Battery life deteriorates after my iPad battery died

[tacticalx86]

Hi all,

I believe this to be the case with my iPad Air 2020, but also basically every other electronic device with a battery I have owned.

The iPad has been great. Battery life fantastic. I never allowed it to run down to 0%, however a while ago it did. Since then, its battery life has deteriorated. I used to get 6 hours of screen on time, now, I maybe get 3-4 hours, often less. The same has happened to other devices - eg, my bluetooth earbuds (not apple),. that would last on a single charge for literal MONTHS. Then, when they run out and i charge them, they last for maybe a few days. Is this a problem with the electricity in my house? If so, what would it be and what can I do to fix it? Do I now need new batteries?

 

[KompuKare]

Your problem is far likelier to be that lithium batteries do not like deep discharges, and letting a device run until it goes off can permanently damage it's batteries.

 

[tacticalx86]

Your problem is far likelier to be that lithium batteries do not like deep discharges, and letting a device run until it goes off can permanently damage it's batteries.

That’s why I tried to make a conscious effort not to let it drop that far but would it really be impacted that much after just one time

 

[KompuKare]

Well yes, just once does sound bad luck especially while Apple are notoriously bad at making things which cannot be repaired, by all accounts they do monitor the state of their built-in, soldered batteries very well - similar to the monitoring in business grade laptop like ThinkPads - and hence should stop well before the battery reaches zero.
Can't see how bad electricity could cause the issue though as the whole charging circuit skills be "clean" DC.
Did you use the same charger for both?

 

[tacticalx86]

Well yes, just once does sound bad luck especially while Apple are notoriously bad at making things which cannot be repaired, by all accounts they do monitor the state of their built-in, soldered batteries very well - similar to the monitoring in business grade laptop like ThinkPads - and hence should stop well before the battery reaches zero.
Can't see how bad electricity could cause the issue though as the whole charging circuit skills be "clean" DC.
Did you use the same charger for both?

nope I’ve used different chargers for everything this has happened to basically every device I have owned

 

[Yella Fella]

Your problem is far likelier to be that lithium batteries do not like deep discharges, and letting a device run until it goes off can permanently damage it's batteries.

I did not realise that myself. I always treat it like all rechargeable AA batteries where I use to almost dying then full charge in one swoop.

 

[KompuKare]

I did not realise that myself. I always treat it like all rechargeable AA batteries where I use to almost dying then full charge in one swoop.

Yes, that works reasonably well for NiCads and NiMH but not for lithium-ion.
Optimal for lithium-ion charge cycle longevity it is meant to be: charge slowly, never go below 20% and never above 85% or so.
Don't usually like Ars Technica articles (find them too much like they came of an American science journalism assembly line), this article is a nice overview of Lithium batteries:
https://arstechnica.com/science/202...y-no-batteries-are-improving-under-your-nose/
I especially liked the takeaway (probably obvious with hindsight) that different applications have vastly different requirements, and that's all a compromise to balance charge-cycles, max output current, max charging current etc.

 

[Squink]

I think people spend too much time worrying about their phone batteries. Use your device, enjoy it, and when the battery has degraded enough that it's affecting your enjoyment, pay for a new battery (or replace under warranty if it's a dud). Don't fast charge if you don't need to, but don't micromanage every aspect of a battery's existence. Whatever you do, it's going to fail eventually.