Palm Treo 680 battery instructions

[John in Ottawa]

Good morning all. New to this forum, it looks like a great resource!

I just bought the 680 (Rogers) and conditioned the battery as discussed here right from the start. I've noticed that, after a night of charging, the battery indicates 92% when I disconnect. If I reconnect the charger or the sync cable, I'm able to 'top off' the charge to 100% (98 when I disconnect) and the battery life is pretty good (still in the 90's after 18 hours, 78% on day three).

Now, I don't know the inner workings of this phone, the battery or the charger, I do, however, work with electrics and batteries in my job and often see battery charging cycles that have different rates at different phases in the charge. I am wondering if perhaps this battery needs a different finishing charge rate and the logic to switch rates during the full cycle is somehow not working, either in the charger or the phone (maybe both).

When I disconnect and reconnect, according to my theory, the phone correctly senses that the battery is almost done and the correct charging logic is followed, the indicator turns red for about half an hour, then green.

As for the 98% once disconnected, I wonder if that's due to the battery being a lower capacity than what was originally intended for the device, so perhaps the software is looking for more mA than exist before it can give the 100% signal.

Just my musings, like I said, I'm new, so I don't know what I don't know.....

-John

[Bemo]

Thanks John,

We're all in this together. Nice to see someone with some technical knowledge spouting off unlike most of us. At least higher capacity batteries are available for the 680, unlike the iPhone!!

Bemo

[r0ssr0ss]

My old Palm Zire 72 has pretty much the same battery, same programs and same about of use minus the phone and i had to charge the battery once ever few weeks it was amazing, as a test i charged both phones to 100% and left them untouched for 2 days, my treo 680 was at 74% and my zire 72 was at 99%
this phone is pathetic!

[Bemo]

Just wondering, is the phone "on" on the 680? That would sure draw some power over a 2 day period. Yes the battery does not have a lot of power, there are at lease three different after market batteries that can be used that have more power. Not like that iPhone, can't replace it at all so I'm told. 300 charges and the iPhone's toast I hear. Or is it like the old 600's where you can open it and rip out the old battery and put in an after market unit.

[serge]

I think Wanderer deserves a medal. My battery charge wouldn't even last from morning til night. I did what he suggests about ten days ago and now the charge is good for two days. That's good enough for me.

[mjones5073]

I have tried this several times and it has not worked for me. I bought an aftermarket 18-hour battery and separate charger and I have to basically swap the battery every day. The original battery will not last a full day (24 hours) if I use the phone and the 18 hour battery barely makes it through a day if I spend any time on the phone at all.

This is very frustrating. My previous Treo phone's battery lasted days, even with moderate use.

[jfa02]

welcome mjones 5073 to treonauts. What was your previous Treo a 650? Are in a GSM area or an edge area. The newer slightly higher speed areas the dge uses battery up at a faster rate than the GSM in the same signal strength area but when you are in a marginal strength area it uses more power and charges slower it seems to me. I hav a 750 and I have noticed since thge upgrade to wm6 I have an E instead oa G and my battery life is a little less unless i keep all the apps closed (the wm thingv about the x not closing). I try to keep my phone on the charger at the office or in the car or at home so it does not run down. I am thinking I need to get the 1600 mah battery from Seidion that fits in the regaular oem battery slot. Wish that price would come down a bit though. Good luck.

[BEEEsH]

Hey everyone (first post)

I purchased a new unlocked Treo 680 and i have to say its easily one of my favorite phones. I've had nokia phones, motorolla phones, a blackberry and a Sony-Ericsson.

The one issue I immediately noticed with my treo was its poor battery life. On the first day that I got it, it lasted about 12-14 hours before needing a charge. I then searched the net (finding these forums) and found the patches as well as the battery tricks.

I now charge my phone every two-three days (with moderate use) and find it to be extremely acceptable. I have a few tips which may have been posted, so for those who just skipped to the end of this thread, you can just read this:

1. Make sure you update your phone to the fullest. Get all the new patches and software available for it. (palm.com)
2. Do the battery trick outlined in the original post of this thread. The phone needs to be conditioned to read and utilize the battery properly. Overall this step made the absolute biggest difference.
3. Go into your Time and date settings and turn off automatic mode. (have it set to nothing.
4. Go into your Power options and make sure Beam Recieve is set to off.

Following any/all of these four steps will ensure better battery performance.

[jfa02]

welcome BEEEsH to treonauts. We are glad you're here with us. Thankds for your post and insights.

[LotusLord]

Welcome BEEEsH! Glad you found us, and got your 680 working the way you want!