Charging my Tab 3 Battery

[Colt]

I am still new to the Tab world. Got my first Tab (Tab 3) in December.

The lady at the store said that I must charge my Tab for 4 hours before I start using it. And true enough, after 4 hours the battery showed 100%.

But I am curious, can I charge the battery for longer ? If I charge it for longer, will it damage the battery ?

[leeshor]

Charging for longer isn't a problem at all. Personally I wouldn't go more than a day though.

[Colt]

Charging for longer isn't a problem at all. Personally I wouldn't go more than a day though.

Thank you. I think the longest I would really charge it will just be overnight ... if I put it on the charger and go to sleep.

Glad to hear it won't damage the battery.

[Colt]

Oh, another thing I wanted to ask -

Is it still bad to start charging the battery before it runs flat ? Some days you get home, and you just don't have the luxury to let the battery run flat before you charge it again.

At the shop they tell me that the new batteries are improved, and it doesn't matter anymore. But I'm not so sure if that really is true .....

[janner43]

Let me point you in the direction of our guide thread on battery charging, care & maintenance - in the Guides, FAQs & Tips section (linked from my signature, below). I think you'll find it covers your questions.

All the best

[Colt]

Let me point you in the direction of our guide thread on battery charging, care & maintenance - in the Guides, FAQs & Tips section (linked from my signature, below). I think you'll find it covers your questions.

All the best

Thank you kindly :-)

[Colt]

I see on the thread it says: "Lithium based batteries don't like being completely flattened."


So looking at it from the other angle - would it hurt / damage the battery if I (regularly) start recharging it at, for example, 50% power left ?

[Colt]

Ok, according to my Tab specs, I have a Li-Po battery. So I went to Wiki, and this is what Wiki says ..... but I do not know much about batteries, so more reading is required on my side -

Wiki:

LiPoly batteries must be charged carefully. The basic process is to charge at constant current until each cell reaches 4.2 V. The charger must then switch to a constant voltage mode, and the charging current will gradually reduce while the charger holds the cell voltage at 4.2 V. This will continue until the charge current has dropped to a small percentage of the initial charge rate, at which point the battery is considered fully charged. Some manufacturers specify 2%, others 3%, but other values are also possible. The difference in achieved capacity is minute.

Balance charging simply means that the charger monitors the voltage of each cell in a pack and varies the charge on a per-cell basis so that all cells are brought to the same voltage.

Trickle charging is not recommended for lithium batteries. Most manufacturers claim a maximum and minimum voltage of 4.23 and 3.0 volts per cell, respectively. Taking any cell outside these limits can reduce the cell's capacity and ability to deliver full rated current.

Most dedicated lithium polymer chargers use a charge timer for safety; this cuts the charge after a predefined time (typically 90 minutes).

As of the beginning of 2013, charging rates of up to 15C (i.e., 15 times the capacity of the battery, or approximately 4-minute charge times) are possible in the relatively new (circa 2009) breed of nanowire technology LiPo batteries. This, however, is the exception to the rule, as the more common 1C charge rate still stands as the recommended standard among RC users. It is also important to note that regardless of the charge rate that a battery can handle, using the lower 1C charge rate will always increase the longevity of any RC LiPo battery.

[sculptedstylus]

...would it hurt / damage the battery if I (regularly) start recharging it at, for example, 50% power left ?

That's what I do, usually charging when my tablet and phone when it gets down to around 50%. It is also recommended, for the sake of calibration, to give it a full charge from between 5-20% 100% once a month, or so.