Being anal with batteries and owning airpods

[dagmar10]

Anyone here anal with their batteries? For example with my iPhone I never charge past 80% or go below 32% and I do this religiously (iPhone 11 Pro Max bought at launch & still at 100% battery health). Now I'm considering AirPods from the MacBook Pro deal, but the way AirPods are designed with the case is that they will always be charging to 100%---and that is the biggest culprit to degrading battery.

Is there anyway to leave the case not charging and only charge when I plug it in? I basically want to control the charging for the earpieces. Anyone here have a work around?

Anyhow, this is just a musing of someone keen on preserving battery for that resale value on all my stuff and if I don't find any real answers for the AirPods I might just sell them after I get the promo.

 

[chabig]

You're just going to have to learn not to be anal. Life is too full of joy to be anal about things that don't matter.

 

[iosuser]

I wouldn’t say that I’m anal about it, but it’s certainly a concern, one that I can do nothing about.

When AirPods are new out of the box, they’re not charged to 100%. The AirPods Pro I bought from Costco a few weeks ago were at like 70% out of the box, as was the charging case. It would seem apple has a way to disable charging after manufacturing.

 

[BigMcGuire]

Batteries handle 100% charge today better than ever. Most of my Apple devices have been on the charger and at full charge for their lives - for 2+ years they do really well. I've had Gen 1 AirPods and now I have Gen 2 AirPods.

There is no way to control the charge other than not putting them in the case which will drain them faster than putting them in the case - so imo that's more battery wear ( cycling ) than just leaving them in the case.

I would not worry about the AirPods - just use them, that's what I do. Sure they cost more than a wired pair but the benefits outweigh the cost for me on a massive scale.

 

[Mighty82]

I'm a battery geek myself. The first gen airpods didn't fair too well when it came to battery degradation. The pro's have a different type of cell which I hope will handle the abuse better.

If apple would limit the top charge to 4.1v for a reduction of about 10% running time the batteries would last 2-3 times longer.

 

[johnhackworth]

Don't get me started on AirPods batteries - mine died after 18 months - of course they're not repairable and therefore AirPods are effectively consumable/disposable. Not good enough.

 

[Duncan68]

Don't get me started on AirPods batteries - mine died after 18 months - of course they're not repairable and therefore AirPods are effectively consumable/disposable. Not good enough.

This is by design, and makes Apple a lot of money. If they were honest about it, they would say it's working as intended.

 

[BigMcGuire]

This is by design, and makes Apple a lot of money. If they were honest about it, they would say it's working as intended.

That's an opinion. And I have a 2 year old pair of Airpods still going strong being used daily. Yes, you can tell a bit of battery loss but ... it is an ignorant statement to make that airpods die after 18 months and that's by design.

 

[BugeyeSTI]

That's an opinion. And I have a 2 year old pair of Airpods still going strong being used daily. Yes, you can tell a bit of battery loss but ... it is an ignorant statement to make that airpods die after 18 months and that's by design.

I agree completely. My Airpods 1st gen are two years old also and I use mine daily. Battery performance has dropped slightly but they still work very well for my needs. I'd say they were well worth the cost ($6.05 per month) for the use I've got out of them so far and if they make another 6 months to a year I'd say $4-$5 per month is an excellent trade off for something considered "disposable"..

 

[usagora]

it is an ignorant statement to make that airpods die after 18 months and that's by design.

And wouldn't it make more sense for Apple to set the "self-destruct timer" for 1 year + 1 day from the date of purchase to ensure it wasn't covered under warranty? LOL! It is amusing to read the conspiracy theories people seriously believe.
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Don't get me started on AirPods batteries - mine died after 18 months - of course they're not repairable and therefore AirPods are effectively consumable/disposable. Not good enough.

According to Apple, they are repairable:

If your battery has a manufacturing defect and it's covered by our warranty, we'll service it at no additional cost. If your battery service isn't covered, we can replace your battery for a fee.

AirPods Repair & Service - Apple Support (English)

Need to repair your AirPods? See your service options, their costs by coverage type, and how long they take.

support.apple.com

 

[trevpimp]

You’re just going to have to charge your AirPods the way you specifically intend to charge them

Maybe looking into a smart switch outlet connector so you don’t gotta constantly watch them

Do whatever you wanna do don’t let other people tell you what to do

 

[dojoman]

Isn’t this in iOS 14?

Apple will extend the lifespan of your AirPods by choosing when they charge

Apple’s next iPhone OS will help reduce battery aging in your AirPods.

www.theverge.com

 

[C DM]

Isn’t this in iOS 14?

Apple will extend the lifespan of your AirPods by choosing when they charge

Apple’s next iPhone OS will help reduce battery aging in your AirPods.

www.theverge.com

AirPods Gain Optimized Charging to Preserve Battery Health in iOS 14