Experts may still be at odds when it comes to whether you should charge your smartphone all night long. But there’s one area where they all seem to agree: the charging cable that you use makes all of the difference — and it’s one area where you should not cut corners and rely on the cheapest chargers you can find.
While cheap chargers can be helpful because you can buy them in bulk and use one in a pinch, Frey cautions against making one your primary charging cable. “Cheap charging cables can harm your battery,” Frey says. “If the cable frays and some of the insulation inside gets stripped, there's a small but significant chance bare wires may touch. If that happens, you might not only damage your phone but potentially even cause an electrical fire.”
When you are shopping for a charging cable for your iPhone, make sure it is one that has an MFi badge and has been certified by Apple.
After you settle your charging cable issues, there are two more tips Frey says to keep in mind. The first: don’t bother with third-party apps that monitor your battery performance. “They tend to do more harm than good by sapping your charge pretty quickly,” Frey says. “These apps are generally unnecessary anyway – your phone likely comes equipped with native software that tracks battery usage.”
And lastly, try to keep phone use to a minimum while it's charging. “Overstressing the battery can cause performance issues,” Frey says. “The risk of permeant damage isn't incredibly high, but it's high enough. Perhaps more importantly, using your phone while it's charging will simply impede the charging process. This could be a problem if you're on a tight schedule.”
Charging your phone isn’t rocket science — but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a much better way to go about it that may just keep your device in top shape for years to come.