Cell Phone Battery Types - Android Hardware Tips and Tricks

Your Cell phone battery is the most important component of your cell phone because without it your phone is of no use to you except for maybe a paperweight. Cell phone batteries are rechargeable and certain types last longer than others and battery life will also depend on what you do with your phone. With Android and other smartphones, batteries tend to drain much faster when doing things such as web browsing and using the GPS compared to regular cell phones.

Certain battery types need to be charged differently than other types so it's important to find out what type you have so you can charge it correctly. Cellphone life is measured in different ways such as stand by and talk time so keep that in mind when phone shopping.

There are 4 main types of cell phone batteries in use today:

Nickel Cadmium (NiCd)
Nickel Cadmium cell phone batteries are an older and therefore cheaper battery technology that is still in use today. The materials used in Nickel Cadmium batteries are not environmentally friendly which makes disposing of them more costly and difficult.

One problem with NiCd batteries is that they suffer from "Memory Effect" where they must be completely discharged before recharging to avoid damaging the battery. If you recharge a Nickel Cadmium battery before it has fully discharged, then it will release only some of its energy the next time it is used. Using a quick charger instead of a regular charger only makes things worse.

NiCd batteries can lose around 1% of their charge daily even when they're not being used and tend to have a shorter life between charges and can actually lose their charge rather quickly. You can opt to get an extended life NiCd battery which will last longer.

Nickel Metal Hydrid (NiMH)
Nickel Metal Hydride batteries are made from non-toxic materials which is better when it comes to the environment and recycling. NiMH batteries don't contain cadmium and provide a higher capacity for their size then other types of batteries.

NiMH batteries are quickly replacing NiCd batteries for cell phone use. They are able to pack twice as much energy into a given size as Nickel Cadmium batteries and therefore last longer than similar NiCds (at least 30% longer). Plus they don't suffer from Memory Effect as much as NiCd batteries.

NiMH batteries come partially charged and you should prime your new battery by putting on a 14 to 16 hour charge. They also require a full discharge prior to recharging every few cycles.

Lithium Ion (Li-Ion)
Lithium Ion batteries are the most popular type of cell phone batteries in use today. Lithium Ion batteries also have a longer lifetime than NiMH batteries and are therefore more expensive. The latest top of the line Li-Ion batteries can provide up to 250 hours standby time and 5 hours of talk time but are not very common yet. Lithium Ion batteries don't have "Memory Effect" problem like NiCd or NiMH batteries.

Li-ion batteries come partially charged and you can use the battery right away and charge it when needed. You should charge your battery when the meter shows no less than one bar and shouldn't let it discharge all the way if you can avoid it except for once a month for maintenance.

Lithium Polymer (Li-Poly)
Li-Poly is the latest and greatest type of cell phone battery. They are extremely light because they don't need a cell casing. They also don't suffer from memory effect and provide up to 40% more battery capacity than similar NiMH batteries.

These batteries are the lightest weight cell phone batteries available. Like Li-Ion batteries they hold a charge significantly longer than batteries with older technology. Because of the materials they are made of, they are easy to mold into different shapes to fit various applications.