Does my phone’s lock magnet affect its battery?

Eliud Wanyo

Is it true that the magnet lock on mobile covers spoils the phone’s battery?

Judy Cherotich, Kapsabet

Did you know that your phone’s earpiece has a magnet that is even more powerful than the magnet used as a lock on some covers? The battery lifespan has no connection with the kind of magnet used in any gadget. Magnets and the current in the phone have only one thing in common; the magnet can be used to generate current and at the same time the current can be used to create magnetic fields.

The only thing that gets affected by the presence of magnetic field in an electronic item is transmission of radio waves. In any case, if there were any danger that the magnet might harm the battery then engineers would have found an alternative.

A mobile phone battery has three cells in its pack. Any of them can fail, shortening the battery’s lifespan, or the charge that it can store, and with time, one or more of the cells can fail, causing usage time to reduce to just a few hours.

When any of the electronic gadgets in a battery start to fail, it stops discharging sufficient current to the phone circuit.

Does the small piece of mash put around the earpiece of the phone protect one from danger caused by radio waves?

Henry Chumba, Kisii (via e-mail)

So far, there has been no proof that the radio waves emitted by mobile phones pose any danger to human beings.

The latest studies show that the emissions that are generated by the phone are too low to cause any danger.

Can you explain to me the right way to charge a phone?

Richard Musee, Nairobi

One of the worst mistakes you can make is to disconnect the charger before it is full, as this quickly degrades the cells of the battery.

Since the battery has a circuit of its own, disrupting the charging process will definitely have a negative impact on the battery’s life. It is better to allow the current flow to continue uninterrupted, until the phone battery is fully charged.

If the electrical current is interrupted, the phone memory may mistakenly conclude the battery is full since it has been programmed to charge until the battery is full —this may affect the phone’s memory. Also the small components that constitute the circuit of the battery (which ensure current is equally distributed to each cell) may burn.

—The writer is an electronics technican. E-mail him your questions on [email protected]