iPad Pro Best charging practice for longevity?

[jpn]

I’m a really heavy user of my 11” iPad Pro. 12+ hours per day.

What do you think will be best to prolong the life of the battery? Charging up to 80%, running down to 40%, rinse and repeat. Or keep it plugged into power almost permanently?

here is what i have learned from using very heavily both mac laptops and iPhones:
before i just never cared. and almost never used the charger while i was using my devices - even if i was able to charge conveniently, i just didn't care. and only charged after i was almost out of battery.
it resulted in very quickly not being able to get 4 or 5 hours of battery on a macbook air.
contrast that with the way i am using my early jan 2020 purchased MacBook air. the cycle count is 12, and the battery health is reporting 100% (using iStat mini in the notification tray).
my conclusion is that i totally believe the folks who say, given apples' adjusted algorithm for optimizing charging and capacity etc, keeping it plugged in now as much as possible is totally the best way to approach it.
it does lengthen optimal battery health. absolutely. forget the 80-40, the 60-40, the 50-50, the 90-10 folks and trolls.
keep it plugged in as much as possible. trust apple's battery management if you have a newer iOS or macOS device.

 

[subjonas]

Well, let's think at it from a business perspective. If I wanted to make $ off of you, I'm only going to cover the information that's necessary for the warranty (2 years 80% capacity). Now, it's my opinion that Apple isn't completely evil - hence the "optimized charging" and above average battery life among other manufacturers.

Pretty much all of my Apple Devices have hit 2 years at or near design capacity. My MBP 2017 is at 94-96% after 2 years.

BatteryUniversity is extremely adamant about the 20-80% rule. https://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/how_to_prolong_lithium_based_batteries - I've read Isidor's book several times (love it). I think the 20-80% rule is important if you're going to keep a device 3-5+ years. But now days, battery tech does pretty well with any usage up to 2 years.

I'm told Tesla does the same with their batteries - encourages users not to keep their devices at full charge all the time, etc.

I just wish there was an 80% switch one could enable permanently for those of us who use our devices next to power all the time (like myself). That said, every tech I've ever used in the past that has offered this was horrendous (Lenovo, Samsung laptops, Dell) - they could never keep it at 80%. I'd unplug my Dell laptop and POOF power gone because Windows thought it was 80% when in reality it was at 1% (similar experience with Samsung/Lenovo).

So now... I don't worry bout it. I use my devices for a few years and sell them back to Apple to help finance the next generation of devices (or give to family).



I could talk about this forever but... Your iPad will "trickle" charge 80%+. There's something to be said for keeping it 80%+ so that it always "slowly" charges vs the harsh full charging - but having your battery always at or near 100% is "bad" too. So I don't go out of my way to do the 20-80% - I'm almost always next to a plug so MOST of my devices are doing 90-100% their entire lives. This seems to help them over the 2 years I use them (coconutBattery to compare capacity to design capacity).

MBPs do this - they'll hold at 95% or so - draining from 100% to 95% and back to keep the battery "moving" and from getting stale.

I do try to keep my devices as long as possible. It’d be nice if they could be set to maintain an 80% charge when plugged in, or maybe even oscillating between 80 and 90 or something like that.

I really see my electronic devices as consumables with an expected useful life of a few years at most. I purchase them to enhance my life, not to control it, and thus I use them to that end. My iPad gets plugged in nightly before bed and used daily down to 60-70%. In time if this is going to force the need to replace the battery so be it, I’ll choose then whether to pay for a battery replacement or purchase a new device. It’s really no different than the battery in my cars as far as I’m concerned (only i’d never consider purchasing a new car due to a dead battery LOL).

But for people who expect to use their devices as long as they can, there is a balance between giving not enough care vs giving too much care. Yes, one shouldn’t ever really have to “baby” their devices or tools—but most things require some amount of care. Eg. a car will give you much much more use if you stay on top of its oil changes and other maintenance. If doing minimal work results in significantly more usability, then it’s probably a worthy investment—especially if it’s an expensive device. Of course, the question in this thread is, what is the ROI exactly.

 

[BigMcGuire]

I do try to keep my devices as long as possible. It’d be nice if they could be set to maintain an 80% charge when plugged in, or maybe even oscillating between 80 and 90 or something like that.


But for people who expect to use their devices as long as they can, there is a balance between giving not enough care vs giving too much care. Yes, one shouldn’t ever really have to “baby” their devices or tools—but most things require some amount of care. Eg. a car will give you much much more use if you stay on top of its oil changes and other maintenance. If doing minimal work results in significantly more usability, then it’s probably a worthy investment—especially if it’s an expensive device. Of course, the question in this thread is, what is the ROI exactly.

I would pay $$$ to be able to do that on my Apple Devices - that's how much I'd really like an 80% charge option.

 

[muzzy996]

I do try to keep my devices as long as possible. It’d be nice if they could be set to maintain an 80% charge when plugged in, or maybe even oscillating between 80 and 90 or something like that.


