Incase you missed it; Apple recently held its WWDC 2020 event. At the keynote it unveiled new iterations of software that runs the iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, Apple TV, Macs and even the AirPods.
For the AirPods the company is bringing a new feature that will help improve battery life. The new software will do this by learning your charging habits. It will learn when you charge them so it will automatically predict when to stop charging them.
This new software feature is big for the AirPods and could mean that you should expect your earbuds to last longer than they typically do. Of course, the company offers replacement services for the batteries, but wouldn’t it be cooler if they lasted a little bit longer? I’m guessing the answer is yes.
Here’s how this will work. Typically your AirPods charge to 100%. But with the new software update, they won’t be able to do this directly. Instead, the AirPods will stop charging at 80 percent, then resume later. This prevents them from being topped off to 100 percent for a long time when for example you’re busy doing other things.
This method has been adopted already by smartphone companies for phones and even laptop manufacturers. Because current batteries use lithium-ion technology, it is recommended that you don’t make your device stay at 100 percent for long. It increases the charges and, in a Lehman’s language, kills your battery faster.
You can read this in-depth Battery University article on How this technique helps Prolong the life of Lithium-based Batteries.
