iPod Battery Preservation?

melon · January 16th, 2005

I'm getting one of these very soon, but I was wondering if there are any real suggestions as to how to preserve the battery for as long as possible?

My main concern is the fact that the iPod starts charging automatically if you hook it up via USB/Firewire. Doesn't this hurt the battery, if you constantly are recharging it even if it doesn't need it, and then, more often than not, removing it before it can finish recharging? If it does hurt the battery life, is there a way to disable it from recharging automatically via USB/Firewire?

I'm curious to know what you all think on this subject.

Melon

**~bk** · January 16th, 2005

I think it automatically stops when it's fully recharged.

melon · January 16th, 2005

Well, but I've seen like my brother's iPod. Half the battery charge is left. He wants to add more music. He connects it via USB/Firewire and it automatically starts charging. He finishes adding his music. He disconnects before it is fully charged.

I'm pretty sure this is a regular occurrence for many iPod users. So, the question is, does this kind of behavior hurt the long-term battery life? I would rather not have to get a $99 "iPod replacement" until absolutely necessary and at least after a couple years of frequent use!

Melon

**~bk** · January 16th, 2005

Check here.

**LordOfLA** · January 16th, 2005

if the battery is litium ion, then it doesn't hurt the battery.

what will hurt the battery is letting it drain fully as they aren't designed for that.

melon · January 16th, 2005

Thanks.

I discovered this site while looking at that one you gave me.

http://www.ipodbatteryfaq.com/

It's very thorough as to the truth behind the iPod's battery life.

Melon

melon · January 16th, 2005

Originally Posted by LordOfLA

if the battery is litium ion, then it doesn't hurt the battery.

what will hurt the battery is letting it drain fully as they aren't designed for that.

I've certainly learned that now from the reading I've done. I dunno...I tend to "over-research" everything before I make a purchase, just so that I know everything I'm getting into. I really knew very little about Lithium Ion batteries before I researched this. I guess research isn't really a bad thing, though!

Melon

**NetRyder** · January 16th, 2005

Originally Posted by melon

I dunno...I tend to "over-research" everything before I make a purchase, just so that I know everything I'm getting into.

It's a good thing! I tend to do the same thing too.

**Krux** · January 16th, 2005

Charging
iPod fast-charges the battery to 80 percent of capacity in an hour. However, it can take 4 hours to fully recharge the battery. Even in sleep, iPod uses a small amount of current, and the battery slowly empties. Stored at optimal storage temperature, the battery will empty in 14 to 28 days.

I'm sorry either my Ipod is defecteive or im just going to have to slap the BS card down on this statment from Mac. my ipod goes completely dead in a day or two with out even being touched, I dont just mean it wont plays songs or binks at me low power when I try to turn it on I get nothing and when I plug it in I'm prompted to pick a lang. and I have to redo all my settings.

**sean.ferguson** · January 16th, 2005

That doesnt sound too good Krux

and thanks LordOfLA i didnt know that about L/Ion batteries

**Geffy** · January 16th, 2005

for the first time in my life, I am actually thinking about getting an iPod and getting rid of my Nomad

/me waits for people to gasp

this is mainly cause an iPod would look a lot more secseh with my iBook

and also because it will work with both my iBook and my PC

**dreamliner77** · January 16th, 2005

Geffy, you are the last person I'd think would care about the aesthetic value of the player.

On a side note, after playing around with my roommates iPod, i'd never touch one.

**Tuffgong4** · January 16th, 2005

Geffy there are plenty of other options...actually too many options...the best thing to do is to try and go to places and physically get them in your hands and try to demo them.

If not you may not be able to see or feel which one you like the best

**SPeedY_B** · January 16th, 2005

yay, ipod haters.

**Tittles** · January 16th, 2005

I know that best buy and circuit city have a few out on display to try out. Not all of them are demos but some you can.

**Tuffgong4** · January 16th, 2005

well I own an iPod but I think the other mp3 players have a lot of good qualities and I think are over looked because they are not "iPods"

**Geffy** · January 16th, 2005

its mainly for the full interoperation between my laptop and my desktop machine. Mac drivers for the Zen is not something that Creative seem to offer though. The aesthetic value is more of a plus

**X-Istence** · January 16th, 2005

My brother preserves quite a bit of battery by doing the following:

Turning the click sound off
turning the volume down.

Weasel · January 16th, 2005

Turn off the Calendar Alerts under settings (forget exactly where; I think that's what it's called) and it'll save quite a bit of battery power.

**VenomXt** · January 17th, 2005

i bough a 20 gig at cosco a few days ago. (cosco being a whole saler) coolest thing is that everything (with the exception of Pc's) has a lifetime waranty through cosco.. so the ladt told me to come back in march and switch it out with the package that comes with a few extra accesorys. but before i completly hijack the thread as much as i hate mac... i like my ipod.. and feel less dirty that i use itunes now.

