with chemical
reactions.
Lead-acid cells might store less energy than li-ion, and suffer from longer charge times and Dell Precision M6400 Battery memory,
where a partial drain and subsequent recharge lowers the total
capacity. But whether they¡¯re full or empty, there¡¯s very little
activity. Li-ion cells, on the other hand, are in an almost perpetual
state of decline.
¡°The deeper the discharge for a li-ion cell, the more damage you do
over time,¡± said Tom Hartley, a professor of electrical engineering at
the University of Akron, who works with NASA to help extend the life of
its batteries. ¡°The fuller the charge Dell Precision M60 Battery is, the more damage you do over time. It likes to sit in the middle of a state of charge.¡±
Tests have shown that raising the voltage of some li-ion cells by a
tenth of a volt, from 4.1 V to 4.2 V, will cut its lifespan in half over
time. Another 0.1 V boost will cut it by a factor of 3. Little or no
charge can result in corrosion in the cells, creating a resistance that
impedes the transfer of electrons through the Dell Precision M50 Battery .
This vulnerability to high and low charge states is far more
important than a li-ion battery¡¯s total number of cycles. After all,
what constitutes a full charge cycle varies by device and manufacturer.
According to Isidor Buchmann, founder and CEO of British Columbia-based
battery-testing firm Cadex Electronics, most published cycle counts for
consumer electronics are based on repeatedly discharging the cells by 80
percent.
NASA, on the other hand, typically sets the Hubble¡¯s Dell Precision M4400 Battery
to discharge by some 10 percent, allowing for 100,000 cycles before
replacement. Cycles, in other words, are usually a red herring, a
comforting statistic that has little bearing on the matrix of factors
that determine battery longevity.
Confusing the issue even further is the impact of temperature on li-ion¡ªsub-freezing conditions can kill the Dell Precision M4300 Battery
the instant the device is turned on, while heat might simply drop the
cells¡¯ capacity. The latter could make the practice of leaving a laptop
plugged in during use (to avoid having to use charge cycles, or for
convenience sake) an even worse idea.
The always-full, actively churning Dell Precision M40 Battery
is exposed to constant heat from nearby circuitry. The level of
potential damage depends on how the laptop is configured, particularly
how well it bleeds off the excess energy from a direct power source.
And yet, consumer electronics companies offers no true consensus on
how to hold off battery death, and the Internet only deepens the
confusion. One article claims that li-ion packs should be drained on a
weekly basis; another recommends to drain them once a month; others say
they should never be drained.
The few tips that go unchallenged are often bizarre and unfeasible. No one puts their gadgets in the fridge. No one removes the Dell Precision M2400 Battery
when their laptop is plugged in. And despite Apple¡¯s pleas, no one
remembers to regularly charge the last-gen iPod they rarely use.
Reconcile (or, more likely, ignore) the discrepancies in expert
opinion, and string together the entire spectrum of arcane suggestions
and anecdotal evidence, and the result is a portrait of li-ion as a
fickle, fragile energy storage technology. But there are HP 572831-541 Battery extending truths in the mix of myths, speculation and red herrings.
The list of li-ion killers, while still mired in hidden math and
inherently impossible to prioritize, goes something like this: too much
charge, too little charge, and extreme heat or cold. There are radical
responses, of course, such as taking out your laptop¡¯s Mini 311c-1000 Battery when it¡¯s plugged in.
But hopefully you aren¡¯t using a Mac, with those easily-disconnected
(for your safety) magnetic chargers. And obviously you remembered to
charge the Acer AS09A61 Battery to 40 or 50 percent capacity before detaching it.
For the less-obsessive, or anyone with an iPod, iPhone or other
device with built-in li-ion, extreme measures are not an option. The
only decision is how often, and how much, to charge. ¡°For phones, I
always advise people to charge more often,¡± Buchmann says. ¡°But with a
laptop, not enough testing has been done. It¡¯s sort of a toss-up.¡±
To date, no significant testing has been conducted to determine the least destructive charging regimen for li-ion-powered hstnn-lb72 gadgets
in general. Buchmann and others see heat as a negligible factor in
phones and other small devices, but even that is more educated guesswork
than anything else.
Here¡¯s what we do know: The safest life for lithium-ion is one of
moderation. The only way to minimize all of the factors that eat away at
capacity is to pretend that there¡¯s less effective capacity.
Never charge the HP 579027-001 Battery
to 100 percent, and never let them come close to empty. The narrower
that band of charge and discharge, the better, since what amounts to the
cells¡¯ metabolic activity slows at 40 to 60 percent capacity.
Chevy takes the choice out the user¡¯s hands, keeping the Volt¡¯s
battery within a range of 20 to 80 percent charge. Buchmann has no
proof, but suspects that the higher cycle counts of Apple¡¯s newer
built-in laptop batteries use a similar approach, cutting off the voltage to cells before they reach 4.2 V.
Whether it¡¯s true or not, that appears to be the best strategy for
the current generation of li-ion (particularly the cobalt oxide variety
found in consumer electronics).
Ignore cycle count, and focus on keeping gadgets as close to
half-full as circumstances permit. Full batteries are fine for travel,
dead Mini 5101 Battery are an unavoidable setback, but for day-to-day operation, let the Goldilocks standard be your guide.
Here¡¯s one other thing we know: Leaving li-ion plugged in is a
problem. Even when persistent heat is not an issue, a constant state of
charge is tantamount to working your HP Pavilion dm1-1000 Battery to death.
I was wrong about my coworker¡¯s iPod¡ªit wasn¡¯t cycling up and down
while connected to her computer, sent to an early grave by Apple¡¯s
well-intentioned requirement that all dock connections supply power
while transferring data.
What sent her iPod to an early grave was too much living, a constant state of charge that burned the battery at both ends.