As frigid weather continues to pound the East Coast and the Plains,
fingers go numb, noses go red and cellphones go out. "We remind
customers that their electronics operate best in the same temperatures
that people like, too," said Jazmin Hupp, director of marketing at
Tekserve, a popular Manhattan Apple reseller.
When the temperature drops below freezing, the lithium-ion batteries
can lose some of, or even all, their charge for a time. What looked like
a half-full battery when you walked out of the house could soon appear
completely empty and shut down in 20-degree weather. Stop inside for a
while, restart the phone and the battery will probably appear half-full
again.
In most cases, the cold isn't doing any permanent damage — just
reducing the power of the battery until you warm it up again. This
shouldn't come as a surprise. With the iPhone, for example, Apple's site
clearly states, "Operating ambient temperature: 32 degrees to 95
degrees F (0 degrees to 35 degrees C)."
But most people don't read specs. Tekserve's Hupp said that the store's
service department has had a spike in complaints about short battery
life on iPods and iPhones during the cold snap. In the past week, the
company has also sold 20 percent more Mophie Juice Packs — external Iphone batteries. But they are just as susceptible to the cold as the phone's built-in battery.
The only proven remedy is perhaps also the simplest: Put your phone in
your pocket. That will disrupt the popular pastime of surfing and
walking. But it's the safe bet: protecting not only your phone but also
your chilled fingers, as well as decreasing the likelihood of walking
into traffic.
No technology is likely to be foolproof. "Cases can't really help
unless you had a specific case that warmed the product," said Bryan
Hynecek, chief designer at smartphone case maker Speck. "Still, you would need something over the glass because
that is a large surface … best thing is to keep it in a pocket close to
the body and only use in short intervals."
"A good case will mitigate that issue (somewhat)," wrote Ken Sander,
owner of New York City electronic repair shop, The Cable Doctor, in an
email. Sander recommended one piece of hardware, however. "If you used
headphones, it won't be an issue," he said, because the phone would
remain in the pocket.
Credits:
Technewsdaily