January 16th, 2005	Top \| #1
melon MS-DOS 2.0 Joined: February 2002 Location: Ásgarðr Posts: 854 Reputation: 420 Power: 138	iPod Battery Preservation? I'm getting one of these very soon, but I was wondering if there are any real suggestions as to how to preserve the battery for as long as possible? My main concern is the fact that the iPod starts charging automatically if you hook it up via USB/Firewire. Doesn't this hurt the battery, if you constantly are recharging it even if it doesn't need it, and then, more often than not, removing it before it can finish recharging? If it does hurt the battery life, is there a way to disable it from recharging automatically via USB/Firewire? I'm curious to know what you all think on this subject. Melon http://www.xeidon.com / .org / .net

January 16th, 2005	Top \| #2
~bk I <3 Adriana Joined: November 2003 Location: Canada Posts: 3,768 Reputation: 1230 Power: 154	I think it automatically stops when it's fully recharged. +bk.designs; + notebook + deviantART __________ // art is literacy of the heart <3

January 16th, 2005	Top \| #3
melon MS-DOS 2.0 Joined: February 2002 Location: Ásgarðr Posts: 854 Reputation: 420 Power: 138	Well, but I've seen like my brother's iPod. Half the battery charge is left. He wants to add more music. He connects it via USB/Firewire and it automatically starts charging. He finishes adding his music. He disconnects before it is fully charged. I'm pretty sure this is a regular occurrence for many iPod users. So, the question is, does this kind of behavior hurt the long-term battery life? I would rather not have to get a $99 "iPod replacement" until absolutely necessary and at least after a couple years of frequent use! Melon http://www.xeidon.com / .org / .net

January 16th, 2005	Top \| #4
~bk I <3 Adriana Joined: November 2003 Location: Canada Posts: 3,768 Reputation: 1230 Power: 154	Check here. +bk.designs; + notebook + deviantART __________ // art is literacy of the heart <3

January 16th, 2005	Top \| #5
LordOfLA Godlike! Joined: February 2004 Location: Salisbury, Wiltshire, UK Posts: 7,031 Blog Entries: 5 Reputation: 4137 Power: 213	if the battery is litium ion, then it doesn't hurt the battery. what will hurt the battery is letting it drain fully as they aren't designed for that. If HK-47 and GLaDOS had a child, the character they create would cause the video game world to overdose on awesome. -sheridanmovieguy: Dragon age forum user.

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January 16th, 2005	Top \| #6
melon MS-DOS 2.0 Joined: February 2002 Location: Ásgarðr Posts: 854 Reputation: 420 Power: 138	Thanks. I discovered this site while looking at that one you gave me. http://www.ipodbatteryfaq.com/ It's very thorough as to the truth behind the iPod's battery life. Melon http://www.xeidon.com / .org / .net

January 16th, 2005	Top \| #7
melon MS-DOS 2.0 Joined: February 2002 Location: Ásgarðr Posts: 854 Reputation: 420 Power: 138	Originally Posted by LordOfLA if the battery is litium ion, then it doesn't hurt the battery. what will hurt the battery is letting it drain fully as they aren't designed for that. I've certainly learned that now from the reading I've done. I dunno...I tend to "over-research" everything before I make a purchase, just so that I know everything I'm getting into. I really knew very little about Lithium Ion batteries before I researched this. I guess research isn't really a bad thing, though! Melon http://www.xeidon.com / .org / .net

January 16th, 2005	Top \| #8
NetRyder Tech Junkie Joined: April 2002 Location: New York City Posts: 13,256 Reputation: 4260 Power: 298	Originally Posted by melon I dunno...I tend to "over-research" everything before I make a purchase, just so that I know everything I'm getting into. It's a good thing! I tend to do the same thing too. http://kunal.kundaje.net

January 16th, 2005	Top \| #9
Krux Nissan Powered Joined: April 2002 Posts: 1,649 Reputation: 30 Power: 140	Charging iPod fast-charges the battery to 80 percent of capacity in an hour. However, it can take 4 hours to fully recharge the battery. Even in sleep, iPod uses a small amount of current, and the battery slowly empties. Stored at optimal storage temperature, the battery will empty in 14 to 28 days. I'm sorry either my Ipod is defecteive or im just going to have to slap the BS card down on this statment from Mac. my ipod goes completely dead in a day or two with out even being touched, I dont just mean it wont plays songs or binks at me low power when I try to turn it on I get nothing and when I plug it in I'm prompted to pick a lang. and I have to redo all my settings.

January 16th, 2005	Top \| #10
sean.ferguson OSNN Veteran Addict Joined: July 2003 Location: Fife; Scotland Posts: 1,693 Reputation: 550 Power: 130	That doesnt sound too good Krux and thanks LordOfLA i didnt know that about L/Ion batteries Mac - 13-inch Macbook Core Duo 1.83GHz\| 1GB Ram \| 120GB Internal \| BT & AE \| OS 10.5 PC- Intel Core 2 Duo E4300 1.8GHz \| 2GB Dual Channel Ram \| 360GB Internal \| Lite-On DVDRW \| Radeon X1300XT \| Vista Home Premium 64-bit

