Have you felt the need to quickly power your phone when you are on the road and the original charger is not with you? Probably you would end up buying a charger to revive your dead phone’s battery or to make sure that your phone does not die. But have you considered the fact that the charger you buy may end up causing more damage? All chargers are not bad for your phone, but here is some information about chargers and how they can affect your phone’s battery. This will help you understand the importance of using the right charger for your phone.
How does a charger work?
A lot of readers have asked, “Will using a different charger ruin my phone?” To answer this question, let us first understand how a charger works.
Also known as power adapters, a charger is meant to provide your phone’s battery with the right amount of power so that your phone can be safely charged to its full limit. The charger that came with your phone is built specifically for your phone model and provides the perfect amount of power to your phone. This power is mentioned on the charger in the form of voltage (V) and amperes (A).
If your phone is unable to draw enough power then the battery will not charge in the period of time that it usually takes to charge. On the other hand, if the phone is fed too much power, then the battery will not be able to safely handle the constant flow of excessive power.
Your phone’s charger makes sure that the flow of power from the wall jack to the phone battery is adapted to be suitable for the phone. As a result, your phone charges perfectly with its own charger.
What happens when you use a cheap or fake charger?
Currently, the market is flooded with many cheap chargers that are touted to work effectively for a variety of phones. So if you ended up without a charger, you may feel the urge to just buy a fake charger without giving much thought to the fact that “can cheap charger damage my phone”.
Your phone manufacturer provides the charger at a higher cost because they meet all regulatory standards and ensure that the chargers are built for durability. You will find that original phone chargers would rarely suffer from manufacturing defects and even if that is the case, you can get it exchanged under warranty.
Cheap chargers, on the other hand, are not as compliant to the regulatory standards. They may not conform to the correct power requirements of phones. These chargers usually do not have any kind of warranty either.
As a result, your phone may either end up getting inadequate power to charge the battery or too much power than required. In both cases, the battery suffers damage. Excessive power can even kill the battery or in some cases, cause the battery to burst or set it on flames. This is also the case when the battery is manufactured using hazardous materials.
Some common problems in a fake charger are:
- May not supply the right amount of power safely to your phone
- May not comply with regulatory standards
- Maybe made of harmful materials which can damage your phone and harm the environment
- May have physical defects like lose prongs or lose connectors
If the charger you are using is from a branded manufacturer who adheres to regulatory standards, then you can use that charger for your phone without worrying about causing problems. For example, your Samsung phone can be charged by the charger of a OnePlus phone without a lot of problems because both the chargers are from recognized brands and would deliver the right amount of voltage and amperage to your phone. The problem usually appears when you are using fake, low-quality chargers from unknown manufacturers.
How to identify the right charger for your phone?
Ideally, you should walk into a store that sells branded chargers and asks for an original charger for your phone. In most cases, this charger will include a warranty period as well. If you are buying chargers of another brand or from a different manufacturer, check the volts and amperage. Most chargers would limit the amperage between 1 and 1.5 amps. The input voltage should be between 100V and 240V. The output is usually up to 5V for phone chargers.
Also, check for certifications on your charger. Two common certifications are:
CE – A marking which shows that the product conforms to the health, safety and environment protection regulations and standards.
RoHS – Short for Restriction of Hazardous Substances, RoHS marking means that the charger does not use hazardous materials.
Conclusion
Phones and chargers can be tricky. Power users usually feel the need to use power banks and alternative chargers to feed their phone with adequate battery for the day. Your use of the phone and the constant habit of charging your phone can also affect its battery life. When coupled with charging your phone from wrong chargers, you may end up significantly reducing the overall battery life of your phone.
If you tend to charge your battery more than once a day, be sure to carry your charger around instead of using alternative chargers as a source of power for your phone’s battery. Invest in high quality, branded power banks. And if you have to buy a new charger, make sure you buy an original one from a good store.
