Android battery recalibration
My Samsung Galaxy S6 Active inexplicably nose-dived in battery level from 31% to 0% over the span of about 15min of usage. Thinking I must have used the mobile browser awfully heavily, I simply recharged the phone but saw it continue charging for about another 20-30min after reaching an apparent 100%. I figured that this process would itself recalibrate the battery, restoring life and sanity to the meter.
On this next battery cycle, however, the phone battery again took a precipitous drop in indicated battery level. Does SoundCloud really use that much battery, I wondered? Perhaps the battery didn't recalibrate because I had turned on the phone during the the prior charging. I plugged the phone back in, but the battery percentage suddenly popped up from 5% to 25% before quickly draining again. Unless I had bought these batteries from Six Flags, this roller coaster battery life could not be a correct one.
One thing was clear -- I needed to recalibrate my recalibration efforts. I looked up this guide on Android battery recalibration, attempting to follow the instructions for non-rooted phones. I let the phone completely die, plugged in the charger, and saw the battery indicator immediately show about 25%. The phone charged completely, indicated 100% when I turned it on, and appeared to drain very slowly throughout the next couple days until undergoing another steep drop starting around 30%, to the point that the phone shut off as soon as I turned on the screen. Perhaps my brief plug-in had wrecked the calibration signal?
I had no choice but simply to plug in the phone again, and thankfully it indicated 0% charge. I let the phone charge completely -- and completely unperturbed this time -- while completely off, and the phone indicated 100% when I turned it on again. The battery indicator showed faster drainage, closer to what I had seen it its prior days. Never have I been so happy to see faster battery drainage since I assumed that the indicator was actually accurate this time. Indeed, the battery didn't show any precipitous decline, but instead slowly drained to a quiet and steady death. I recharged it once again, and again to my delight, the battery kept draining at a normal pace.
So for Christmas this year, I have a "brand new" Android phone. Merry Christmas!
On this next battery cycle, however, the phone battery again took a precipitous drop in indicated battery level. Does SoundCloud really use that much battery, I wondered? Perhaps the battery didn't recalibrate because I had turned on the phone during the the prior charging. I plugged the phone back in, but the battery percentage suddenly popped up from 5% to 25% before quickly draining again. Unless I had bought these batteries from Six Flags, this roller coaster battery life could not be a correct one.
One thing was clear -- I needed to recalibrate my recalibration efforts. I looked up this guide on Android battery recalibration, attempting to follow the instructions for non-rooted phones. I let the phone completely die, plugged in the charger, and saw the battery indicator immediately show about 25%. The phone charged completely, indicated 100% when I turned it on, and appeared to drain very slowly throughout the next couple days until undergoing another steep drop starting around 30%, to the point that the phone shut off as soon as I turned on the screen. Perhaps my brief plug-in had wrecked the calibration signal?
I had no choice but simply to plug in the phone again, and thankfully it indicated 0% charge. I let the phone charge completely -- and completely unperturbed this time -- while completely off, and the phone indicated 100% when I turned it on again. The battery indicator showed faster drainage, closer to what I had seen it its prior days. Never have I been so happy to see faster battery drainage since I assumed that the indicator was actually accurate this time. Indeed, the battery didn't show any precipitous decline, but instead slowly drained to a quiet and steady death. I recharged it once again, and again to my delight, the battery kept draining at a normal pace.
So for Christmas this year, I have a "brand new" Android phone. Merry Christmas!
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