But for people who expect to use their devices as long as they can, there is a balance between giving not enough care vs giving too much care. Yes, one shouldn’t ever really have to “baby” their devices or tools—but most things require some amount of care. Eg. a car will give you much much more use if you stay on top of its oil changes and other maintenance. If doing minimal work results in significantly more usability, then it’s probably a worthy investment—especially if it’s an expensive device. Of course, the question in this thread is, what is the ROI exactly.

Don’t get me wrong - I’m all for giving enough care, its just that to me that balance leans more towards achieving the benefits to my lifestyle that the device is intended to provide than it does the longevity of the device itself. I am in no way promoting misuse or lack of care, I’m merely saying don’t let fear of wear and tear severely hamper one’s use of a tool. For each individual that balance looks a little different, I get that.

 

[rui no onna]

Don’t get me wrong - I’m all for giving enough care, its just that to me that balance leans more towards achieving the benefits to my lifestyle that the device is intended to provide than it does the longevity of the device itself. I am in no way promoting misuse or lack of care, I’m merely saying don’t let fear of wear and tear severely hamper one’s use of a tool. For each individual that balance looks a little different, I get that.

I don't think anyone here's advocating for a hard and fast rule when it comes to charging. I'm certainly not disciplined enough to stick to, say, 20-80 much less 40-60. Just discussing best practices and things that should be avoided as much as possible.

For example, between deep discharge and overcharging, I think overcharging is the lesser of two evils. Hence, if I leave the iPad plugged in for 8 hours (or even 24), I don't sweat it. However, I'm more conscious of not letting the iPads drop below 20% and I try to swap iPads before the one I'm currently using reaches that point.

 

[TheRealAlex]

I’m a really heavy user of my 11” iPad Pro. 12+ hours per day.

What do you think will be best to prolong the life of the battery? Charging up to 80%, running down to 40%, rinse and repeat. Or keep it plugged into power almost permanently?

Don’t let it drop below 20% period. And Don’t leave it plugged in overnight. Because it charges to 100% then slowly self discharges below 100% and then recharges back up to 100% if left plugged in over night could costs you up to 15 cycles per night.

 

[konqerror]

I just wish there was an 80% switch one could enable permanently for those of us who use our devices next to power all the time (like myself). That said, every tech I've ever used in the past that has offered this was horrendous (Lenovo, Samsung laptops, Dell) - they could never keep it at 80%. I'd unplug my Dell laptop and POOF power gone because Windows thought it was 80% when in reality it was at 1% (similar experience with Samsung/Lenovo).

Apple already does this for you in order to reach their high advertised cycle counts. The top and bottom 10% of the capacity is locked out. Dell offered similar extended cycle count batteries, they were the exact same as the normal batteries except the firmware was set to reduce capacity.

 

[BigMcGuire]

Don’t let it drop below 20% period. And Don’t leave it plugged in overnight. Because it charges to 100% then slowly self discharges below 100% and then recharges back up to 100% if left plugged in over night could costs you up to 15 cycles per night.

A cycle is 100-0% and back up to 100% again.

https://www.apple.com/batteries/why-lithium-ion/ ---- Scroll down to the It Makes Charging Easier.

There is no way you could do 15 cycles per night on an iPad or even an iPhone for that matter. Partial cycles, yes.
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Apple already does this for you in order to reach their high advertised cycle counts. The top and bottom 10% of the capacity is locked out. Dell offered similar extended cycle count batteries, they were the exact same as the normal batteries except the firmware was set to reduce capacity.

I know Tesla does this - I figured Apple did something similar - that's why their batteries last a bit longer than others. I always had a problem with Dell's old power manager thing because it would lose the real % of the battery, so when I'd unplug, it would die instantly or be really low. Usually took a drain or two for the % reader to be correct again.

 

[steve62388]

So I'm beginning to think that the best option is just to leave it plugged in and avoid cycling when you can.

The MacBook and iPad have almost always been charged between 40% - 80%. The iPhone has been charged haphazardly.



Given they have similar health percentages it might be best not to cycle the battery at all and remain connected to power whenever possible. The new battery charging regime in macOS 10.15.5 sounds useful (best of both worlds) if a little late. Although I'm sceptical it will kick in reliably considering how many problems people have with the iOS version.

 

[JBGoode]

Don’t let it drop below 20% period. And Don’t leave it plugged in overnight. Because it charges to 100% then slowly self discharges below 100% and then recharges back up to 100% if left plugged in over night could costs you up to 15 cycles per night.

Your 'math' is wrong. A cycle is the equivalent of 100% discharge of the battery. Someone who leaves it plugged in all night might lose a small percentage of 1 cycle.

 

[BigMcGuire]

So I'm beginning to think that the best option is just to leave it plugged in and avoid cycling when you can.

The MacBook and iPad have almost always been charged between 40% - 80%. The iPhone has been charged haphazardly.

