Why should the Nintendo Switch be charged at least every 6 months?

Nintendo recalled one of the good uses of the Switch: it is important to recharge it at least every six months. We explain why.

Nintendo Switch battery // Source: iFixit

For the past few days, the Web has been on fire around a Tweet from Nintendo. This states that "the battery built into the console may become non-rechargeable if it has not been charged or used for too long" and that it is therefore best to "recharge it once every six months".

The principle of Li-ion batteries

“Scandal! », « Nintendo does not know how to make consoles! “, “How can they make a mistake like that when the Nintendo DS last for years? »… not so fast.

To understand why this can happen, you have to look at the operation of the Li-ion batteries that supply the console's energy. These are made up of cells in which a chemical reaction takes place that provides electrical energy. A process that is reversed when recharging the battery, although some of the chemicals are lost forever, reducing the battery's long-term capacity.

But for everything to go well, the discharge of an electronic device must be done at a minimum voltage (about 3 V), otherwise dendrites will be created within the cell which will damage it, preventing it from charging and that could cause a short circuit when charging. Below this is called deep discharge, which happens when the battery is drained of all its energy.

This is why it is strongly recommended during long storage of Li-ion batteries to keep the accumulator charged between 40 and 80% and to carry out partial recharges from time to time to reactivate the electrolyte and compensate for the self-discharge of the battery. drums.

Securities

Today, Li-ion batteries are everywhere and manufacturers have implemented safeguards to reduce this problem. One of the most widespread is software since it makes the user believe that the battery has fallen to 0% when this is not the case. Very often, when your device turns off, the battery is not yet discharged, but a security prevents it from going into deep discharge.

So consider that when your console gets to 0% and turns off, it actually has 1-5% battery left while power delivery is limited to the max so that remaining battery life can sustain the device — and its battery — as long as possible. This is the case for the Switch and for absolutely all devices with a Li-ion battery.

Nintendo's tweet is just a reminder: in the instructions for the console, we can read "make sure to recharge the batteries at least once every six months." Batteries that are not used for an extended period may become impossible to recharge. A regularly specified statement.

Why Switch?

In this case, if all devices are concerned, why the Switch and not the Nintendo DS? The difference is played here in the very operation of the two consoles.

To make the experience faster and more enjoyable for gamers, the Switch, unlike other consoles like the DS, doesn't actually turn off unless the user causes it to by going to settings. She stays on standby. This standby therefore consumes more, which tends to significantly reduce the time between the last use and the deep discharge state.

In any case, don't leave your electronic devices in a cupboard for too long, some have had another bad surprise recently with their PSP: after several months of inactivity, the battery had swollen. Remember for all intents and purposes that these are dangerous components that can explode and ignite, so take care of them.

File updated in July 2019. A universal technology: Lithium-ion All current smartphones and tablets use the same technology for batteries called lithium-ion (or li-ion for short). Exit then…Read more

To follow us, we invite you to download our Android and iOS application. You can read our articles, files, and watch our latest YouTube videos.

Everything you need to know about the Nintendo Switch