Buying a new smartphone is always accompanied by a desire to turn it on and start using it faster. However, many owners of Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO devices wonder whether you need to do any special actions with the battery immediately after being removed from the box?
Modern lithium polymer and lithium-ion power supplies do not require complex “swing” or full discharge before turning off. However, the right actions in the first hours of operation will help the system to correctly calibrate the charge indicator and ensure a long life for your gadget.
In this article, we will analyze the real recommendations of engineers, not marketing slogans, and make a step-by-step plan of action for the owner of a new smartphone.
Facts about modern batteries
The main thing to understand when using a new device is the chemical composition of its battery: Xiaomi smartphones use Li-Ion (lithium-ion) or Li-Po (lithium-polymer) batteries.
Unlike older technologies, these batteries do not have a memory effect, which means that they do not need to be fully discharged and then charged to 100% several times in a row to increase capacity.
What’s more, deep discharge, when the phone shuts down due to lack of power, is a stress to modern battery chemistry.The power controller in Redmi and POCO smartphones is programmed to maintain a minimum energy buffer even when displaying 0%, but regular bringing to this state reduces the number of recharge cycles.
Why are the old councils no longer working?
Manufacturers, including Xiaomi, test the devices before they go on sale, and they usually end up in storage with a charge of 50-60%, which is optimal for long-term storage of lithium cells.
Do I need to unload the new phone to zero?
There is a persistent myth that a new phone must be discharged before it is completely turned off. For Android devices with modern batteries, this statement is wrong and even harmful.
If you turn on your smartphone and you see that it's 30-40% charge, there's no need to drop it off to zero. You can safely plug it into the network. The only time a full discharge might be required is if the device has been in storage for a very long time and the charge indicator is lying (it shows 15% and the phone suddenly turns off).
⚠️ Warning: Do not leave a fully discharged phone (0%) lying uncharged for several weeks.This can lead to a deep discharge, after which a standard charger will not be able to “revive” the battery without special equipment.
The optimal use case is between 20% and 80-90%, and it is in this interval that the voltage within the cell is most stable, minimizing the wear and tear of the chemical compounds.
Step-by-step: first steps with the battery
To keep your Xiaomi lasting, it is recommended to follow a few simple steps immediately after unpacking, which will help the system correctly read the current state of the battery.
Turn on the device first. If the charge allows, go through the initial setup, connect to Wi-Fi, and log in to your Google account. If the battery is dead during the setup, put the phone on charge without turning it off.
☑️ Primary calibration of the battery
Once the indicator is 100%, don't rush to take the device off the charge immediately. Let it stand for another 15-20 minutes, which will allow the saturation currents to align and the power controller to lock the upper limit of the capacity.
The first full cycle (down to 15-20% and up to 100% charge) will help the MIUI or HyperOS system correctly display the percentages later on.
Selection of charger and cable
Complete with modern flagships and mid-segment models, Xiaomi often comes with an original power supply with support for Quick Charge technology or proprietary HyperCharge.
The use of the original adapter and cable is critical to activating maximum speeds, for example, charging at 67 watts, 120 watts or even 200 watts requires a cable capable of passing currents of 6 amps or more.
| Type of charging | Current power | Features of the cable | Speed. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard (5V/2A) | 2A | The usual USB-A to C | Slow (10 watts) |
| Quick Charge 3.0/4+ | 3A | Quality cable | Medium (18-27 W) |
| Xiaomi HyperCharge | 6A - 10A+ | Special Cable (E-Marker) | Maximum (67-200+ W) |
| Wireless (Wireless) | - | Not required | Depends on the station (up to 50 W) |
If you use a third-party charger, make sure it supports protocols compatible with your phone. Otherwise, charging will be at a minimum speed and heating may be higher than usual.
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Use the cable that comes with the kit, especially if you have a phone charging above 33W. Conventional cables may not give you the power you need and the phone will charge slowly.
Optimization and settings of MIUI/HyperOS
Xiaomi shells have built-in tools to extend the life of the battery. After the first charge, it is recommended to go to the settings and activate useful functions.
Go to Settings → Battery → Battery Protection. You can turn on “Optimize Night Charging.” The smartphone learns your habits and slows down charging after 80%, completing the process only by the time you wake up.
Also worth paying attention to the Adaptive Battery feature, which limits the background activity of rarely used applications, which reduces overall battery wear during the day.
⚠️ Warning: Don’t use Super-Savings modes all the time. They limit background processes and synchronization, which can lead to you not getting important notifications, although battery power will save you a lot.
For users who want to manually control processes, Developer Mode is available, but standard system settings are usually enough to operate comfortably without the risk of damaging the device.
What to do categorically can not be done
Despite the presence of protection systems, the user can harm the new gadget by his actions.
Don't play heavy. 3D-At this point, the processor is already heating up, and the battery is warming up due to a chemical reaction, a combination of factors can lead to electrolyte degradation and battery bloating.
Avoid using your phone in extremely low or high temperatures. Lithium batteries are sensitive to cold: in the cold, the capacity temporarily drops, and charging in the cold can lead to the formation of metallic lithium on the anode, which irreversibly reduces the capacity.
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The biggest enemy of the battery is heat. Avoid leaving the phone in the sun or under a pillow while charging.
Also, don't keep your phone charging when it's 100 percent, and while controllers cut off current, small charge cycles keep the battery in a high voltage state, which accelerates aging.