What’s more annoying than running out of juice on your smartphone, tablet, or other vital gadget? Answer: When the battery starts to wear out completely and holds less and less of a charge with each passing day, until your device doesn’t seem to last for more than a few hours.

Battery death is an unfortunate part of life, but it doesn’t have to come quickly. There are effective steps you can take to extend the lifespan of your battery by as much as 2 to 3 years! Consider the following advice, summarized collectively from the support pages of HP, Apple, Dell, and Asus:

• Never store a device for an extended period of time (6 months or more) while fully charged or fully discharged. If the device is going to remain mostly unused for an extended period of time, then charge it to 50% every 6 months in order to reduce the effects of aging on the battery.

• Don’t needlessly expose your device to high temperatures for lengthy periods of time. For instance, don’t leave your device lying in a hot car throughout the afternoon. As a general rule, avoid leaving your device in ambient temps of 35°C/95°F or more.

• Try to avoid draining your battery down to 10% or under whenever possible. Li-Ion batteries are at their healthiest states while charged anywhere from 40% to 70%.

• Be mindful of how well your device’s protective case ventilates. Mobile devices generate a lot of heat when working hard or recharging, and poor ventilation means that the internal temperature of the device must rise. High internal temps wreak havoc on battery lifespan. If your case completely covers your device and does not seem to allow for ventilation, you might want to consider getting a different case.

As far as mobile phones go, many of these tips really don’t matter too much; most people carry the same smartphone for only about 2-3 years on average anyway, which is well within a typical Li-Ion battery’s lifespan. For tablets and laptops, this advice can be put to far better use. Treat your battery well, and your device will treat you well in return.

Categories: Tips

Tags: Hardware, Mobile, Tips