NEWSLETTER
Replacing a smartphone every two years is partly why thousands of millions of the phones come to landfills every year. If they are stacked flat one on top of the other, that many phones would go further than the ISS. But we have become accustomed to that period of 24 months because wireless operators often promote an update of biennial contracts, and many smaller telephone manufacturers Single offer Software support for two years. But now, with the longest software commitments of the main manufacturers, together with the growth of the legislation of repair, many newer phones can remain in our pockets for closer to seven trips around the sun. This is how you can extend the useful life of your smartphone and avoid paying hundreds before it is absolutely necessary.
How to make your smartphone last more
Use a case
It is a striking movement to wear a naked phone, but the possibilities that a phone achieves through a fall increases dramatically when it uses additional protection. We recommend some in our guide for iPhone boxes. In my family, we have been happy with Mous cases. Although we have never submitted our phones to the brutality that is seen in the company adsI can say that these cases have seen the aging of Samsung Galaxy of my partner through some quite twisted spills and accredited the cases for carrying my iPhone 11 to 2025 in working conditions.
Take care of the built -in battery (or use an energy bank)
Since the battery of a phone is often the first thing that must show signs of age, it is worth following the recommendations to extend its useful life. Lithium ion batteries do not work well in the heat and should avoid loading them if it is more hot than 95 degrees; Doing so can degrade the battery quickly and even make them work badly. They will tolerate cold weather better, but they can be slow when things get too cold.
If you store a phone for a while, it is better to do it with the battery at half load, instead of full or empty. In fact, lithium ion cells last more when they spend less completely discharged or full, so battery optimization characteristics in iPhones and Pixel phones Delay the load during the night at 100 percent until about one hour before you usually take your mobile. And although sometimes it is necessary to load a battery quickly, a slower load method when the speed is not critical will put less stress in ionic components and help extend the life of the cell.
But over time, any battery will eventually wear down. The cell that feeds my iPhone 11 can spend a typical day, but I travel, trusting largely in navigation or using the phone as an access point, you will need a top-off before bedtime. I have a lot of them after trying our best energy banks guide and the two that I grab the most frequently are the Agile championBecause it's fast crazy and Anchor prime Because it's huge and I know you will always have a position to lend.
If you really want to give your phone a new life opportunity, a new internal battery could be the ticket. For pixel phones, you can pass through the official Google channel for a repair without prior appointment, you can find a Authorized repair partner Or you can choose the DIY Route with Ifixit's Kits and pixel repair instructions.
For iPhones, you can start with the official Apple website, pass Best Buy or other authorized third parties, or try Ifixit Methods. Samsung also has a Internal option But both Ifixit and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.yahoo.com/tech/best-buy-stops-samsung-repair-020004408.html”>Best Buy He finished his repair relationships with Samsung in 2024. Depending on where he goes and the model of his phone, the price of a new battery and installation will probably cost him between $ 60 and $ 150, much less than leave his phone for something new.
Clean your phone storage
Most tips on how to deactivate your phone and make it work faster in one thing: free space. It is likely that the operating system of your phone has suggestions to clean the storage space, such as automatically downloading unused applications or deleting one -year messages. You can also do things manually eliminating any application you do not use. Next, consider the photos and videos that stores locally and chooses to pay the cloud storage or transfer the files to a computer or an external backup device. You can also consider getting rid of any music and film that may have downloaded for use offline and eliminate old messages and large attachments. A good rule is to maintain its storage to a capacity of around 80 percent. Once you have eliminated and transferred what you can, your phone restarts to give you the opportunity to erase your temporal memory.
Why can (and must) extend the useful life of your smartphone
Electronic waste transmission grow every year and does not do great things to human or planetary health. Smartphone companies offer better and more consistent exchange offers, but even some electronic recycling It has its failures. Simply hanging on a device instead of opting for a new one is the most efficient way to reduce the environmental impact of a phone, in addition to saving money.
While each giant phone manufacturer wants to believe that updating annually is critical, it is worth noting that new generations of phones often have a strong resemblance to the model of the previous year. Engadget editors see this again and again with the innumerable smartphones that review: there is a new button, some new ai tricks, but technology usually does not jump every year to create something wildly different from what it came before.
With only minor hardware updates, the most exciting new features arrive through air software updates. Starting with the launch of Pixel 8 in 2023, Google promised security and software updates for seven full years. Then, those who buy a 925 pixel in 2025 could still be using the same phone in 2032. The Samsung Galaxy S25 this January has the same promised support length. Apple has not made the same promise, but when the launch of iOS 18 last year it reduced the support for the iPhone 8 and the iPhone x, both models had enjoyed about seven years of updates since the launch.
When Apple launched the iPhone 15, the company doubled its estimate for the battery life of the phone saying that a phone must retain 80 percent of the original full load after 1,000 cycles. And Apple said that the placement of the largest battery on the iPhone 16 makes replace it more easily. In general, battery technology has improved in ability Over the years, but longevity has not increased in all areas, such as a PHONARENA STUDY Let it clear.
More advances in Basque battery life maybe On the horizon Particularly as the EV industry grows, which is also based on lithium ion cells. For now, the decrease in battery health is usually the most notable problem that affects older phones. In 2023, the European Council of the European Union adopted new patterns for batteries devices, which includes a mandate to allow consumers “to easily eliminate and replace” batteries. That will not enter into force until 2027, and there will be a lot of interpretation As for what it means “easily.” But EU mandates are what made Apple finally abandon the ports of ray in iPhones in favor of USB-C, so this could be a step towards (once again) have smartphones with interchangeable batteries.
Even in the United States, legislation could force companies to make repair a better option. The law of the law to repair were approved in 2022 in New York, Minnesota and other states. California He has the strongest rule, and even obtained Apple's support. And Google has expressed its support to Oregon's law. Some of these laws have already It entered into forceAnd it will require that manufacturers do things such as providing repair and documentation tools, and selling components for several years after the last new model for higher price devices.
Currently, several phones have decent Repair scoresAccording to the Iphixit online repair community (Fairphone 5 obtains the highest brands). It even seems that California's law is having an impact, taking into account that Iphixit gave the iPhone 14 a repair score of 4, but the iPhone 15 and 16 get a 7. Unfortunately, the scores for the Pixel 9 of Google phones fell compared to the previous models. Until more companies begin to make it easier to fix things, authorized reparation is an option, while reparation itself remains an option for more workers.
This article originally appeared in Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/how-to-make-your-smartphone-last-longer-120014817.html?src=rsss
