Winter weather can affect the performance of your smartphone: the battery in particular cannot tolerate temperatures below freezing. This way you can keep your smartphone in top shape even in winter.

Today our smartphone accompanies us everywhere, regardless of the weather and wind. Most modern smartphones can handle a lot, but winter weather can cause strange behavior. Smartphone batteries in particular don’t seem to tolerate the cold particularly well. This can mean that you have to rush to the charger after a winter walk. Why is this so and how do you protect your smartphone from winter temperatures?

Not too hot, not too cold

Although smartphones are designed to withstand different weather conditions, they are not completely insensitive to temperature. The user manual for your device should usually indicate the optimal temperature range in which the smartphone feels comfortable. This can vary from model to model, but most manufacturers use a range of 0°C to 35°C.

These are certainly not hard limits: even if the temperature drops below zero degrees Celsius, you can still use your smartphone. Scientific research has shown that freezing temperatures have an impact on the health of a device. A 2022 study examined the limits of Android devices and iPhones and found that extreme subzero temperatures (colder than -20°C) render a smartphone unusable in less than ten minutes. The iPhone proved to be a little more annoying than the average Android smartphone.

We won’t reach such extremes easily in our temperate climate, but long-term exposure to temperatures just below freezing can also harm the health of your device. Just as you need to protect your smartphone from overheating during a heat wave, you also need to be careful with your smartphone in cold weather.

Ballet of Electrons

To test the impact of cold on a battery, we first need to understand what’s going on in your smartphone’s battery. The most common type of battery in consumer electronics, but also in electric cars, is a rechargeable lithium-ion battery. This type of battery is characterized by high energy density and a long service life. The main components of the battery are the negative (anode) and positive (cathode) electrons and a separator that separates both poles.

When the battery is used, an electrochemical reaction occurs in which the anode oxidizes and transfers its electrons to the cathode via an electrolyte. This leads to a reduction in cathode performance and therefore a decrease in your battery percentage. A charger sends a current through the battery, which reverses the process and causes the electrons to move back toward the anode.

Temperature changes, both rising and falling, can affect this process and limit a battery’s ability to provide and store electricity. This can cause the battery’s capacity to drop by up to seventy percent or less of normal capacity in freezing cold conditions, causing the battery to drain more quickly. Consequently, this may also affect the speed at which your device charges.

Extreme subzero temperatures (colder than -20°C) can render a smartphone completely unusable in less than ten minutes.

Immersive LCD screens

Most modern smartphones have an OLED screen, but LCD is also regularly used in cheaper devices. LCD screens pose an additional risk when the mercury temperature drops below zero degrees. The LCD screen contains liquid crystals, the abbreviation means stretched out Liquid crystal displayand liquids freeze at sub-zero temperatures.

The biggest inconvenience you’re likely to experience is that the screen simply responds more slowly to screen touches. But “spots” or “ghost shadows” (an effect that occurs when pixels change color too slowly) can also occur. The risk of cracks and other permanent damage to the screen is also greater if you drop your device in sub-zero temperatures.

Keep your smartphone warm

Does it freeze and crack and do you still have to move? Then make sure to adequately protect your smartphone from the cold temperatures. You don’t have to make any special adjustments: Carrying your smartphone in your pocket instead of in a bag or backpack often ensures sufficient warmth.

If you are traveling for a long time or the mercury temperature drops well below freezing, you can wrap the device in a sock or glove for extra warmth. What you should definitely not do is leave your smartphone outside in the car overnight: then it could happen that the device no longer wakes up.

With average temperatures below freezing in Belgium, the battery is the biggest concern. Make sure that you always set off with a well-charged battery and, if necessary, deactivate some settings so as not to put too much strain on the battery. Read this article for more tips on how to keep your battery in tip-top shape throughout all four seasons.