2. What's your battery type?
3. Flash versus hard drive: Who guzzles more?
4. Is it going to rain? How weather can affect battery performance
5. Hold me, thrill me, drain me
6. Growing old gracefully: Battery-saving tips
Growing old gracefully: Battery saving tips
So now that we know what kills a battery, here's how to give back as much as we take. One of the biggest battery power wasters is turning on the player when you're not listening to it. The solution is simple -- flip on the Hold switch so you can't accidentally switch on the player by mistake.
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 Turn off the backlight for more
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If you find yourself in a brightly lit area, the backlight common in many MP3 players is an unnecessary feature since you can probably see it as well as the guy who is peeping over your shoulder. Turn it off or at least set it to the minimum lit time. And unless you have acute hearing, chances are you are not going to hear the difference in a treble-enhanced track while rumbling through a noisy train station. So turn it off and cut your battery some slack.
As mentioned earlier, harddrive players depend on a buffer to minimise the frequency at which the player has to access the hard drive. Do yourself a favour and try not to encode your songs at too high a bitrate since it will ultimately translate into a larger file size that will reduce the number of tracks that can exist on your buffer.
Remember, the more songs you can squeeze into the buffer, the less your battery will have to work to power the hard drive. 128kbps is quite adequate for most listeners. Similarly, playlists are also a useful tool in lengthening battery life since chances are you would be dis-inclined to skip tracks as the songs have already been prearranged in your order of preference.
And if you intend to place your MP3 player in long-term storage, it is advisable to store the batteries separately. In the case of Lithium-ion batteries, it is important to note that in order to maintain the integrity of the cells, it is necessary to complete one charge cycle (using up the battery's entire capacity) with them at least once every month.
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Isii
15/01/2005 06:29 AM
Some important issues are not addressed in this article! -NiCd batteries need to be recharged after they are drained off juice, recharging them when they have 50% juice will reduce their life time. Is there similar issues with Li-ion, NiMHbatteries? -Is it better/allright to keep Li-ion/NiMH batteries under constant charge? -Is one charging method better than other? (fast/normal, constant current, cinstant voltage) -is there a comprimise as NiMH capacity increases (e.g compare 1800mAh to 2400mAh), such as lifetime?
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