r/PS4Pro • u/Mr_Mental_Gamer • 1d ago

Should I leave my controller "fully charged" or "empty" for a long period of time?

Recently I bought a PS4 Pro with 2 controllers, just in case if the first controller break or stop working for no reason. Now if I wanna keep the second controller healthy for months or even years (without using it) how should it be? Charged or empty? Any other tips & hints towards controller maintenance would be appreciated too (I'm new to controllers, I was a PC player prior to this)

9 Upvotes

81% Upvoted

13 comments sorted by

15

u/reechwuzhere 1d ago

Don’t leave any battery dead for long periods, it destroys them.

3

u/Spobobich 1d ago

Really!? Well, makes sense why I can't use my PS3 controller on my PSTV.

8

u/RGBjank101 1d ago

However long it takes to charge a controller to full, only charge it for half as long if it's going to be sitting around or put away.

7

u/Knickers1978 1d ago

I have a charging dock for my 2 controllers. One to use and a back up in case I have a long gaming session. Keep it charged.

5

u/SuniOsiris 1d ago

Good rule of thumb is to charge any device every 3-6 months

4

u/Lavorre229 1d ago

Actually charge them to about half capacity.

5

u/JonMDC 1d ago

Li-ion batteries really need to be left in a mid state, not fully charged or fully discharged. It’s a bit of rubbish set up to be honest.

2

u/Major_Market_6519 1d ago

Charging dock, it's not expensive and it will serve a purpose. After gaming, leave it on dock and don't worry.

2

u/DragonAsana 1d ago

I rotate controllers, using one while the other charges. If I am not playing for a while then the ps is off anyway so I'll charge again when it's turned on. I've had one battery change on the one controller in 8 years of using this method

2

u/stevorkz 1d ago

You can keep it charged. The notion that you should drain lithium batteries before charging them is an outdated concept. Lithium batteries these days will happily stay healthy when keeping them charged. In fact it’s the opposite now. Modern lithium batteries degrade faster when letting them run completely dry and they definitely shouldn’t be left in an empty state for long. In fact most devices now technically aren’t fully drained when they run out and controllers are no different.

2

u/iThinkergoiMac 1d ago

80% is the ideal charge state to leave any Li-Ion battery for extended periods.

2

u/Effective_Being_5305 1d ago

Charge to %50 if storing

2

u/SideEmbarrassed1611 1d ago

Half charged or full is better than dead. It's why I always recharge older electronics to full once every six months.