Do unused new cell phones degrade over time?

[George Tyndall]

In a previous post, we discussed the concept that motherboards and some of the other components of computers that have never been used will deteriorate over time; therefore, it may not make sense to have "backups" of favorite hardware, even if kept under ideal storage conditions in their original shipping containers.

My questions are:

1) Is that also true for cellular phones, even if in the original container and even if used only once to ascertain that it is fully functional?

2) What is the shelf life of the phone's removable battery, if it has never been activated (used)?

[TreeTopsRanch]

I have been using the same Trak Motorola phone with same battery for 8 years. No degradation in service. Can't answer the question on shelf life but I'm willing to bet it's a long time.

[sidd finch]

Electromigration is the transport of material caused by the gradual movement of the ions in a conductor due to the momentum transfer between conducting electrons and diffusing metal atoms. The effect is important in applications where high direct current densities are used, such as in microelectronics and related structures. As the structure size in electronics such as integrated circuits (ICs) decreases, the practical significance of this effect increases.

At the end of the 1960s J. R. Black developed an empirical model to estimate the MTTF (mean time to failure) of a wire, taking electromigration into consideration. Since then, the formula has gained popularity in the semiconductor industry. :[3][5]

\text{MTTF} =( A /(J^{n}) )e^{\frac{E_a}{k T}}

Here A is a constant based on the cross-sectional area of the interconnect, J is the current density, E_a is the activation energy (e.g. 0.7 eV for grain boundary diffusion in aluminum), k is the Boltzmann's constant, T is the temperature in Kelvin and n a scaling factor (usually set to 2 according to Black).[3] The temperature of the conductor appears in the exponent, i.e. it strongly affects the MTTF of the interconnect. For an interconnect to remain reliable as the temperature rises, the maximum tolerable current density of the conductor must necessarily decrease. However, as interconnect technology advances at the nanometer scale, the validity of Black's equation becomes increasingly questionable.

Sidd

[Bob]

I haven't seen any figures on the life expectancy of mobile phone hardware. Most people want to replace them relatively frequently to take advantage of new features and styling. I would suspect that storage wouldn't be too much of a problem as long as you're not planning on storing them away for very many years. The most age related failure prone components are the capacitors and mobile phones use more stable solid state components that don't dry out or leak and tolerate heat better. But, long term you're going to have problems getting firmware and software updates. Even if you can, today's phone may not have the oomph to be able to run tomorrow's apps.

Mobile phone batteries, on the other hand, are not going to store well. Most phones are using Lithium Ion batteries now. Lithium Ion batteries are expected to last about 3 years in daily use. If stored unused, they will deteriorate. All batteries will self discharge over time. If allowed to discharge completely, a Lithium Ion battery will be permanently ruined. Even if not allowed to discharge to the level that damage is done, the capacity will be permanently reduced by chemical changes within the cell. A Lithium Ion cell stored at 100% charge at room temperature will permanently lose about 20% of its capacity in about a year. That can be reduced by storage at a cooler temperature (but don't freeze them!) and by storing them with about a 40% charge.

[Ron Hunter]

Bob, is there anything you don't know???

[Peru]

Bob, is there anything you don't know???

He doesn't know the answer to that question.

[George Tyndall]

Bob, is there anything you don't know???

He doesn't know the answer to that question.

He knows the answer, but he is too modest to reply -- if he does not know the answer immediately, then he knows where to find the answer quickly.

[George Tyndall]

Mobile phone batteries, on the other hand, are not going to store well.

I've had no problem purchasing batteries, for $5, that arrive with the correct 40% charge for my 11-year-old Nokia 6820; problem is, it will not function well with the new 4GLTE cell tower that ATT recently put up nearby.

So, I was sent at no cost a new in the box, LG Pro G 4GLTE unit that has a pre-Kit Kat, pre-Lollipop operating system, and it does everything that I need, and more, from a smartphone; therefore, I have no need or intention ever to "upgrade" it.

Extra batteries are currently readily available for $7.

The reason for the inquiry is that, if ever I have the funds I'd like to purchase a backup unit to have available if ever the current one fails or is mishandled.

Thanks once again for the detailed reply.

Sidd, thank you, too.