How to Service Cell Phone Batteries
With the move to lithium-ion, fewer cell phonebatteries fail during the warranty period than with nickel-based chemistries. Lithium-ion is less temperamental and needs less customer preparation than nickel. Yet, the volume of returned batteries remains relatively high. A North American cellular provider with about 12 million subscribers receives roughly 70,000 warranty returns per month. Out of these returned handsets, 50% have mechanical failures; 30% are performance related issues; 15% have battery or charger related problems; and 5% have miscellaneous faults. Returned cell phone batteries 80-90%of the returned batteries have either no fault or can easily be restored with abattery analyzer. The batteries are warehoused for eventual service or recycling.Battery returns represent a million-dollar problem. There are many reasons for the battery failures. The battery may not have been properly charged before use. Perhaps the packs remained on the shelf too long or the c...