In today’s digital age, our lives revolve around our smartphones. Yet, how often do we consider what is a normal temperature for our Android phones and how do we check it? Overlooking this seemingly insignificant detail could spell disaster for your beloved device and even your personal safety.
Prolonged heat in your phone leads to internal damage, data corruption, or in extreme cases physical burns. Conversely, extreme cold, can cause unexpected malfunctions or sudden shutdowns. Both situations can disrupt important tasks, resulting in potential losses or unforeseen costs.
Recognizing the importance of understanding the ideal temperature ranges for different phone activities, such as idling, charging, or heavy usage, can make all the difference. Moreover, learning how to check phone temperature is crucial for every smartphone user, ensuring you’re always aware of your device’s health.
This article will guide you through everything you need to know about Android phone temperatures. So, whether you’re a tech enthusiast or just someone who wants to extend the life of their phone, let’s dive in to become an informed and proactive user.
What Are Normal Temperatures for Most Android Phones? (3 Scenarios)
Normal temperature is a bit of a vague term.
Really, the normal or safe temperatures are going to depend on what you’re doing and which specific Android phone you have.Â
Every manufacturer sets the safe operating temperatures for their phones, and even among the same manufacturer, those numbers change with each model.
So, let me give you a couple of ideas to think about.
Then, I’ll take you through some specific scenarios and the temperatures you should expect to see with your Android.
First is the idea of the ambient temperature.
Think of it this way.
If your phone is turned off, how hot or cold will it be?
It’ll be the same temperature as the room it’s in, right?
This is what ambient temperature is describing.
Wherever you are, the air has a temperature, and that’s the ambient temperature.
It’s also how hot you would expect your phone to be.
So, one normal temperature for an Android phone is room temperature, which is usually around 72 °F (22 °C).
On the other hand, using a phone can make it warm. So, how hot should a phone get?Â
As I said before, that depends on the model.
But, I can give you a ballpark average.
For most phones, the safe operating temperatures will be between 32 and 95 °F (0 and 35 °C).
Normal temperatures are anywhere between those numbers.
That said, we can look at three specific ways you might use your phone and see what temperatures make sense.
For that, I’m going to break this into sections covering a phone at idle, a phone that is charging, and a phone that is under heavy use.
#1 Idle Temperature of Android Phones
An idle phone is one that is turned on but that you aren’t actively using.
That might make you think that an idle phone isn’t doing anything, but that’s not exactly the case.
Idle phones actually carry out a number of operations, and because of that, they do generate some of their own heat in this state.
Some of the common actions of an idle phone include verifying connection to the cellular network, checking for messages, downloading messages from servers, and uploading information to servers.
The good news is that modern phones are designed to handle all of this very efficiently.
So while these actions do generate heat and drain your battery a little, they aren’t exactly taxing the phone.
With all of that in mind, a typical android phone will idle close to the current ambient temperature.
So if you have your phone in your bedroom, while it’s idling, it will be the same temperature as your bedroom
But I also said that the phone does generate some heat when at idle.
Usually, that heat dissipates very quickly, so the phone will rarely be more than a couple of degrees warmer than the room it is in.
#2 Android Temperatures While Charging
A charging phone is going to be close to the ambient temperature of the room it is in, but charging will add a few degrees (up to 41 °F / 5 °C) to the phone’s temperature. If the battery gets really hot, and has difficulty charging there may be other problems worth investigating.
Generally speaking, if the room is 70 °F (21 °C), then a charging phone will usually be 71 to 75 °F (up to 24 °C).Â
Let’s talk about why.
For starters, a charging phone is at idle, so it’s generating a little bit of heat as it always does.
This accounts for a small part of the temperature differences I just listed.
More than that, charging the phone generates heat.
There are really three different kinds of charging to consider.
With standard charging, electricity passes through a cable in order to charge your battery.
This creates heat, but for a healthy battery, this creates the least amount of heat of the three charging options we’re discussing right now.
The next option is fast charging.
In order to charge batteries faster, this method uses more electric power.
Since more power is passing through the battery in a shorter amount of time, fast charging usually generates more heat.
A faster charge is going to push your Android phone’s temperature up to the higher parts of this range.
The third option is wireless charging.
With this, magnets are used to induce a current in the battery and charge it.
This process also generates heat, and in a lot of cases, wireless charging defaults to fast charging.
If so, wireless charging will run the phone hotter than standard charging.
Still, unless there is something significantly wrong with the battery, none of these methods will make the phone too hot. And in that case you should check the battery and the phone temperature, which we will touch on later.
They might make the battery considerably warmer than the temperatures I listed, but the phone’s overall internal temperature will usually stay low.
#3 During Heavy Use
Using your Android phone a lot is what really generates the most heat and an increase in temperature.Â
When the phone carries out operations, a lot of electricity has to move through circuits to make everything work.
So, the harder your phone works, the hotter it gets.
Operations that work the phone hardest are ones that involve a lot of video (like watching ultra-high definition videos or playing games) and searching for signals to connect to the wireless carrier.
These are also both activities that drain the phone’s battery the fastest, and that’s an easy way to think about heat.
If the things you do with your phone drain the battery fast, then they produce a lot of heat too.
In terms of numbers, the peak temperatures you should see when your Android phone gets hot are between 95 and 113 °F (35 and 45 °C).Â
Coincidentally, these are also the upper limits of safe operating temperatures for a phone.
Not all Androids are rated to run all the way up to 113 °F (45 °C), but some manufacturers still classify that as a safe temperature.
Anything above that is arguably bad for the phone.
How to Check Phone Temperatures
Checking the temperature of your Android phone is a straightforward process, and there are multiple ways to do it. Here’s a concise guide:
- Built-in Settings:
- Most modern Android phones have a ‘Battery’ option in the ‘Settings’ menu.
- Navigate to ‘Settings’ > ‘Battery.’
- Some devices display the current temperature directly in this section. If yours doesn’t, tapping on ‘Battery Health’ or a similar option might provide this detail.
- Third-party Apps:
- There are several trusted apps available on the Play Store designed to monitor your phone’s hardware statistics, including temperature.
- Some popular options include ‘CPU-Z,’ ‘GSam Battery Monitor,’ and ‘AIDA64.’
- After downloading and installing your chosen app, open it, and navigate to the relevant section (often labeled ‘Thermal’ or ‘Temperature’) to view your phone’s current temperature.
- Diagnostics Mode:
- Some phones come with a built-in diagnostics mode.
- Dial a specific code (which varies by manufacturer and model) in your phone app. For example, for some devices, dialing
*#*#4636#*#*will open the testing menu. - Once in this menu, navigate to the ‘Battery Information’ or similar section to see the temperature.
It’s important to note that while the temperature is usually displayed in Celsius, you can easily convert it to Fahrenheit if needed. Keeping an eye on the “normal temperature of Android phones” ensures you’re well-informed and can take necessary actions if the temperature strays too high or too low.
Conclusion
To ensure the longevity and optimal performance of your Android phone, it’s essential to maintain its temperature within the recommended range.
Most Android devices operate safely between 32 and 95 °F (0 and 35 °C).
Always be aware that extremes in temperature can be harmful to your device and may even impact your user experience.
In simple terms, if your phone feels too hot or too cold to the touch, it’s a clear sign that it’s straying from its comfort zone.
Regularly monitoring and understanding your device’s temperature can save you from potential issues down the road. Stay informed and keep your phone performing at its best!