January 16th, 2005	Top \| #11
Geffy OSNN Veteran Addict Joined: March 2002 Location: United Kingdom Posts: 7,805 Reputation: 1490 Power: 217	for the first time in my life, I am actually thinking about getting an iPod and getting rid of my Nomad /me waits for people to gasp this is mainly cause an iPod would look a lot more secseh with my iBook and also because it will work with both my iBook and my PC  • blog • tumblog • lastfm • flickr • #rubyonrails • @twitter "I could be replaced with a very small shell script"

January 16th, 2005	Top \| #12
dreamliner77 The Analog Kid Joined: March 2002 Location: Red Sox Nation Posts: 4,653 Reputation: 1111 Power: 182	Geffy, you are the last person I'd think would care about the aesthetic value of the player. On a side note, after playing around with my roommates iPod, i'd never touch one. "You can fight without ever winning, but never win without a fight." -Neil Peart of RUSH

January 16th, 2005	Top \| #13
Tuffgong4 The Donger Need Food!!!! Joined: June 2002 Location: Chicago Posts: 2,465 Reputation: 840 Power: 153	Geffy there are plenty of other options...actually too many options...the best thing to do is to try and go to places and physically get them in your hands and try to demo them. If not you may not be able to see or feel which one you like the best Home Intel E6600 \ Abit AB9 Pro \ 4 gig Corsair DDR2-667 \ EVGA 9800GT \ HDD 1 320GB sata + 1 1.5TB sata \ 1 1TB backup drive / Samsung S183L SATA DVD-RW \ Windows 7 Pro x64 Laptop Asus UL30VT\ Intel CULV SU7300 \ 4GB Ram \ Intel Integrated + Nvidia 200m \ 500GB HDD \ 13.3 inch LED \ Windows 7 Premium x64

January 16th, 2005	Top \| #14
SPeedY_B I may actually be insane. Joined: March 2002 Location: Midlands, England Posts: 15,800 Reputation: 2877 Power: 310	yay, ipod haters. 1. SPeedYB.co.uk 2. CamPortal.co.uk 3. MacIRC.co.uk

January 16th, 2005	Top \| #15
Tittles Dabba Dooba Joined: July 2002 Location: Muskegon, Michigan Posts: 6,344 Reputation: 1590 Power: 198	I know that best buy and circuit city have a few out on display to try out. Not all of them are demos but some you can. Yo

January 16th, 2005	Top \| #19
Weasel Define 'Cynical' Joined: January 2005 Location: Sammamish, WA Posts: 163 Reputation: 110 Power: 92	Turn off the Calendar Alerts under settings (forget exactly where; I think that's what it's called) and it'll save quite a bit of battery power. --Weasel General Annoyance / Non-Conformist Win2k Pro and refuse to "upgrade" "Cobalt": AMD Athlon64 3000+ @ 1250 \| Soyo Dragon Plus SY-CK8 \| 1gb DDR400 \| BFG geForce FX 5700 OC 256MB \| Plextor 40x12x40 CD-RW \| Toshiba 52x32x52x16 CD-RW/DVD Combo drive \| 40GB Western Digital ATA-133 \| 80GB Western Digital ATA-133 \| M-Audio Audiophile 2496 \| Lian-Li PC-7B \| Altec Lansing ADA885

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January 16th, 2005	Top \| #16
Tuffgong4 The Donger Need Food!!!! Joined: June 2002 Location: Chicago Posts: 2,465 Reputation: 840 Power: 153	well I own an iPod but I think the other mp3 players have a lot of good qualities and I think are over looked because they are not "iPods" Home Intel E6600 \ Abit AB9 Pro \ 4 gig Corsair DDR2-667 \ EVGA 9800GT \ HDD 1 320GB sata + 1 1.5TB sata \ 1 1TB backup drive / Samsung S183L SATA DVD-RW \ Windows 7 Pro x64 Laptop Asus UL30VT\ Intel CULV SU7300 \ 4GB Ram \ Intel Integrated + Nvidia 200m \ 500GB HDD \ 13.3 inch LED \ Windows 7 Premium x64

January 16th, 2005	Top \| #17
Geffy OSNN Veteran Addict Joined: March 2002 Location: United Kingdom Posts: 7,805 Reputation: 1490 Power: 217	its mainly for the full interoperation between my laptop and my desktop machine. Mac drivers for the Zen is not something that Creative seem to offer though. The aesthetic value is more of a plus  • blog • tumblog • lastfm • flickr • #rubyonrails • @twitter "I could be replaced with a very small shell script"

January 16th, 2005	Top \| #18
X-Istence * Joined: December 2001 Location: USA Posts: 6,496 Reputation: 2808 Power: 220	My brother preserves quite a bit of battery by doing the following: Turning the click sound off turning the volume down. An engineers technical notebook

January 17th, 2005	Top \| #20
VenomXt Blame me for the RAZR's Joined: March 2004 Location: Houston, Texas Posts: 3,442 Reputation: 1240 Power: 146	i bough a 20 gig at cosco a few days ago. (cosco being a whole saler) coolest thing is that everything (with the exception of Pc's) has a lifetime waranty through cosco.. so the ladt told me to come back in march and switch it out with the package that comes with a few extra accesorys. but before i completly hijack the thread as much as i hate mac... i like my ipod.. and feel less dirty that i use itunes now. www.venomxt.com