When I visited the beach in Malaga last year, I forgot to bring a book. No problem, I figured, I’d browse on my phone to entertain myself. I spread out my towel, applied sunscreen, and opened my email, but before long, a notice appeared saying my phone was overheating.
I flopped over onto my stomach to shade the phone with my face, but a couple minutes later, a second overheating notice appeared, and the phone turned off. So much for taking some pictures of the beach.
Now that I’ve learned my lesson and know how to keep my phone from getting overheated, I've put together these tips to prevent your phone from shutting down, too.
1. Remove the case
Most cases trap a phone’s heat rather than letting it dissipate into the air. While a phone’s outer metal or glass back helps release heat, a case gets in the way.
2. Turn off unused functions (and use low power mode)
Turn off functions and features you aren’t using, close apps, and put the phone on low power mode. If your phone is using less energy, it will be less likely to overheat.
3. Avoid fast charging
Don’t fast-charge your phone when it’s at risk of overheating. Sending high-voltage electricity into an already warm battery accelerates heating and so can exacerbate the problem.
4. Keep it in the shade
Keep your phone in the shade. Keeping your phone out of direct sunlight will help maintain a lower temperature and prevent overheating.
There are also some important things you shouldn’t do to cool your phone, or you’ll risk damaging it.
How to safely cool it down
It might sound ridiculous to say "don't put your phone in the freezer," but when a device shuts down in the blazing sun, panic takes over, and reaching for an ice pack suddenly feels like a stroke of genius.
Unfortunately, rushing to freeze your hot phone does far more damage than the heat ever could.
Tossing your phone into the fridge or freezer triggers rapid temperature drops that force moisture to condense inside the sealed device, causing severe water damage, battery failure, or a cracked screen.
Similarly, resting your phone directly on an ice pack thermal-shocks the lithium-ion battery, which can permanently ruin its capacity or cause the battery to swell.
Instead of subjecting your phone to extreme cold, let steady airflow do the heavy lifting. The best fix is simply placing your phone on a flat, hard surface in front of a fan or on a cooling pad. Moving air draws heat away from the body quickly and safely, without the risk of internal moisture.
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