A Kindle is the ideal travel companion.
This nifty reading device fits snugly into your handbag or briefcase so you can enjoy its benefits anywhere.
The one thing it does need—unlike a regular book or newspaper—is power.
Amazon designs Kindles that can last for weeks or months before they need charging.
Battery life can vary based on quite a few factors, though. We’ll look today at what affects battery life and just how long a Kindle can go without a burst of juice.
Read on to find out…
What Kindle Do You Have?
If you’re wondering whether your Kindle is performing as it should in terms of battery life, you need to start by understanding what kind of runtime you should expect…
How Long Will Your Battery Last?
Amazon designed a range of Kindle models and they differ in features and capacity as well as battery life.
This average time can be affected by applying some of the tips set out below. What do you own?
- Kindle Oasis: This battery is supposed to last weeks even when used fairly frequently
- Kindle Paperweight/Voyage: You should get between 21 and 28 hours of use. Depending on how much you use your device, it should again last for weeks
- Kindle Fire: Get 8-12 hours when reading but other functions such as music and videos drain power more rapidly
- Kindle 2: This model offers around 30 hours of battery life
- Kindle Newer Generations: You’ll enjoy up to 15 hours of reading time with these models
How Old Is Your Kindle?
Any device deteriorates as it gets older. You can’t expect optimum battery performance from a Kindle that’s a few years old.
You can consider replacing the battery but otherwise, you’ll need to charge it more often.
Use some of the tips below to try and extend its current battery life…
What consumes my battery life?
Wi-Fi
When your Kindle’s Wi-Fi is turned on, the system is working hard. Much more power is needed to support this function than when you’re simply reading a book.
Wi-Fi is only necessary if you’re downloading books or using apps. You’ll have to decide whether you prefer a longer lifespan or more active features.
Downloads
It’s exciting when you find new books to read. Unfortunately, the downloading of data uses a lot of power compared to when you’re simply using the Kindle for reading.
This is because the device needs to analyze and file all the data you’re sending to it.
If you need your Kindle to stay the distance for a particular occasion, delay downloading books until you’re close to a charger again.
Bright Screen
Your screen’s brightness setting will have a direct effect on how quickly the battery runs down.
A bright screen or the backlight is only necessary when reading in full daylight or when you’re looking at pictures on the Kindle that support this feature.
Turn the brightness down in your Settings menu when possible and you’ll see a marked change in battery life.
Temperature
Amazon installs Lithium-ion batteries in Kindles. While these batteries have low self-discharge levels, they are unfortunately very sensitive to temperature fluctuations.
Extreme heat can bring about permanent damage to your battery while very low temperatures will temporarily decrease its ability.
If you want optimum service from your Kindle, you need to consistently use it at room temperature.
Apps
Your Kindle is supposed to offer great battery life even while using most downloaded apps. Unfortunately, certain apps suck the battery more than others.
This is due to continual data use or the way the app was written. Luckily, there are applications to help you with this. You can download an app which will show you how much power your other apps use.
If a long battery life is more important than what the power-hungry app offers you, you can simply uninstall that specific app or consider an alternative.
What Can You Do To Prolong Battery Life?
Regular Charge Cycles
Your Kindle’s battery will perform better for longer if you go through the effort of putting it through charge cycles every now and then. This simply means to let the battery run completely down and then plugging theKindle into the charger and leaving it to charge to 100% without using the device.
Though this might seem tiresome, it’s worthwhile to schedule this monthly task on your calendar if you want to maximize battery performance and health.
Let Amazon Look Into It For You
Amazon’s customer service is first-rate.
Low battery life can be due to technical faults and you can actually download an application which captures your device’s records.
You can email the gathered information to Amazon’s technicians who sift through the data to pick up on any irregularities. If there’s anything amiss, they can help out. This gives you the luxury of getting your Kindle fixed while you’re at home instead of sending it back to Amazon and waiting for its return.
Verdict
Overall, battery life on the Kindle and Fire is extremely impressive. When compared to a laptop or cell phone, you can expect far longer before scrabbling for the charger.
Think about some of the power-saving tips above, keep your expectations reasonable and you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
Come back soon and thanks for stopping by.
Hmmm- the Oasis battery is ‘supposed’ (by Kindle) to last for months even when used ‘often’ – how often is often? How long would it last if I tried to use it continuously on a 24-hour flight?
>let the battery run completely down and then plugging theKindle into the charger and leaving it to charge to 100%
I’m an electrical engineer, and this is absolutely horrible advice. Any time you drain a Lithium Ion battery below 20% you cause internal microdamage to its structure (and shorten its life). Recent research shows a Li-Ion battery likes to spend its life hovering around 70%… that’s where you will get the maximum lifespan.
my kindle fire 8 stopped working completely two days ago and i don’t know what happened it was fully charged but now it doesn’t even recgonise being plugged into anything
My only experiance with a kindle is that a fully charged battery lasts a sensible and nicely long length of time, but the battery has a rather small life in terms of charge/discharge cycles. Yes my kindle is 6 years, old. But during those 6 years will have been charged/discharged under 300 times.
People are NOT asking about how long a battery charge lasts – they’re asking how long does the battery last before it needs to be replaced! There is a difference you know
My Kindle Fire 10 HD battery died after 5 years. I’m not sure if this is the typical timeframes before having to get a battery replacement.
Mine died after almost 3 years! Yes I read ever night and often get my email in the evening but the only app I use is solitaire!
How can you charge the battery on the kindle fire 3rd
Just wanted to mention–I still have no idea how long the battery “charge” lasts (yes, that’s what I was looking up, not how long a battery lasts) — because I have a kindle, 7th gen. It’s not a fire, an oasis,a paperwhite, or any other of those more expensive, novelty thingies — it’s just a simple kindle, least expensive on amazon, what I wanted. So I still don’t know because I don’t see “kindle” simplicity-style listed — just all these extra types with the extra features.
So — how long does a kindle battery “charge” last?