Quote:
Originally Posted by levytv
what does recondition the battery mean?
|
Conditioning the battery was something that used to need to be done to older nickel cadmium (NiCd) batteries. NiCd batteries would suffer from what was called a "memory effect" where, if you stopped charging in the middle of a cycle to use the device or if you didn't let the battery fully die before recharging it, it would "remember" the new levels at which you charged and think that that was as high/low as your battery could go, thereby shortening the life of the battery.
Newer batteries (like the one in your phone) are usually lithium ion (Li-ion) and don't suffer from said memory effect. You can charge and discharge them any way you want and they wil not "remember" which state you charged it in. This signifcantly improves battery life and performance and conditoning the battery is generally not needed for this type of battery.
However, some argue that running the battery all the way down "teaches" your phone just how far it can go and, therefore, results in your phone reporting battery levels more accurately. Lab tests have concluded that there is no hard evidence to prove that conditioning lithium ion batteries improves their performance... but if you want to try, then why not? Can't hurt...