One of the biggest weaknesses of hand-held mini-computers, or what we call smart cell phones or smartphones, is a relatively short battery lifespan.
Modern components such as large, bright screens, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS and 3G/4G drain the battery. And despite the computational power of cell phones experiencing exponential growth — cell phone manufacturers have yet to find a major breakthrough that will let us use our cell phones longer than 24 hours without recharging the battery. In addition, all batteries’ capacity to hold a charge decrease gradually over time — impacting their ability to store power.
With all that in mind, what are some simple tips to follow that can increase the lifespan of your phone — and how do you know when it’s time to replace your battery?
Tips to extend your cell phone battery life
Turn down the brightness
This might seem like a no-brainer, but just by turning the brightness down on your cell phone’s screen, you can prolong the amount of use you get out of it from charge to charge. Disabling auto brightness settings also helps with battery life, as does choosing a dark background photo or theme.
Turn off notifications
If notifications from Facebook, Instagram, news sources, email, or text messages are constantly popping up on your phone, your battery’s lifespan will suffer. Check your system settings to see what apps have permission for push notifications, and only allow what is necessary.
Turn off animations or auto play
If you have an older phone, or if you don’t care about flashy effects, it is possible with both ios and Android systems to disable these battery suckers by going into system settings or ‘Developer Mode’ and disabling animations, depending on which system you are using.
Turn off Wi-Fi and Bluetooth when unneeded
Disabling Wi-Fi and Bluetooth can give you more time between charges. These programs search for signals, even when that may not be needed, and eat up a great deal of your battery.
Buy a back-up battery, if possible
While not all phones have removable batteries, for those that do, an extra battery comes in handy when you just can’t squeeze enough juice out of your current one. They’re usually compact enough to simply throw in your bag, or even wallet, until they are needed.
How to tell if your cell phone needs a new battery
Check the charge
Even a high-use battery should last for a few hours without having to be recharged. If your cell phone comes off the charger, and the battery charge indicator immediately turns orange or red — you may need a new battery.
Feel your cell phone
When you’re browsing the web or playing a game, does your cell phone feel hot to the touch? If so, the battery is likely working much harder than it should — just to make sure your phone stays running. Much like a laptop, most smart cell phones will warm up when you use them a lot. But if your cell phone gets excessively hot, it’s time to consider getting a replacement battery.
Check for a bulge in your battery
Some cell phone batteries will bulge out when they need to be replaced. This is due to the overheating and the poor connection they establish with your phone. If you cannot visibly see a bulge on your cell phone battery, try taking your battery out (if possible) and putting it down on a table. If it has a bulge, it will spin like a top.
Troubleshoot with another battery
If you have a back-up battery — or know someone else who has your same phone —borrow their battery for a test. If the phone works fine with their battery, you probably need to get a new battery.
Reset your phone
You could perform a soft or hard reset on your cell phone to see if the problem could be with the device or software, rather than the battery. The process for conducting a soft or hard reset will vary by cell phone, so you will need to make sure you take the right steps for your specific device. If a soft or hard reset gets your phone working the way it is supposed to, your battery isn’t the problem. If it doesn’t fix anything, get a replacement battery so you can continue using your phone in the future.
Still not sure if you need your cell phone battery replaced? Bring your cell phone in for a FREE diagnostic service by the expert techs at UZOOX Repair in Indianapolis. We can get you and your cell phone up and running in no time.
