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TR Dojo: Extend lithium-ion battery life with these five tips

By | November 17, 2010, 2:00am PST

Summary: In today’s mobile world, battery life is precious. Bill Detwiler shares five things you can do to increase Lithium-ion battery longevity.

In today’s mobile world, battery life is precious. Bill Detwiler shares five things you can do to increase Lithium-ion battery longevity. Once you’ve watched this TR Dojo video, you can find a link to the original TechRepublic article and print the tip from our TR Dojo Blog.

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Lithium-ion, Battery, Lithium-ion Battery, Engineering, Larry Dignan

Larry Dignan is Editor in Chief of ZDNet and SmartPlanet as well as Editorial Director of ZDNet's sister site TechRepublic.

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Larry Dignan

Larry Dignan has nothing to disclose. He doesn’t hold investments in the technology companies he covers.

Biography

Larry Dignan

Larry Dignan is Editor in Chief of ZDNet and SmartPlanet as well as Editorial Director of ZDNet's sister site TechRepublic. He was most recently Executive Editor of News and Blogs at ZDNet. Prior to that he was executive news editor at eWeek and news editor at Baseline. He also served as the East Coast news editor and finance editor at CNET News.com. Larry has covered the technology and financial services industry since 1995, publishing articles in WallStreetWeek.com, Inter@ctive Week, The New York Times, and Financial Planning magazine. He's a graduate of the Columbia School of Journalism and the University of Delaware.

For daily updates, follow Larry on Twitter.

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RE: TR Dojo: Extend lithium-ion battery life with these five tips
birumut Updated - 26th Jun
Well done! Thank you very much for professional templates and community edition
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View in thread
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Summary Please
Mwendo Updated - 17th Nov 2010
Useful information. It would be useful to have a written summary. It didn't need to sit there for a 5 minute video for info that would take 20 seconds to read.
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RE: TR Dojo: Extend lithium-ion battery life with these five tips
mmarquis 17th Nov 2010
@Mwendo Agreed. Especially relevant to those of us who have streaming video blocked at work.
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Agreed - link to blog provides no summary
jacarter3 17th Nov 2010
@Mwendo

that I could find. And I am not watching a video that eats my data plan just to find out.
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RE: TR Dojo: Extend lithium-ion battery life with these five tips
masterpmi 17th Nov 2010
@jacarter3 Get a real Data plan....
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RE: TR Dojo: Extend lithium-ion battery life with these five tips
bmgoodman 17th Nov 2010
@Mwendo Exactly!
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RE: TR Dojo: Extend lithium-ion battery life with these five tips
reziol Updated - 17th Nov 2010
@Mwendo Click the link to the blog, and under the video is a little link that says "transcript"

Or go here http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/five-tips/?p=289
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RE: TR Dojo: Extend lithium-ion battery life with these five tips
alan.sewards@... 17th Nov 2010
I agree. I'm sick of these stupid, timewasting videos when a few well-chosen words would convey the same information. Stop playing with your toys, guys and get back to being journalists.
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RE: TR Dojo: Extend lithium-ion battery life with these five tips
Den2010 17th Nov 2010
This is a general comment on the proliferation of videos on more and more websites that offer technical advice and updates on tech news.

If there is a real reason for video, then it's justified. If, however, you're just conveying information, forget the video and give me a printed page. I don't need to see my fellow nerds reading something that I could read myself, perhaps with a couple of pictures added. It's data-intensive, it's time-consuming, and more and more, it's frustrating, particularly if I would like to print it out or save it as a PDF file.

To summarize - if it's a hands-on demonstration, then _perhaps_ video is required; if it's just knowledge transfer, print it.
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The Five Tips (summary text)
gmeader Updated - 17th Nov 2010
1: Keep your batteries at room temperature
That means between 20 and 25 degrees C. The worst thing that can happen to a lithium-ion battery is to have a full charge and be subjected to elevated temperatures. So dont leave or charge your mobile devices battery in your car if its hot out. Heat is by far the largest factor when it comes to reducing lithium-ion battery life.
2: Think about getting a high-capacity lithium-ion battery, rather than carrying a spare
Batteries deteriorate over time, whether they're being used or not. So a spare battery wont last much longer than the one in use. Its important to remember the aging characteristic when purchasing batteries. Make sure to ask for ones with the most recent manufacturing date.
3: Allow partial discharges and avoid full ones (usually)
Unlike NiCad batteries, lithium-ion batteries do not have a charge memory. That means deep-discharge cycles are not required. In fact, its better for the battery to use partial-discharge cycles.

There is one exception. Battery experts suggest that after 30 charges, you should allow lithium-ion batteries to almost completely discharge. Continuous partial discharges create a condition called digital memory, decreasing the accuracy of the devices power gauge. So let the battery discharge to the cut-off point and then recharge. The power gauge will be recalibrated.
4: Avoid completely discharging lithium-ion batteries
If a lithium-ion battery is discharged below 2.5 volts per cell, a safety circuit built into the battery opens and the battery appears to be dead. The original charger will be of no use. Only battery analyzers with the boost function have a chance of recharging the battery.

Also, for safety reasons, do not recharge deeply discharged lithium-ion batteries if they have been stored in that condition for several months.
5: For extended storage, discharge a lithium-ion battery to about 40 percent and store it in a cool place
Ive always had an extra battery for my notebook, but it would never last as long as the original battery. I know now that its because I was storing the battery fully charged. That means oxidation of lithium-ion is at its highest rate. Storing lithium-ion batteries at 40 percent discharge and in the refrigerator (not freezer) is recommended
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RE: TR Dojo: Extend lithium-ion battery life with these five tips
Tinman57 17th Nov 2010
@masterpmi - Really, is that what you have to offer? Some people don't have access to, or need "Better Data Plans", so that's a pretty ignorant reply....
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RE: TR Dojo: Extend lithium-ion battery life with these five tips
birumut Updated - 26th Jun
Well done! Thank you very much for professional templates and community edition
sesli sohbet sesli chat

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