The Top 3 Lithium Ion Battery Myths

I found this great article in Sinful Android regarding lithium ion batteries that people still have misconceptions of. After reading the 3 myths, I now have an idea on its life expectancy and how it works.

While a friend of mine had explained to me some of the points mentioned in the article, he did not fully explain it so I really did not get the whole picture.

These explanations iced the cake. Read on.

Devices nowadays have transitioned from using nickel-based batteries, to lithium ion batteries in the past few years. Until now, myths associated with batteries are yet to be disproved however, there are studies and experiments proving that some of them aren’t entirely true. While nickel based batteries indeed have their own problems back then, lithium ion batteries, which is commonly used to power up laptops, cameras, and phones to name a few, are always filled with myths that most techie people still believe in.Below are the three battery myths that have already been disproved.

MYTH NO. 1: New batteries need an initial overnight charge

This is one of the most untrue myths about lithium ion batteries that a lot of people believe in. When opening a newly purchased device, you DO NOT need to fully charge it initially. Although there are benefits offered by doing so, initial charging or ‘priming’ does not affect the battery life in any way.
Manufacturers strongly suggest users to do this so that the battery will be properly calibrated and the power indicator will display the accurate battery life of the device. However, there is no need to worry about using your gadget fresh out of the box because even if the calibration is incorrect, which rarely happens, it will fix by itself over time.

MYTH NO. 2: Overcharging your lithium ion battery will reduce its battery life

One of the most common myths that we have heard about lithium ion batteries would be the need to plug it from its charger after being fully charged, since overcharging the battery/device will reduce its battery life. The truth is, lithium ion batteries cannot be overcharged or can be reduced of its battery life through overcharging. What’s good about these batteries is that that already have built-in circuits that will cut off the power once it has been fully charged.

However, it is a good idea to unplug or remove the battery once it has done charging because the heat from poor ventilation or from charging will cause it to blow up. Another reason why this is an important note worth remembering is that batteries discharge faster when heated thus, reducing its lifespan.

MYTH NO. 3: You can calibrate your Lithium Ion battery every once in a while

Some of the rechargeable batteries being used today have a battery memory. Some batteries will slowly lose their maximum capacity if you fail to completely discharge it plugging it in. Hence, recharging it while it is still 40% charged will mark it as the new 0%, which gives you lesser capacity for your battery.

However, this only applies to technologies applied in older batteries but isn’t applicable to today’s lithium-ion batteries.

What you have read above hopefully in one way or another, eased your worries about decreasing your battery’s lifespan.

The Benefits Of Fitting Batteries

The specialist advice with the right price.

A1 Battery Pro is a family owned business is a Business Council for Sustainable Energy (BCSE) accredited for all designs and installations of solar power for a variety of purposes for houses either remote or grid connect, 4WD’s and camping as well as caravans and motor homes as well as battery fitting services that ensures Batteries run in tip top shape.

While others may provide the same service as they do, the fact that they have BCSE accreditation bolsters their identity for providing great products and services.

If you want to fit the battery yourself, make sure you know what you are doing. If you have the slightest clue about what you are planning to do, leave it to the experts. This is a fact. Or else something may happen to the battery instead. In the worst case scenario, it could explode.

Battery fitting is no easy task. If you plan to have this, consult with A1 Battery Pro on how to go about this.

Farewell, Macbook Battery

After more than 4 years, it is now time to bid farewell to my Macbook battery. I think it is a durable one since everything would have still been alright if I did not upgrade the operating system to Snow Leopard. When I did, the battery went from durable to useless. Suddenly my Macbook runs out of power even if the status says something like 80%.

Apple did say that Snow Leopard’s new feature is that it detects the real lifespan of the laptop’s battery. But I wondered why when it was still at Leopard, everything was still okay. The moment I upgrade to Snow Leopard was the time that the battery problem showed up.

I did not want to revert back to the old operating system anyway because I wanted to use the latest version of the operating system anyway. Besides, that time my battery was more than 3 years old so I guess it met its lifespan. And this morning when I plugged my charger to my Macbook, it never turned itself on until after around 40 minutes.

Crap! I decided then to buy a new battery. It’s long overdue anyway.