Do IPhones Have Lithium Batteries-Types, Advantages and Concerns

The iPhone is officially the first touchscreen smartphone in the world. It was introduced back in 2007 at one of the most famous Apple events and Apple has sold over 2 billion iPhones since then. Many people love iPhones because of their simplicity, durability, power and ease of use. But have you ever asked yourself what powers these devices that everyone around the world loves? Yes, they are powered by batteries. 

But what kind of batteries are in iPhones?

iPhones are powered by Lithium-ion batteries that are manufactured by a couple of companies around the world mainly in China and South Korea. Some of these companies include; Huizhou Desay, Samsung, Sunwoda, etc. These are some of the best Lithium-ion battery manufacturers and their batteries are used in several other smartphones around the world. 

Apple always changes their suppliers for batteries after a certain period of time. They also use more than one supplier for the batteries in order to make sure they meet the demand for the batteries needed in all the iPhones they sell at a time. So, all Apple does is give the design specifications of the battery they need and these companies make that particular battery. 

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Apple always prefers not to reveal the specifications of its batteries even while unveiling their new iPhones. However, you can get to know the specifications of your iPhone battery by using third party tools like 3U Tools. This App gives you all the details about your battery including the battery health, charge cycles, manufacturing date, and the manufacturer of the battery. 

The Lithium-ion batteries used in iPhones have gradually been growing in capacity over the years. This is mainly due to advancement in battery technology and also the fact that iPhones have been growing in size which allows more space for a bigger battery. For instance, the first iPhone used a 1400mah battery but latest Apple flagship the iPhone 11 Pro max uses a 3950mah battery (almost thrice the capacity of the first iPhone). 

With bigger batteries, iPhone users are now able to use their iPhones throughout the day without any worries of their Phones blacking. The good battery life is also attributed to the well optimized iOS and the power efficient Apple A chips. When it comes overall battery life, an iPhone battery is able to support peak performance even beyond 500 charge cycles which almost 2 or 3 years of use. 

In most cases you may need to change your battery after 2 or 3 years if you're a heavy user. Those who use their phones lightly can even go for 5 years with their iPhone batteries still giving them peak performance. 

Why does Apple use lithium batteries?

There are several battery technologies that can be used in mobile electronic devices but Apple chose Lithium-ion batteries because of the following reasons; 

" Lithium-ion batteries have a high-power density. This makes it possible to have a big battery capacity in a very small volume hence creating space for other parts that make the iPhone powerful to meet the demands of the users. 

" Lithium-ion batteries are also light: Li-ion batteries are very light compared to other types of batteries that could be used in iPhones. Lightness is a very key when it comes to smartphones since most people more are comfortable with phones that are about 200g and below

" Li-ion batteries can be charged faster: Today smartphone users want to have their phones charged faster whenever the battery goes down. iPhones that support fast charging (iPhone 8 and newer) can be charged from 0% to 50% within 30 minutes. This kind of fast charging is only possible with Li-ion batteries. 

" Lithium batteries also have a bigger depth of discharge: You can literally use your iPhone battery till 0% without worrying of it getting long term effects. It's not something we recommend but if you're in a situation where you can't charge, it is okay to drain your iPhone battery till 0%. This could not be possible with other battery technologies. 

" They are also durable: Li-ion batteries have a shelf life of more than 10 years if stored with a moderate charge capacity. This means the main cause of your battery life loss is usage. That's why it's possible for light phone users to use their iPhone batteries for even five years without finding any issues with battery life.  

Why Apple doesn't want you to replace the battery in your iPhone?

Like we have seen above, most of the iPhone batteries can't hold enough charge after being used for more than 3 years. At that moment, one would want to replace their battery with a new one. However, Apple always prefers its users to replace their batteries from authorized Apple service centers and not technicians that are not certified by Apple. Here are some of the reasons why;

" Your battery could catch fire: The battery is one of the riskiest components of your iPhone. If it's not properly replaced, you may experience abnormal behaviors like overheating while charging and in the worst cases your battery may even catch fire. So, for your safety, Apple prefers replacing the battery from a certified Apple service center. 

" To protect users from getting fake batteries: There are so many non-verified Apple batteries in the market that could cause potential problems to your iPhone. To avoid such scenarios, Apple recommends getting the batteries from their certified service centers. 

" To safe guard their brand name: Just imagine you replace your battery and your phone catches fire. You will likely blame Apple for this forgetting the fact that you replaced your battery from a non-certified service center. This affects the Apple brand because people you complain to will not know whether you were using a fake battery or an original one. 

It's for the above reasons that Apple has put a software to detect non original Apple batteries. If you have a non original battery in your iPhone, iOS does not show the battery health details under the battery heath option in settings. This is because original iPhone batteries have a chip that collects all this battery data that is displayed on your iOS device.