this post was submitted on 24 Nov 2024
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22
How bad is it for a mobile device to be "slow charging"? (lemmy.ml)
submitted 18 hours ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
26 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

I bought a new tablet but I'm unable to use the charging cable it came with until I can get an adapter because I don't have anything that can except USB type C. I have multiple cables with a USB A connector but the tablet says that it's "slow charging" when I use them. I tried to look this up before posting but for some reason, a lot of websites refer to "normal changing" as slow charging now and I'm unable to find anything relevant to my issue. Would I be fine to use the other cables I have until I can get an adapter?

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[–] [email protected] 5 points 9 hours ago

Technically any charging of a Lithium battery is "bad" for its health. Batteries are usually rated for a certain number if charge cycles from the manufacturer and after that number of cycles will start to lose capacity. The best advise I've seen regarding battery health is to keep it from charging to %100 everytime. As others have stated, the charging speed can also have an impact as it creates heat and heat will also wear out the battery.

As for your specific device it seems like it's consuming more power than the charger is giving it, so even when plugged in and turned on it may be discharging the battery still as it's not getting enough power. Either you buy a new charger that can put out more power or you turn it off while charging it. Either case shouldn't be bad for the battery health.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 10 hours ago

if the device switches off while in use on charge, that's too slow. if the device switches off whilst charging because it overheats, that's too fast. in between, forget it, the electronics will handle everything, and yes slower charging is better for battery life but you needn't obsess over the difference, it's there but unquantifi able. if you've heard anything other than this advice and you believe what you've heard, there's not much point in people here trying to guide you.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 12 hours ago

Should be fine. Will just charge slowly as it won't get more than 5V from the charger as far as I understand.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 18 hours ago (1 children)

Lemme throw a wrench into everything. Sometimes faster charging can be better than slower charging.

Part of the USB power delivery spec is PPS or programmable power supply. PPS lets your device specify the exact voltage down to 0.02V or 20 mV. Heat is generated by inefficiency, and PPS' goal is to get the voltage just right so there's as little power loss as possible. My iphone charging at 5v 1amp "slow" charging gets hotter than the full 20 watts fast charging.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 16 hours ago* (last edited 16 hours ago)

The primary difference here is where the power supply duties are performed. With USB PPS it can "outsource" the power supply tasks to the charger. When using "classic" fast charging (e.g. 5v / 2A) the phone has to handle all the voltage conversion internally, which adds heat to the device.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 18 hours ago (1 children)

So what other posters may be missing here is that, depending on the device and how it's powered, "slow charging" may not actually be fast enough of a charge to keep it charged while powered on.

So while its true, slowly charging your battery is better for it, in this case, you may be receiving the warning because the device may eventually power down while in use.

If that is indeed the case, in the meantime if you charge it while it is off and use it until the battery gets down to about 30% and then turn it off to charge again and you should be fine. Honestly pretty safe just mildly frustrating, if you ask me.

Source: a friend's girlfriend's old laptop which we discovered needed its fancy charging cable to both charge and stay on and a regular usb cable actually failed to give it the proper power delivery. She was having all kinds of issues with it and it took me digging through the whole manual for the device to figure it out.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 18 hours ago

I'm ok with it taking longer to charge and not being able to use it while it's charging, I have other device, including a computer, that I can use while it's charging. I made this post because, from what I've read and was told over the years, is that slow charging (actual slow charging and not normal charging) can damage the battery. From what other users have told me, this seems to be a lie (or that it's at least not as bad as fast charging).

[–] [email protected] 53 points 18 hours ago (2 children)

Slow charging is actually better for battery longevity than fast charging. For example, my phone will limit it's charging speed at night when I have an alarm set, because it assumes I won't need it until my alarm goes off, and the slower it charges the less damage is done to a battery.

