I suppose you’re one of the many who charge electronic devices overnight and wondering if it is ok to charge Bluetooth earbuds overnight. You’re guilty of that, right?
We all do it! We all want to be on the run with full battery capacity right from bed. The hustle and bustle of life don’t leave room for any delays ?.
Realizing you’re on low battery the moment you set foot outside the room in the morning could bring down your energy. It’s even more frustrating if the battery dies during an essential task.
As busy as I sometimes get in the day, I do, at times, charge my electronic devices overnight. I bet you also do.
But is it really ok to charge electronic devices like Bluetooth earbuds overnight? An upfront answer is yes and no, which I’ll thoroughly explain in a moment.
Is It OK To Charge Bluetooth Earbuds Overnight?
Charging your Bluetooth earbuds overnights shouldn’t be harmful once they’re in the charging case. This is because the power supply to their batteries stops once they’re fully charged due to a ‘trickle charge’ mechanism, which directs it only to the charging case batteries. However, it may not be ok for the charging case as its puts strain on its batteries.
As your charging case receives power throughout the night, you force its batteries to stay at 100%. Although the advanced technology of modern battery manufacturers halts charging, it refills the battery once it drops a little.
Hence, the recursive charge-discharge scenario puts pressure on the battery cells of the charging case, which is not okay for its life span.
People may also argue that keeping the battery of the charging case overnight at 100% only supplies power to the limit placed by manufacturers, which isn’t bad.
While that is somewhat true, it’s not okay because you stretch the battery beyond its safe zone, which affects electrolytes in the cells, deteriorating its performance with time.
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Is It Okay To Leave Bluetooth Earbuds In Case Overnight?
It is absolutely okay to leave Bluetooth earbuds in the case overnight because they’re designed to always be in it, except when you’re using them. The case not only serves as a charging source for the Bluetooth earbuds, but it also acts as a storage system, protecting them from harsh external conditions that may shorten their life span.
Hence, you’re not at any severe safety risk even when you’re charging the case overnight while your Bluetooth earbuds are inside – you don’t have to worry about it.
The reason is that modern Bluetooth earbuds have technologies, especially the Li battery system, that ensure power is cut once their batteries are full.
Perhaps, you’re much more worried about overcharging batteries. No cause for alarms regarding Bluetooth earbuds compared to mobile phones. Manufacturers of Bluetooth earbuds usually limit this charging behavior in an automated way.
What you have to worry about are overheating and over-discharging of the batteries of Bluetooth earbuds.
Overheating and over-discharging cause the batteries of Bluetooth earbuds to degrade over time. Overheating can occur with a faulty charging system when you’re charging overnight. However, when Bluetooth earbuds are in normal conditions, you really don’t have to worry about it.
Over-discharging could cause more harm to the Bluetooth earbuds and charging case than overcharging. This is because when you leave Bluetooth earbuds in the case overnight at low batteries, pressure is mounted in the Lithium-ion cells of the batteries, which destroys negative electrode sites.
The severity and regular occurrence of over-discharging cause cell damage to batteries. Therefore it is recommended to ensure that you’re Bluetooth earbuds are not at low batteries.
I have explained this issue in more detail in an article about what affects battery life. This doesn’t imply that you push more juice into your batteries even when fully charged.
Below video gives some perspectives on overcharging batteries.
How Long Should You Charge Bluetooth Earbuds?
It takes two-three hours to fully charge Bluetooth earbuds and charging case together with the case lid closed using a dedicated or genuine charger. Hence, you shouldn’t charge your Bluetooth earbuds any more than three hours to full capacity for optimal performance and good battery life.
Super-fast and fast chargers can fully charge your Bluetooth earbuds in less than two hours to provide the same listening and talking hours.
While charging your Bluetooth earbuds longer than the manufacturer’s stipulated charging duration may not necessarily be harmful, keeping the time prolongs the health of your batteries.
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Therefore, it is essential to charge your Bluetooth earbuds properly.
Do You Charge Bluetooth Earbuds With The Case Open or Closed?
Manufacturers recommend that the lid of the charging case is closed to charge Bluetooth earbuds because opening the lid activates several functions as well as making the earbuds pair with nearby devices, which interrupts charging. In addition, the charging case and Bluetooth earbuds behave differently for every brand when the lid of the case is open while charging.
For some brands, the LED inside or on the charging case will glow red, yellow, or green to show battery status when you open the lid. However, this is not a good practice as it keeps your earbuds connected to your device.
Hence, charging your Bluetooth earbuds with the case open not only drains the battery but it also slows down charging. This can put pressure on your battery and thus can cause heating in some cases.
In a nutshell, charging your Bluetooth earbuds with the case open affects battery life, both the case and earbuds.
How Do You Properly Charge Bluetooth Earbuds?
Bluetooth earbuds are properly charged with a dedicated or genuine charger using the charging case via a cable or wireless connection. You have to ensure that the case lid, in either case, is closed during charging to prevent any interruptions.
Charging your case via a computer could also be another option, provided the required voltage is supplied to the batteries for effective charging.
Charging Bluetooth Earbuds via Cable
- Put the earbuds in the charging case.
- Close the lid of the case. Closing the lid shuts down the earbuds, unpairing them from the device hosting them.
- Connect the case to a power outlet using the cable and a compatible adapter
Charging Bluetooth Earbuds Wirelessly
- Follow the first two steps of the previous approach
- Align the charging case with the wireless charger, wait for the status light (different manufacturers vary in connection mechanism) to show a connection, and the device will start charging.
The above options are the standard ways of properly charging your Bluetooth earbuds. For more detailed information, check out the below video.
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Final Words
There you have it! In summary, charging your Bluetooth earbuds overnight shouldn’t be harmful due to the advanced charging mechanism used in modern batteries. However, you put your charging case battery under stress which may not be good.
In a nutshell, you may want to avoid charging your Bluetooth earbuds overnight consistently. However, once in a while should be fine – sometimes, it’s necessary.
That’s what I try to do for my electronic devices. What do you think? Let me hear your thoughts.
