Many users notice that after a few days of use, their phone's battery charges faster and lasts shorter. To extend the life of their phone’s battery, many people turn to online tips. But here's the truth: some common charging habits are actually harmful and have been misleading people for years.
Should you wait until your battery is completely drained before charging?
No! "Deep discharge" can harm your battery.
In the past, it was believed that batteries had a memory effect, so you needed to fully drain them before recharging. However, modern smartphones use lithium-ion batteries, which don't require this. In fact, discharging completely can damage the internal structure and reduce battery life. According to Wang Yonggang, a senior engineer at Tianneng Lithium Battery, deep discharging may cause irreversible damage to the battery’s materials.
During charging, lithium ions move from the positive electrode through the electrolyte and into the negative electrode. This process is similar to moving items from one room to another, as explained by Dr. Zhang Hua from UCLA. The more lithium ions involved in each charge-discharge cycle, the more stress on the battery. Deep discharging forces the ions to move more, causing unnecessary wear over time.
Should you stop charging immediately when it reaches 100%?
No need to worry. Modern phones have overcharge protection.
Lithium-ion batteries come with built-in safety features. Once fully charged, they switch to a trickle charge mode, providing a small current to maintain the charge without overloading the battery. So, even if you leave your phone plugged in overnight, it won’t be damaged. However, prolonged charging cycles can still affect battery health over time.
Does frequent charging harm the battery?
No, it’s actually better. "Shallow charge and shallow discharge" is ideal.
Wang Yonggang explains that lithium-ion batteries are designed for short, frequent charges rather than full cycles. Charging your phone when it's at 30% or 50% instead of waiting until it's empty helps preserve battery life. This reduces stress on the battery structure and extends its overall lifespan.
Other habits that affect battery life
Using non-original chargers can be risky. These may not match your phone’s specifications, leading to unstable currents that could harm the battery. Also, using your phone while it's charging—like playing games or watching videos—can cause the battery to discharge instead of charge, reducing its longevity.
Extreme temperatures also impact battery performance. High heat accelerates chemical reactions and self-discharge, while very low temperatures can cause permanent damage. It’s best to avoid leaving your phone in direct sunlight or in freezing conditions for long periods.
Power Meter is a monitoring and testing instrument which determines the power consumption of a connected appliance and the cost of the electricity consumed.
Built-in 3.6V rechargeable Batteries ( . The purpose of the batteries is to store the total electricity and memory setting
Resetting
If an abnormal display appears or the buttons produce no response, the instrument must be reset. To do this,
press the RESET button.
Display Mode
Entire LCD can be displayed for about 1 minute and then it automatically gets into Model. To transfer from
one mode to the other, press the FUNCTION button.
Mode 1: Time/Watt/Cost Display Display duration(how long) this device connect to power source.LCD on first line shows 0:00 with first two figures mean minutes(2 figures will occur while occur at 10 min) and the rest shows seconds. After 60mins, it displays 0:00 again with first two numbers meas hour(2 figures will occur at 10hours)and the rest shows minutes. The rest can be done in the same manner which means after 24 hours, it will re-caculate. LCD on second line displays current power which ranges in 0.0W 〜 9999W. LCD on third line displays the current electricity costs which ranges in O.Ocost 〜 9999cost. It will keep on O.OOcost before setting rate without other figures.
Mode 2: Time/Cumulative electrical quantity Display Display duration(how long) this device connect to power source.
LCD on first line shows 0:00 with first two figures mean minutes(2 figures will occur while occur at 10 min) and the rest shows seconds. After 60mins, it displays 0:00 again with first two numbers meas hour(2 figures will occur at 10hours)and the rest shows minutes. The rest can be done in the same manner which
means after 24 hours, it will re-caculate. LCD on second line displays current cumulative electrical quantity which ranges in 0.000KWH 〜 9999KWH without other figures. LCD on third line displays"DAY"- "1 'Will be showed on numerical part(the other three figures will be showed at carry) which means it has cumulated electrical quantity for 24hours(one day). The rest can be done in the same manner untill the maximal cumulative time of 9999 days.
Mode 3: TimeA^bltage/Frequency Display LCD on first line displays the same as Mode 1 dones. LCD on second line displays current voltage supply (v) which ranges in 0.0V 〜 9999V .LCD on third line displays current frequency (HZ) which ranges in 0.0HZ 〜 9999Hz without other figures.
Mode 4: Time/Current/Power Factor Display LCD on first line displays the same as Mode 1 dones.LCD on second line displays load current which ranges in 0.0000A 〜 9999A. LCD on third line displays current power factor which ranges in 0.00PF 〜 LOOPF without other figures.
Mode 5:Time/Minimum Power Display LCD on first line displays the same as Mode 1 dones. LCD on
second line displays the minimum power which ranges in 0.0W 〜 9999W. LCD on third line displays character of "Lo" without other figures.
Mode 6: Time/Maximal Power Display LCD on first line displays the same as Mode 1 dones. LCD on second line displays the maximal power which ranges in 0.0W 〜 9999W. LCD on third line displays character of "Hi" without other figures.
Mode 7: Time/Price Display LCD on first line displays the same as Mode 1 dones. LCD on third line displays the cost which ranges in O.OOCOST/KWH 〜 99.99COST/KWH without other figures.
Overload Display: When the power socket connects the load over 3680W, LCD on second line displays the''OVERLOAD[ with booming noise to warn the users, (selectable choice)
Supplemental informations:
1: Except [OVERLOAD[ interface, LCD on first line display time in repitition within 24hours.
2: LCD on first line, second line or third line described in this intruction take section according to two black lines on LCD screen. Here it added for clarified purpose.
3. Mode 7 will directly occur while press down button "cost".
4. [UP"&"Down" are in no function under un-setting mode.
Setting Mode
1. Electricity price setting
After keeping COST button pressed lasting more than 3 seconds(LCD on third line display system defaults price, eg O.OOCOST/KWH ),the rendered content begins moving up and down which means that the device
has entered the setting mode. After that, press FUNCTION for swithing , then press "UP"and "DOWN" button again to set value which ranges in OO.OOCOST/KWH 〜 99.99COST/KWH. After setting all above, press COST to return to Mode7 or it will automatically return to Mode7 without any pressing after setting with data storage.
Power meter socket, Energy meter socket, Energy meter cost socket, Power meter cost socket, Energy power meter socket
NINGBO COWELL ELECTRONICS & TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD , https://www.cowellsocket.com