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better to charge phone off/on

The only difference is that it would charge faster if off because it won't also be using any power. It doesn't make the battery perform any better or worse.

The downside is that you won't get any calls with the power off. Turning a phone off to charge isn't something I would do.
 
I don't know for sure, but I don't know why it would matter one way or the other (except maybe for the fact that it may charge faster while off, as someone stated).
 
I always had a theory with computers that people who constantly shut down and powered up their computer everyday instead of hibernating, had overall shorter life in them or more complications.. Anyone heard of this?
 
if i kept a computer/laptop longer than a year i would maybe have some input on that.

as for phones i have charged both ways and havent noticed any problems (however i tend to leave mine on and so does my husband). but that might not be saying much as i get a new phone every 6 months so thats probably not enough time to really get a feel for battery life/performance etc.
 
Czarcat said:
The only difference is that it would charge faster if off because it won't also be using any power. It doesn't make the battery perform any better or worse.

The downside is that you won't get any calls with the power off. Turning a phone off to charge isn't something I would do.
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Why?
 
the only difference i can tell you by experience is if you charge the Inspire while it's shut off the "time since unplugged" clock seems kind of off. it doesn't seem to recognize when i plug in the charger when it's off so when i turn it on and unplug it the next morning the timer says something like "1 day 3h 14m 12s since unplugged"

just a minor quirk but i don't think it affects the performance of the phone.
 
Either on or off is fine.

However it's _very important to turn your phone off at least every other day. If your practice is to leave it off while charging that will do it.

If however you never turn it off, it's important to change that habit.

As long as you turn it off and leave it off for just two short minutes. That will be enough.

Why? AT&T pushes out very small yet important network updates regularly as they improve the network. Your phone must be off to trigger the transmission of updates to it, the next time it's turned on.

Cheers :)
 
Aatos.1 said:
AT&T pushes out very small yet important network updates regularly as they improve the network. Your phone must be off to trigger the transmission of updates to it, the next time it's turned on.
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Can't those updates be triggered via "check for updates" in the about phone menu?
 
Frisco said:
Can't those updates be triggered via "check for updates" in the about phone menu?
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No. It's because they are network updates for all AT&T phones.

What you are referring to are Android OS updates. Two different things entirely.
 
I turn mine off to charge, but that's mostly because I charge it when I go to bed and I don't want the phone to ring or buzz or anything when I'm sleeping.
 
Aatos.1 said:
Why? AT&T pushes out very small yet important network updates regularly as they improve the network. Your phone must be off to trigger the transmission of updates to it, the next time it's turned on
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Smells like urban legend to me. Care to provide a reference?

You said you're not talking about Android updates, and I know from studying the GSM specs that any network provisioning pushed to terminals takes effect immediately (no reboot/power cycle required). The only thing that leaves is the baseband radio firmware. An OTA update of the baseband would require a reboot to take effect, but that would be extremely infrequent (if it ever happens at all). I've never had an Android device that received an OTA baseband update, so I don't know if the user gets instructed to reboot. But in any case, devs will notice (and report) the new version right away, so if you keep an eye on the forums, you're unlikely to ever miss an update.
 
In an attempt to get better battery life, I am going to try charging the phone while powered off... we shall see how it does.
Scott
 
I noticed that if I charge with the power off, the screen bulb is actually on. As in lit up so it can display the battery graphic. I dont want my screen to actually be on all night if it doesn't have to be. I charge with my phone on so the screen can be completely off.
 
Aatos.1 said:
Either on or off is fine.

However it's _very important to turn your phone off at least every other day. If your practice is to leave it off while charging that will do it.

If however you never turn it off, it's important to change that habit.

As long as you turn it off and leave it off for just two short minutes. That will be enough.

Why? AT&T pushes out very small yet important network updates regularly as they improve the network. Your phone must be off to trigger the transmission of updates to it, the next time it's turned on.

Cheers :)
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att pushes small updates??? hahaha ok
 
Boostin said:
I always had a theory with computers that people who constantly shut down and powered up their computer everyday instead of hibernating, had overall shorter life in them or more complications.. Anyone heard of this?
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Although this answer is away from the cell phone question that was asked, the best way to explain why you have heard that theory is because it is better to keep your computer on than switching it on and off when needed. The reason for this is because it is better to keep the components running at the same temperature while its turned on rather than heating up components, shutting the computer down, letting them cool, then turning it back on when needed; expecially if used frequently, if your computer is being used some what rarely then it is ok just to turn it off. This also is harder on the hard drives motor when it is turned on and off somewhat frequently. In the end, your computer components will last longer, if the computer is left on.
 
Phone has been running on since I pulled it off the charger at 5 am today. It's now 230 pm or so. Battery is at about 40%. I have been multi tasking all day, web email music and more.. happy with that. I'm gonna see what it takes to kill the battery... happy with battery life so far.
 
I had a problem with my Samsung captivate. It wasn't receiving any text messages. Called AT&T turns out it was because I never turned the phone off and missed a network update. They suggested that the phone be turned off for just a few minutes every couple of days. Now I try to do that with my Inspire so I don't run into any issues.

Definitely not urban legend!!
 
KBent said:
I had a problem with my Samsung captivate. It wasn't receiving any text messages. Called AT&T turns out it was because I never turned the phone off and missed a network update. They suggested that the phone be turned off for just a few minutes every couple of days. Now I try to do that with my Inspire so I don't run into any issues.

Definitely not urban legend!!
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Have to agree since I have been with them since before Cingular this has been common knowledge there are network updates to roaming/ messaging data etc etc every few days and the phone only receives these when off. So no urban legend just truth
 
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