Is your smartphone battery not lasting as long as usual? While the life of your battery will naturally decline over time and eventually need to be replaced, it can also be affected by the weather.
Now that we are in winter, there is reason to suspect that your battery performance will be affected by the cooler temperatures.
The battery in your phone is no different to the battery in your car. Just as cars can be harder to start in the winter months, your phone will work slower in the cooler temperatures.
According to Time, cold weather causes internal resistance, slowing down the conversion process and resulting in less overall capacity.
When cold, a phone battery can drain faster than normal, or it might say it has ample power remaining and then suddenly go dead.
If this happens to you, experts advise you not to try and turn your phone back on immediately as it can cause damage to your phone and potentially shorten your battery life. You need to give your phone a chance to warm up, before you attempt a restart.
Apple’s official recommendation for its devices is to operate them between 0º and 35ºC. According to Apple, using an iOS device in very cold conditions might temporarily shorten battery life, but battery life will return to normal when you bring the device back to higher ambient temperatures.
How to protect your phone from the cold
There are ways to keep your phone warm and keep your battery operating at the optimum efficiency.
When looking at phone cases, try and find those that have good insulation to keep your phone warm in winter and cool in summer.
You should also keep your phone close to your body, so storing it in your pocket offers a clear advantage over keeping it in your car or your handbag. If your coat has an inside pocket, place it inside that pocket, rather than an outside pocket where it doesn’t retain the benefit of your body heat.
How has your phone performance held up during winter so far? Have you noticed any differences?
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