Fully Charge RT

[thix84]

Fellow Surface Users,

Does the charger indicates when the RT is fully charge already? I charge it for about 3hrs and full it off coz i dont want to over charge my RT..should the light of the charge tip turn off?

Another thing, can we configure the battery setting NOT to charge when it is plugin? just like on some other notebook.

thanks!

 

[bosamar]

The 24-watt charger will charge the RT from 0 to 100 in about just over two hours. Microsoft's build strategy was to have such a high-watt charger to enable that feat. The battery is a modern type which is designed to not over-charge. Feel free to plug it in when you go to sleep and unplug it when you are ready to use it.

the charge cable will emit a white light when connected correctly. It will not change color when fully charged.

 

[ArnoldC]

No, but not needed as deliberated in another thread in this forum. Bottom line, don't worry.
Sent from my Windows Phone 8S by HTC using Board Express

 

[J515OP]

It would be nice if the light indicated something other than connected but that is all it does. No light = not connected, light = connected. If they could make blinking = charging and on = charged it would be handy. Considering most power cables don't have any lights at all though it isn't necessary.

No way to over charge, so don't worry about it as had been stated and just enjoy using your tablet

 

[thix84]

Thank you Guys! You've been very helpful

I can now relax when my wife forgot to full the plug at night. lol

 

[bosamar]

Thank you Guys! You've been very helpful

I can now relax when my wife forgot to full the plug at night. lol

Most, if not all modern electronics have that ability now. But I still believe the old-school way of drawing the battery down to almost empty before recharging. I think it would take mucho abuse to kill the RT battery. Maybe 4 years of abuse or more.

 

[thix84]

Most, if not all modern electronics have that ability now. But I still believe the old-school way of drawing the battery down to almost empty before recharging. I think it would take mucho abuse to kill the RT battery. Maybe 4 years of abuse or more.

I Agree with you bosamar.. It will extend RT's battery life

 

[Chubnut]

I still do this with all my devices (except the laptop). I do still believe it extends the life of the battery, but that's just a belief.
Sent from my Windows 8 device using Board Express Pro

 

[J515OP]

Everybody is free to do what they want but modern lithium batteries (like oil which is another conversation) do not go by the old rules. I know it can be hard to shake but deep discharge is generally not considered good for modern lithium batteries (interestingly you see this for power tool batteries instructions on care and storage but not on personal electronics).

Here is a link if you are interested.

Charging Lithium-Ion Batteries ? Battery University

The summary is 1) Do not over charge (the charger/device should automatically take care of this) and 2) Do not over discharge (the device should shut itself down to prevent this). If you are planning on long term storage make sure the device has some charge so that it does not end up over discharging. Pretty basic stuff really and the manufacturers set the limits on each end of the charge and discharge cycle. So all we have to do is use the devices.

Note: Use caution with off brands from China that may not be regulated and are potentially unsafe. One common indicator is a swelling battery that may eventually catch fire. Even the major companies get bad batteries from time to time but at least you should get a recall notice in that case.

 

[ArnoldC]

Hi, the battery inside the Surface RT is Lithium POLYMER, a more modern, more safe incarnation of Lithium batteries. They are more expensive, thinner, and safer compared to Lithium Ion.

ps.

I've built devices that used Lithium Ion and Lithium Polymer, and in the design aspect Lithium Ion requires an active circuit for over-charging and is not required by Lithium Polymer.

Lithium Ion batteries "die" WHEN NOT IN USE.

 

[J515OP]

Lithium-Ion Polymer are covered at the end of the article. It is possible the info from the site regarding Lithium-Ion Polymer batteries could be outdated. Though there is no date on the pages the oldest comments on the pages date back to the end of 2010.

"Charging Lithium-ion Polymer

Charging Li‑ion polymer, also referred as Li-polymer, is very similar to a regular lithium-ion battery and no changes in algorithm are necessary. Most users won’t even know if their battery is Li‑ion or Li‑polymer. The word “polymer” has been used as promotional hype and does not reflect special attributes other than to know that the battery is built in a different way to a standard Li-ion.

Most polymer batteries are based on a hybrid architecture that is a cross between Li-ion and Li-polymer. There are many variations within the polymer family, and the true dry polymer battery for the consumer market is still years away. Also know as the “plastic battery,” this system was first announced in early 2000 but was never able to attain the conductivity needed for most applications at ambient temperatures. Read more about the Lithium-polymer battery and the Pouch Cell."

 

[ArnoldC]

"Promotional hype" obviously whoever wrote that didn't know all, can't even tell the differences in charging, material, and safety. I won't be arguing about it anymore.