Help Battery Icon Inaccurate 50% and above

[cwagmire]

I'm loving almost everything about my new Maxx. What I've noticed since I bought it last Thursday is that the battery icon in the upper right hand corner is pretty inaccurate when the battery percentage is 50 percent or higher.

As examples:
90 percent battery still shows 100 percent full battery icon
50 percent battery still shows 70-80 percent full battery icon

Once it gets to 40 percent or lower, the battery icon looks proportional to the amount remaining.

Does anyone else have this issue?

 

[wxman2003]

I'm loving almost everything about my new Maxx. What I've noticed since I bought it last Thursday is that the battery icon in the upper right hand corner is pretty inaccurate when the battery percentage is 50 percent or higher.

As examples:
90 percent battery still shows 100 percent full battery icon
50 percent battery still shows 70-80 percent full battery icon

Once it gets to 40 percent or lower, the battery icon looks proportional to the amount remaining.

Does anyone else have this issue?

Let your battery drain to zero. Charge it completely with the phone turned off.

 

[cwagmire]

Let your battery drain to zero. Charge it completely with the phone turned off.

I thought with these newer batteries it was bad to let it go to zero?

 

[euph_22]

Let your battery drain to zero. Charge it completely with the phone turned off.

Not what the OP is talking about.

I thought with these newer batteries it was bad to let it go to zero?

It's not a good thing to do it constantly, but letting it drain once or twice isn't particularly harmful.


Anyways, what you're talking about isn't an issue. It's just how Motorola made the icon images. You can get various widgets or status bar icons that are more precise that the stock icon. I like Circle Battery Widget myself.

 

[cwagmire]

Not what the OP is talking about.

It's not a good thing to do it constantly, but letting it drain once or twice isn't particularly harmful.


Anyways, what you're talking about isn't an issue. It's just how Motorola made the icon images. You can get various widgets or status bar icons that are more precise that the stock icon. I like Circle Battery Widget myself.

Oh ok lame. I guess it is a minor issue, but seems weird that they could mess up such a simple thing. Thanks for the helpful response!

 

[euph_22]

Oh ok lame. I guess it is a minor issue, but seems weird that they could mess up such a simple thing. Thanks for the helpful response!

Yeah, I'm also annoyed by how they do the battery meter. I really wish it had more resolution and gave the actual percentage left. Oh well.

 

[Napalm]

There is another thread about this. Anyone in here an electical Engineer?

there was a lot of discussion on this on the DX forum 2 years ago.

Basically when you get a new LIPO battery device. The device itself monitors the battery voltage and temp. Bear in mind the battery itself is a set of cells grouped in series and parallel - so as to make up the Pack voltage of 5v and 3300mAH. (or whatever the pack capacity is)

The device (razr in this case) monitors that pack voltage and uses it and pack temp with an equation to estimate capacity. However it needs to see when the battery reached base voltage (call it 4 volts - I'm not sure what safety margin Motorola put into their software).

When base voltage is reached and the temp is nominal - the phone will shut off on its own. Likewise that equation must work on the other end of the spectrum. Max voltage should be 5 (or maybe even 5.2). That sets the 100% capacity meter. and base sets the turn off threshold.

Thus the comment about let your phone die to re calibrate the meter.

ALSO as discussed in other moto forums - they choose only to update the battery meter icon with 10% intervals and only sample the battery about once every 30 seconds. or that seems to be the pace on the DX. probably even less on the razr maxx - but I'm just guessing right now.

 

[JMey94]

Download Battery Circle from the Play Store. Gives you the exact level of your battery (not in increments of 5 or anything) in your notification bar.

 

[cwagmire]

There is another thread about this. Anyone in here an electical Engineer?

there was a lot of discussion on this on the DX forum 2 years ago.

Basically when you get a new LIPO battery device. The device itself monitors the battery voltage and temp. Bear in mind the battery itself is a set of cells grouped in series and parallel - so as to make up the Pack voltage of 5v and 3300mAH. (or whatever the pack capacity is)

The device (razr in this case) monitors that pack voltage and uses it and pack temp with an equation to estimate capacity. However it needs to see when the battery reached base voltage (call it 4 volts - I'm not sure what safety margin Motorola put into their software).

When base voltage is reached and the temp is nominal - the phone will shut off on its own. Likewise that equation must work on the other end of the spectrum. Max voltage should be 5 (or maybe even 5.2). That sets the 100% capacity meter. and base sets the turn off threshold.

Thus the comment about let your phone die to re calibrate the meter.

ALSO as discussed in other moto forums - they choose only to update the battery meter icon with 10% intervals and only sample the battery about once every 30 seconds. or that seems to be the pace on the DX. probably even less on the razr maxx - but I'm just guessing right now.

I think some of that went over my head, but let's see if I understand:

Due to how the device is designed, allowing the device to die completely will calibrate the phone's battery meter?

 

[euph_22]

I think some of that went over my head, but let's see if I understand:

Due to how the device is designed, allowing the device to die completely will calibrate the phone's battery meter?

Pretty much. The phone needs to know what exact voltage a "dead" battery has and what voltage a "full" battery has. So you let the battery die, and then charge it completely.

 

[arparaspolo]

Download Circle Battery Widget(1% intervals). Place it on your home screen under your stock battery meter. Customize the widget however you like and never look at the stock battery meter again(until they change it to 1% intervals).