The battery performance on my new 7 is much better than the old 5s but I still dip below 50% most days, normal use being some photography, uploads and web browsing. What happened to letting them drain fully occasionally?
In my mind,
lithium ion battery advice regarding charging, discharging, cycle preservation, etc. remains confusing. A few years ago I put together the list quoted below from a several sources, but mostly
HERE; some comments: 1)
No memory effect - thus complete discharges not needed - that along w/ the item above led to replacement of all of my cordless tools in the workshop w/ Li-Ion ones; 2)
Handles hundreds..cycles - Apple claims that on its iDevices and laptops the battery should maintain 80% health after 500-1000 complete cycles (I've had a 'dud' battery in my MBPro, replaced by Apple for free; and one my iPad Air 2 - now @ 60% health w/ just under 500 cycles); 3)
Ruined if completely discharged - this appears to be a recurrent warning; and 4)
Needs on-board computer for management - this impacts on
Sue's comment above and also a practice that I've done occasionally, i.e. allow the battery to 'almost' die (I go to about 5%-10%), recharge completely to recalibrate the battery monitoring technology - as suggested in the second quote below (
Source).
These days, I only do a recalibration if the battery stats seem 'off' or if battery health issues arise (
Coconut Battery is a good app for that assessment); now my wife constantly lets the batteries on her two devices (iPad Mini 2 & iPhone 6) 'die' much to my chagrin, but on testing their 'battery health', still in GREAT shape - SO, not sure at the moment what to recommend -
Dave
Lithium Ion Battery Technology
Pros
- Much higher energy density (i.e. lighter)
- Hold their charge (lose 5%/month vs. 20 NiMH)
- No memory effect (complete discharge not needed)
- Handles hundreds charge/discharge cycles
Cons
- Degrade as soon as made (not based on use)
- Sensitive to high temperatures
- Ruined if completely discharged
- Needs on-board computer for management
- Small chance of bursting into flames
Prefers partial to deep discharge - don’t go to zero DC
Age from start even if unused (manufacturing date!)
Avoid heat
Apple recommends that you periodically drain your iPhone or iPad’s battery totally and then charge it up until it’s completely full. That's down to 0, and up to 100 percent. You should do this at least once a month. This process, called calibration, helps your device estimate its battery life more accurately. Calibrating your battery will ensure that you know when you need to charge the battery, but the procedure itself doesn’t actually make the battery itself last longer.
LOL
