How To Prolong The Life of Lithium-Ion Batteries Follow these tips to prolong the life of your lithium-ion batteries: For brand new batteries, it is important to charge them completely before you use the cell phone, laptop, or other electronic. This “teaches” the battery the extent of the charge. To prolong the life of a lithium-ion battery that sees a lot of use, like a laptop or cell phone, it’s better to charge it often for short periods of time (one to two hours) instead of charging it from a near dead state each time. While short charges are best, it is important to let the battery drain completely and then fully charge around once a month. This will help maintain good battery health. It’s very detrimental to a lithium-ion battery if you use the device while it’s charging. This makes the battery overheat, which lowers a li-ion battery’s lifespan. If possible, use a charger with a lower voltage rating. While this will charge more slowly, it will charge at a lower temperature, preserving the battery. View our Free Presentation to learn how to bring old batteries back to life again