Draining battery to 1%?

[SweetPoison]

Too funny. Tim would never say iTunes.

 

[SusanR]

I've never let mine get below 30%, is this damaging or harmful?

 

[graywolf]

I've never let mine get below 30%, is this damaging or harmful?

That is actually better for the battery. Lithium ion polymer will last longer if you don't drain and recharge.
Contrary to older batteries.

 

[SweetPoison]

I would not worry about it ~ Apple recommends in their manual a once a month drain ~ but I always forget.

 

[King.Khoja]

Is it a bad thing if i let the ipad die out past 1% than charge it?

 

[graywolf]

Is it a bad thing if i let the ipad die out past 1% than charge it?

Doesn't really matter. It won't help the battery or really hurt it.

 

[King.Khoja]

Ok good, since i got the ipad ive been letting it fully die out before i charge it. Dont wanna drain the battery charging it when it doesnt need a charge.

 

[DM51]

Lithium ion polymer will last longer if you don't drain and recharge.

Correct! Li-Ion (LiPo, LiCo, LiMn, LiFePO4 and other Li chemistries) will have a longer life if not allowed to discharge completely. Modern devices incorporate sophisticated protection circuitry to avoid serious damage from over-discharge, but bumping down against that limit too often will not do the battery any good.

The important thing is not to leave the battery in a fully discharged state. Recharge it as soon as possible after discharge. If you have to store the device unused for any protracted length of time (1 month or more) do so with the meter reading about 80%.

The battery should last around 1,000 full charge cycles - that is, complete discharge and recharge every day for 3 years. Few people will achieve such a heavy use. A part cycle does not count as a full one, so don't be afraid to top it up daily, even from 70-80%. LiPo batteries have no memory effect, and prefer being kept topped up.

None of us, even heavy users among the very first to get iPads, will be anywhere near exhausting the batteries yet. In 3-4 years' time, if we have not upgraded by then, the symptoms of exhaustion will be a failure to hold charge; the battery will charge up to 100% but then drop back quite quickly (within 15-20 minutes) to a noticeably lower figure even when it has not been used. When it can no longer hold 80% charge, it will be time to retire it.

By then, users may notice the iPad becoming warm (or even quite hot) during recharging. Heat is not a good sign; the problem will increase as the battery's life approaches its end, to the point where it becomes dangerous. By then the device is likely to exhibit other signs of malfunction. Further persistence at that stage would be a bad idea as a battery that overheats can eventually suffer thermal runaway, at which point it will go off like a firework and vent with flame, producing extremely toxic gases in the process.

However... the greatest likelihood is that the battery will simply just gradually fade out, with none of the drastic worst-case scenarios occurring; and it isn't going to happen to any of us for quite a long time yet.

 

[graywolf]

Thank you for that long explanation!
It furthered my understanding of lithium polymer batteries.

 

[Studor13]

Some good answers, thanks. I have one more.

Is it OK to charge an iPad over night on a regular basis?

I once charged a set of AAs a few hours past their 'full' state and it melted the entire unit.

 

[graywolf]

Some good answers, thanks. I have one more.

Is it OK to charge an iPad over night on a regular basis?

I once charged a set of AAs a few hours past their 'full' state and it melted the entire unit.

iPad will stop at full and "trickle charge" meaning it only sends enough voltage to the battery to keep it full. That will not hurt the battery.

 

[ipad2tyro]

As my name implies, I'm new to this. What you say makes sense. Why though does the User Guide say:
"Maximizing battery life
iPad uses a lithium-ion battery. For information about maximizing the battery life of iPad, go to www.apple.com/batteries/ipad.html."

And from that website:
"Use Your iPad Regularly
For proper reporting of the battery's state of charge, be sure to go through at least one charge cycle per month (charging the battery to 100% and then completely running it down)."

Am I reading an outdated Guide? Please clarify.

 

[tazz3]

if the book says to run it down once a month then we should follow it.

 

[Gabriel1]

As my name implies, I'm new to this. What you say makes sense. Why though does the User Guide say:
"Maximizing battery life
iPad uses a lithium-ion battery. For information about maximizing the battery life of iPad, go to www.apple.com/batteries/ipad.html."

And from that website:
"Use Your iPad Regularly
For proper reporting of the battery's state of charge, be sure to go through at least one charge cycle per month (charging the battery to 100% and then completely running it down)."

Am I reading an outdated Guide? Please clarify.

The guide is correct, you only need a full charge cycle once a month to calibrate the battery meter, no other reason.

The Archangel

 

[ipad2tyro]

The guide is correct, you only need a full charge cycle once a month to calibrate the battery meter, no other reason.

The Archangel

Thanks! Just love my new iPad and wouldn't want to do anything to shorten its life.