Using personal smart phones and other devices for business purposes has become an increasingly normal occurrence. However, this means that the device battery is even more important, especially when the device is being used for personal and business use. A dead battery could mean the difference between making the big deal and missing that important phone call. So, how do you make sure you’re getting the most out of your battery so it doesn’t die on you at the most inopportune time? We’re here to dispel a few myths and provide a few tips.

Remember back in the day when we were all told that it was best to let our phone batteries die completely before recharging in order to extend the life of the battery? Turns out, that’s just pure nonsense and may actually be harming your phone. Keep in mind that most batteries (lithium-ion batteries being the most common used battery in smartphones) have a lifetime of between 500 and 1,500 charge cycles. When you allow your phone battery to completely die before recharging, the battery may degrade up to 70% of its original capacity within 300-500 charging cycles. But if you charge your phone when it still has 75% of the battery remaining, you can expect to be able to charge the battery up to 2,500 times before seeing any noticeable form of battery degradation (according to Battery University).

In fact, you can’t actually over-charge your smart phone. Once your battery is nearly fully charged, the charger begins to decrease the amount of charge it’s sending to the battery. Once the phone is completely charged, the charger only sends small bursts of charges to the phone for the charge that it will lose over time anyway. Leave your phone plugged in overnight! Your battery will react to that better than being completely left with zero battery available.

Now onto one of the most dangerous ways you can harm your smartphone battery – heat. Having your phone in extreme heat for long periods of time can decrease the battery’s charge. How hot is too hot? Exposing it to 100 degree temperature on a regular basis can degrade the battery of up to 40% of its charge capacity. Don’t leave it in your car all day, don’t put it in an oven – treat your phone with respect. Keep it cool, keep it safe and keep your eye on it.

Regardless of how carefully or carelessly you treat your smartphone, it’s inevitable that the battery is going to completely give out eventually. All batteries leak charge over time, so even the most hard-core tactics to extend the battery life will not help your battery live forever. Thankfully, these tips WILL help you extend the life of your smartphone battery without adding too much extra stress to your daily life.