Plugged in and fully charge

If your phone has been charged 100%, make sure you unplug it.

If you continue charging it, you’ll damage the battery and reduce its performance. This is particularly true for those of us who leave our phones on charge all night.

Charging puts the battery under high stress. Once it reaches 100 percent you need to give it a break from this high stress activity.



2. Leaving the case on

Guilty as charged? Most of us are.

We tend to leave our cases on when we want to urgently charge our phones. This traps heat while the battery is being charged and leads to overheating. Next time you’re looking for ways to prolong your battery’s life, try sliding off that case first. It will dissipate excess heat and leave your phone up and running for a few more years.



3. Fully discharging then recharging

Lithium-ion batteries don’t have to be fully discharged before they’re plugged in. It’s a good idea to plug the phone in wthe battery is at 50%.

Lithium-ion batteries fluctuate and become unpredictable when the charge drops too low. To prevent them from running out of power, keep an eye on them and carry a spare charger along, just in case you need to top up the battery.

4. Constantly aiming for 100%

If you’re constantly plugging in your phone to keep it fully charged, you’re doing more harm than good. Your phone will run well if the battery level lies between 30 and 80 percent.

So quit reaching for that charger and enjoy your phone instead.



5. Using the wrong charger

It’s a good idea to stick to the charger that came with the phone. Batteries come with pre-set charging circuits.

These circuits control charging speed and they know how much charge the battery requires. Switching the charger only messes things up.

You end up damaging the battery and reducing its lifespan.

If you use cheaper chargers that are compatible with your device, you can also run the risk of flooding your phone with extra charge.