Smartphone batteries are the classic weak link in the chain because the more they are used, the more quickly they tend to run down. Recharge your smartphone in the appropriate way, as trivial as it may seem, in addition to extending the life cycle of the batteries, it has significant impacts on electricity bills.
The latest smartphones they mitigate this problem without solving it completely, the slightly older ones do not follow battery protection logic and those who own one should fill this gap by paying more attention to when and how they charge their smartphone.
Leaving your smartphone connected to the mains even when the battery has reached 100% is the worst thing you can do.
How to charge your smartphone
The short answer is that it needs to be charged during the day. The slightly more complex one must necessarily separate the most recent smartphones and the recent ones.
Apple explains that charging iPhones (and this also applies to high-end Android devices) stops automatically when the battery is fully charged, only to then resume when reaches 95%. Even during the night, smartphones carry out various activities such as, for example, data synchronization, background updating of applications or some backups (typical of instant messaging apps).
This means that, despite optimized charging, even the most current smartphones – if left connected to the electricity grid – consume electricity at alternating rates.
The issue becomes more complicated with older devices which, having no optimization systems, continue to supply electricity to the batteries regardless. We need to let go of the need to recharge smartphones to 100%, so much so that the correct percentage for battery health fluctuates between 20% and 80% that is, the smartphone should be connected to the mains when the battery reaches 20% and should be disconnected when the charge percentage reaches 80%.
Observing this rule allows you to charge your cell phone during the day and therefore extend the life of the battery. During the night it is objectively more complex to make sure that the battery does not drop below 20% or exceed 80% even if, once again, the most recent smartphones allow you to stop charging when a certain threshold is reached. As mentioned before, however, it is a I continue to recover the consumption made due to the activities that smartphones carry out autonomously.
The economic question
A standard charger consumes between 3 and 7 watts per hour. It is true that when a battery reaches 100% consumption drops, averaging around 2.24 watts per hour.
We are talking about negligible waste, fractions of a cent every hour. If, however, these changes are multiplied by 365 days a year and by the number of devices to be recharged within the same household, the total stands on average at 40 euros per year save yourself. Added to this is the fact that an optimally maintained battery tends to consume less and last longer, avoiding replacements which still represent a cost. Consuming less and not having to change batteries, finally, are things that are also good for the environment.