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Given they have similar health percentages it might be best not to cycle the battery at all and remain connected to power whenever possible. The new battery charging regime in macOS 10.15.5 sounds useful (best of both worlds) if a little late. Although I'm sceptical it will kick in reliably considering how many problems people have with the iOS version.

Yep, this is what I've done with all my apple devices over the last 10 years. While keeping your device at 100% charge is not optimal, it does result in less cycles used (Mac OS only). For my iPhone, I leave it plugged in most of the time anyway. I find this results in the device spending most of its time trickle charging instead of the harsh 2+amp charging at <80%. My Phone and iPad never get hot because most charging is done 85-100%.

I rarely see a 5% loss from design capacity over 2 years and 250 cycles. My MBP is at 95% after 2 years and 73 cycles.

I've done the 40-80% but it cuts into the enjoyment of my device so much I refuse to do this. I've seen some users show this greatly extending the life of their device >5 years but I think they use 1amp chargers and don't use their phone when its charging.

Also looking forward to the new Mac OS update.

 

[madrigal77]

I always keep my devices connected to power whenever possible, and my battery health always stays at 100% for about a year and a half. It's the charge cycles that kill it.

 

[Digitalguy]

I always keep my devices connected to power whenever possible, and my battery health always stays at 100% for about a year and a half. It's the charge cycles that kill it.

That's true for Macs and most laptops, not for ipads. Macs don't use the battery when plugged in, ipads do. And the big mistake is believing that battery health depends essentially on the number of cycles.
You can have 15% degradation with 20 (or even 0 cycles) and a 3% degradation with 250 cycles....
I am not even inventing this numbers. My mini 5 is always plugged it night and day and has 27 cycles over 1 year (it's not used much) and is at 85% health, my ipad pro 9.7 has almost 250 cycles over several years and is at 97% (with clearly batter battery life). It's used and discharged to around 50% most days. By the way a new ipad is not 100% health, it's around 106%....
The number of cycles is almost irrelevant with ipads since, again, the power goes through the battery. A laptop can work without a battery, not a ipad.
There are many factors in battery degradation (being at 100%, deep discharges, heath/fast charging, time...). And battery degradation it's not linear, it's much slower at first and can be much quicker after a number of years. But a plugged in ipad battery with keep deteriorating with time more or less (sometimes more) like a non plugged in one (deep discharges aside), contrary to a mac.

 

[subjonas]

Macs don't use the battery when plugged in

Really? Then when you unplug it while it’s on, how does it switch to battery power without any interruption?

 

[BigMcGuire]

Really? Then when you unplug it while it’s on, how does it switch to battery power without any interruption?

What I think DigitalGuy is attempting to say is that, Macbooks will draw power only from the wall when fully charged whereas iPad/iPhones always draw from the battery, even when plugged into the wall. Pull the battery on an iPhone and it cannot power on even if plugged in. Whereas if you pull the battery on a MacBook - it can run off of wall power alone.

 

[Wackery]

Apparently, it’s fine to leave it plugged in, there’s some mechanism to protect the ipad.

About iOS 11 Updates - Apple Support (CA)

iOS 11 brings hundreds of new features to iPhone and iPad including an all new App Store, a more proactive and intelligent Siri, improvements to Camera and Photos, and augmented reality technologies to enable immersive experiences. iOS 11 is also the biggest release for iPad ever and adds...

support.apple.com

iPad charge management

• Maintains battery health when iPad is connected to power for prolonged periods of time, such as when it is used in kiosks, point of sale systems, or stored in charging carts

 

[subjonas]

What I think DigitalGuy is attempting to say is that, Macbooks will draw power only from the wall when fully charged whereas iPad/iPhones always draw from the battery, even when plugged into the wall. Pull the battery on an iPhone and it cannot power on even if plugged in. Whereas if you pull the battery on a MacBook - it can run off of wall power alone.

Right, that’s true. But still that means that as you plug in and unplug the MacBook, it can somehow switch power sources without any kind of interruption. Nerdy part of me just wonders how that works.

 

[Wackery]

Right, that’s true. But still that means that as you plug in and unplug the MacBook, it can somehow switch power sources without any kind of interruption. Nerdy part of me just wonders how that works.

i’m pretty sure the ipad can draw directly from the charger based on the battery settings

 

[BigMcGuire]

i’m pretty sure the ipad can draw directly from the charger based on the battery settings

If that was the case it should be using 0 charge cycles when leaving the iPad plugged in. But even leaving my iPad Pro 11' 2018 plugged in, it consumes charge cycles while my MBP 2017 does not.

I think that just says: Hey, no battery "usage" because the battery was charged by wall power and thus no point in measuring "battery usage" because battery should be at 100%.

I wish this was the case - and I'm no expert so definitely tell me I'm wrong if I'm wrong - definitely could be and would love to be in this case.

 

[hovscorpion12]

I somehow believe the “plugged in“ is somewhat true. I have the original 12.9” iPad Pro. even after 5 years, i still get decent battery life.