Replace Smartphone battery?

[alicat]

Needing some collective wisdom here.

I went out for the day yesterday and ran my Smartphone (Wileyfox Swift 1st gen) lithium ion battery down. I set it to charge overnight and this morning it kept shutting down. It looked like it hadn't taken any charge.

I like the fact that the phone does what I want and I don't have to worry about it being nicked. I don't like the trend for bigger phones that don't fit in my pocket.

I've tried all the usual hacks (vol down and power button at the same time; disconnecting the battery etc) and now it won't even power up.

I'd quite like to keep it going but not if I'm on a hiding to nothing. I can buy a new battery for c£15 or a s/h one for £50.

What would you folks do? Is a new battery likely to make the phone power up or is something else going on?

Thanks for any input.

 

[bruce1530]

Is the charger working, and is the connection OK?

 

[T4tomo]

firstly google what is the best replacement battery for xxxxxxxxxx phone and read the review

buy said battery and replace it.

there are loads of aftermarket better / higher capacity / longer lie replacement batteries for phones. You should change the battery every couple of year or so or when you notice its discharging much quicker than when new.

one of the joys of not being a slave to apple is being bale to improve your battery life and not get your older phone slowed down with operating system "upgrades"

 

[HMS_Dave]

4 possibilities:

1. Charger is faulty
2. Charging port is damaged
3. Battery has failed, completely
4. Mainboard damaged.

1. Have you got or could you get another charger to test?
2. Water ingress is a possibility. Foreign objects could be in the port. Or just wear and tear has damaged the port/solder joints.
3. In most instances batteries give signs of failure long before they just stop working, such as excessive heat, low charge capacity and fast drain. But it can happen where the charge protection circuit stop charging altogether if it spots a fault to prevent fire.
4. Mainboard damage is the most unlikely, but water and impacts can damage the very delicate traces on the boards. Also power surges can damage them beyond economical repair.

A battery replacement should be inexpensive, but only really consider if you really love the phone. Im all for repairing electronics, it is actually my day job, but seriously consider the economics of such an inexpensive device, especially given a battery replacement may not fix the issue although if the charger is OK, it probably will...

 

[si_c]

If the battery suddenly failed overnight then it's possible that the fault is not the battery as @HMS_Dave says above. It could also be a software issue as with modern smartphones the charging is in part regulated by the software environment.

Try holding down the volume down and power buttons to power it on whilst plugged in, then leave it to charge for a while and see if it takes a charge. If it does then let it charge up full then restart it again and see if that fixes the problem.

 

[alicat]

Try holding down the volume down and power buttons to power it on whilst plugged in, then leave it to charge for a while and see if it takes a charge. If it does then let it charge up full then restart it again and see if that fixes the problem.

I've tried that but I'll try it with another charger. Thanks for the thoughts all.

 

[Cycleops]

Its about five years old? It won’t be receiving the latest updates to the OS so I should take the opportunity to just get a new phone as it will affect usability. Not worth getting a new battery if it is indeed that. Phones have got very cheap so you should be able to get something good for under £150. Try to get one that will continue to receive updates for at least three years, all Android One devices should.

 

[DRM]

Have a look inside the charging port it wouldn’t be the first time I’ve seen one full of pocket fluff preventing a proper connection

 

[alicat]

Have a look inside the charging port it wouldn’t be the first time I’ve seen one full of pocket fluff preventing a proper connection

Thanks for the thought, @DRM. It looks okay but I've cleaned it out just in case.