I just read in another topic that one factor in preserving a Sansa player’s battery life is your “charging habits.”
What is the most efficient way to charge the battery to maintain its life? A little charge often, or let it run low and then do a long charge, or what? (Each time I connect the player to my PC it tops up the charge.)
I have just bought a Sansa Fuze 4gb (and a mains charger to go with it.) So far so good and I am very pleased with it.
I want to make it last as long as possible though so I would appreciate any tips you can give me. I have already set the settings to minimum brightness, 10 second backlight, 5 minute standby etc. I keep the volume as low as possible, too, but do higher EQ settings use more power?
Finally, what kind of lifespan can I expect from my player? Is it possible to send away the unit to SanDisk to install a new battery?
Unlike the “average” charging scheme, where a device drops to “trickle” status after a time, battery management is more advanced on the Sansa.
External regulation is not necessary; in fact, having a continuous regulated power source is recommended, since the Sansa’s internal processor controls battery management automatically.
The Sansa does not remain in low-current “trickle” status once the battery is deemed charged. Charging is halted completely at this point, so the Sansa can be left plugged in continuously.
The processor is always active, in standby. If the Sansa “freezes”, you will note that it will not charge. Charging is discontinued as a safety measure. If the Sansa does not respond when plugged in, perform a soft reset by holding the power switch in the “on” position for about 20 seconds and release.
I just purchased a memory card for my Sansa Fuze specifically for the purpose of prolonging battery life. My plan is to copy downloaded files from my computer to the card and then put the card into the player. This eliminates the need to plug the player into the computer to load files. I would like to know what “microsansa” thinks of this idea. Thanks.
I just purchased a memory card for my Sansa Fuze specifically for the purpose of prolonging battery life. My plan is to copy downloaded files from my computer to the card and then put the card into the player. This eliminates the need to plug the player into the computer to load files. I would like to know what “microsansa” thinks of this idea. Thanks.
That’s just silly, and will make no difference in your battery life. Use the card to carry more files with you. Plugging it in for a few minutes to add songs will not hurt your battery’s life expectancy. More important,is don’t run the battery dead.
I just purchased a memory card for my Sansa Fuze specifically for the purpose of prolonging battery life. My plan is to copy downloaded files from my computer to the card and then put the card into the player. This eliminates the need to plug the player into the computer to load files. I would like to know what “microsansa” thinks of this idea. Thanks.
That’s just silly, and will make no difference in your battery life. Use the card to carry more files with you. Plugging it in for a few minutes to add songs will not hurt your battery’s life expectancy. More important,is don’t run the battery dead.
As well as the fact that it has been speculated that playing files from the external memory card uses slightly _ more _ power than those located in the player’s internal memory.
What exactly is a Sansa Guru — is it an official designation from Sandisk, or is it merely a self selected epithet? I have been somewhat frustrated because there seems to be no systematic explanation of best practices for battery maintenance. I would very much appreciate this from an official source, whether that is a “Sansa Guru” or moderator (which I assume is an official designation) or whatever. Surely even avoiding a very small charging event must save at least an epsilon of battery life. Furthermore a rumored decrease in efficiency in reading from a card may be just an urban legend and in any case could easily be mitigated by transferring the file to the resident memory during a scheduled major charging event. As of now, my intention is to use the card as described and to do my best to maintain the battery between 30% and 80%. But those figures are just guesswork on my part. I sure would like to see an official recommendation. Thanks again!
Someone who posted here many times. Perhaps over 1,000 times?
“I have been somewhat frustrated because there seems to be no systematic explanation of best practices for battery maintenance.”
Go to the battery University website. The most important things are to keep the battery away from high heat, not to run the battery down too low, and store the battery at about 40-50% if you plan to keep the player unused for many months. Also protect the player from very cold temperatures, which can damage the battery or screen. When using the player in freezing weather, keep the player under your coat close to your body. Your body heat should be enough to keep the player from getting too cold.
Much of what has been learned about the habits of lithium ion and lithium polymer batteries has been gleaned from several years of using them in rather extreme situations. By far, the most extreme is in model aircraft and especially cars, where they have been subjected to both mechanical and electrical traumas we’ll never see in a portable player.
In practice, their performance has been very well accepted. The single most important factor in optimizing their life is maintaining charging within optimal limits, and keeping the cells above their minimum threshold voltage.
With the adoption of the lithium polymer battery for our players, we benefit from the LiPo battery’s design attributes, allowing for a customized shape, and a compact machine. Note that the Sansa manages the battery not by using a simple regulator circuit, but by the actions of the processor itself. Topping off the battery normally happens when plugging in for a data transfer, or synchronizing with your library.
If left plugged in, the Sansa will trickle charge, and will halt charging completely when the voltage is correct.