In general, lithium batteries are damaged by heat. Rapid charging creates extra heat, so it's worse for the battery. Manufacturers work hard to minimize the damage of quick charging, but it's still somewhat better to slow charge when you have the time.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 8 hours ago (1 children)

For example, my phone will limit it’s charging speed at night when I have an alarm set, because it assumes I won’t need it until my alarm goes off

Is this a setting I can use in Android/Graphene?

[–] [email protected] 4 points 8 hours ago (1 children)

I have a pixel phone, and it may be a pixel specific feature rather than a default android feature.

Here's Google's webpage on it.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 7 hours ago* (last edited 7 hours ago) (1 children)

Thanks! I also have a Pixel but with Graphene not stock Pixel Android OS. I'll see if I have that setting :)

Edit: That link seems to suggest it's for Pixel 4 only, which is not my phone. Shame, but I'll check later to see if I have the setting anyway

[–] [email protected] 2 points 7 hours ago (1 children)

That link was just specifying that there was a difference between adaptive charging on the pixel 4, and later pixels. All pixel phones from 4 onwards have it, but I'm guessing it's a pixel software specific feature.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 5 hours ago

Ah right, my bad. Well I'll check if Graphene has it when I have the time to look through my settings today

[–] [email protected] 3 points 18 hours ago (1 children)

When you say "slow charging", are you talking about actual slow charging or normal charging? As I stated in my other comment, I've only ever heard that about normal charging and never about slow charging.

[–] [email protected] 23 points 18 hours ago* (last edited 18 hours ago)

The slower the better for battery health.

Usually slow charging is just the standard USB 2.0 output, which is 5v 0.5A (so 2.5 watts). That was all the USB standard officially supported for a long time, but many devices and chargers actually supported up to 5v 1A (5 watt) or 5v 2A (10 watt) charging. Those would usually be considered normal charging.

Fast charging has a couple different specs and voltages, but can go up much higher. My steam deck supports 45w charging, and some laptops support 65w or higher.

[–] [email protected] 22 points 18 hours ago (1 children)

Honestly, it's better for your battery. Fast charging heats up your battery and wears it down.

[–] [email protected] -2 points 18 hours ago (2 children)

Are you talking about slow charging or normal charging? I'm only asking because I heard that about normal charging but I've never heard that about slow charging.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 18 hours ago (1 children)

"slow" and "normal" are all relative terms, and aren't definable.

It's also relative to the size of the battery. A cell phone at 20 watts charging sure aint slow, but a laptop at 20 sure is. But is 20 fast when phones will do 50 or 100 watts?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 17 hours ago (1 children)

What I'm referring to is what my device states. Right now, my tablet states that it's slow charging but my other android devices just say charging and my mom's phone states that it's fast charging when she uses the cable that came with her phone.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 16 hours ago

Sounds like it's the standard 500mA USB charging. This is the slowest and oldest charging that exists. It's telling you this in case you have a charger that supports faster charging but using an older cable, in which case it falls back to 5v / 500mA. You have to have a proper charger and cable to get the higher modes (e.g. USB-C PD).

There's nothing harmful about this and is actually better for battery longevity as many others have stated. The notification is just informative in case you're expecting faster charging. 5v / 500mA takes forever compared to modern charging standards.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 18 hours ago (1 children)

It's the same for both. There is a marginal benefit to slow charging but IMHO it doesn't outweigh the inconvenience of having it on the charger so long.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 18 hours ago (1 children)

Ok, I have no problem with slow charging, it's just that I've heard that both slow and fast charging can damage the battery and I wanted to make sure it would be ok.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 18 hours ago (1 children)

I think what you are remembering is that slow charging is usually due to some sort of problem with the power supply, and if your phone is always slow charging that might indicate that your battery is damaged. Slow charging, by itself, is very safe.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 17 hours ago* (last edited 17 hours ago) (1 children)

No, I specifically remember both being told and researching it my self, every source stated that both slow and fast charging can damage batteries.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 15 hours ago (1 children)

I looked it up right before writing that comment.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 15 hours ago

Ok, then either things have changed or I was lied to for the past several years because this is the first time anyone has told me that slow charging was fine.