Bought broken batteries for Librem 5

[Quarnero]

@Lvovich

Are all these batteries defective?

As I recall defective battery would not emit constant RED light (when inserted into Librem 5). Therefore I’m almost sure that those are not defective batteries.

Above just while I’ve noticed somehow (never had time to investigate, as usually just swap to power supply I know/relay upon) that some/many power supplies (full protocol ones) are not intended for the purpose of waking up “dead battery” (0%). Please find some other power supply (even regular 5V only above/around 1.5A will do and USB-A port on your PC/laptop might/should suffice as well (low power needed, yet constant …), as BC1.2 up to 0.9A might be just about what we are looking for) with less negotiating protocols (you actually need USB-DCP/BC1.2) involved and give that 3.088V battery some time, few hours. Best way, as already known here, to get this 3.088V battery recharge (from less than 0% shown on Librem 5) is to take out current (good) one (red LED blinking and 0% shown) and swap it with the 3.088V one (by getting constant red LED light).

I’d recommended experimenting with USB-A port (laptop) charging swapped battery at first place. After BPP-L503 batteries swapped, 3.088V one inserted please power off your Librem 5 and live this battery charging for several hours. I think (if no reliable power supply around) this method with USB-A port should be worth of trying, as first attempt (my quick idea here) to wake up those at 3.088V.

@Lvovich

Refund again?

Not yet (I have another idea too, but let us wake up somehow those in question here). And, please have a dialog with us, ask myself what I didn’t put well together here. Good luck.

EDIT: @Lvovich this is the post that you need to follow: Charging Librem 5 Batteries Outside of Phone.

[Quarnero]

@Lvovich

What’s happening?

Now I recall:

@Quarnero

available from here: https://www.sbsmobile.com/ita/en/fast-charge/620-pocket-power-bank-8000-mah-lcd-8018417262241.html.

on what was written on the originally sealed package. It was year of 2018. I recall that even Anker PowerPort Atom PD 1 (probably to its built-in controller related) was not able to initiate charging of this old stock power bank. And I don’t mind on telling you which power supply did the job of waking up quite discharged power bank batteries, but this would not lead to solution on your own, not yet. Hope this description here helps anyway to understand what I suggested within my above post. With my main hope that actually Librem 5 will do the miracle with its charging chip and recover your over discharged batteries by itself (through your work around initiative).

For example/orientation article: “Just because the cell recovers voltage, do not make it advisable to discharge below the limits while current is on.”

[Lvovich]

@Quarnero

As I recall defective battery would not emit constant RED light (when inserted into Librem 5). Therefore I’m almost sure that those are not defective batteries.

My batteries in Librem 5 do nothing. No any light. No power button reaction.

But my batteries in Librem 5 with connected USB power always show 91%, RED light and nothing changed few hours. As soon as I disconnect the cable phone instantly turns off.

[Lvovich]

@Quarnero

I’d recommended experimenting with USB-A port (laptop) charging swapped battery at first place. After BPP-L503 batteries swapped, 3.088V one inserted please power off your Librem 5 and live this battery charging for several hours. I think (if no reliable power supply around) this method with USB-A port should be worth of trying, as first attempt (my quick idea here) to wake up those at 3.088V.

I already do this (trying to charge battery by L5 in poweroff mode about 3 hours) and nothing changed.
Then I gave my FIRST battery with 3.088V to amateur specialist (He is engaged in repairing laptops and electric scooter). He tried to recovery battery by external charger and say me that controller in battery is broken and battery cant be fixed. Battery always drop current to 0A at any charging voltage.

Now I receive from seller another one battery with same problems.

[Lvovich]

@Quarnero

Best way, as already known here, to get this 3.088V battery recharge (from less than 0% shown on Librem 5) is to take out current (good) one (red LED blinking and 0% shown) and swap it with the 3.088V one (by getting constant red LED light).

Librem 5 with connected USB cable always show me 91% (not 0%) and second battery show me the same 91%.

I still have original battery from Purism and L5 with this battery working well.

Also I noticed one thing:

• When L5 charge original battery - RED light absolutely constant red at any percent of charging.
• But when L5 trying to charge FIRST or SECOND new batteries - RED light constant red but with very-very fast flickering (about 20-50 Hz)

[Gavaudan]

Sounds like another bad battery to me. Can you refund it and get another one from someone else?

[amosbatto]

@Lvovich

I bought FIRST battery BPP-L503 (4500mAh) for Librem 5 from china.

Can you give a link to the seller, so others will know which sellers to avoid?

[irvinewade]

@Lvovich

I trying to buy additional battery with Librem 5 but Purism say me that additional battery cant be sended not inside phone outside USA.

Remove the only working battery from the Librem 5, send the Librem 5 to Purism and get Purism to send it back with a battery inside it.

This is only half serious but for the amount of stuffing around you have already had with alternative sources of batteries that may or may not be compatible and which don’t work … you might already have your phone back from Purism.

It may help to post photos here of any batteries that you receive from alternative sources and which don’t work.

[Quarnero]

@Lvovich

• But when L5 trying to charge FIRST or SECOND new batteries - RED light constant red but with very-very fast flickering (about 20-50 Hz)

Now you mentioned/wrote here what I hoped that it is not the case with those batteries. This flicker means (to me) that those 3.088V batteries are definitively not usable ones (I still have of one those to be recycled) with the Librem 5 (not prepared/checked to be used there). In addition, here is what I did: I payed for one additional battery and wrote to the seller (but I cannot provide this link as not reachable at this moment, not for me) to send to me two batteries together and both of those received were very fine working ones (no flicker from the moment I received them).

[Quarnero]

@amosbatto

Can you give a link to the seller, so others will know which sellers to avoid?

IMO, this will not help (as I saw many eBay offers). I think that is more about defective stock (that needs to be rechecked before putting any of those batteries into the package toward customer). Universal battery charger should serve the purpose … @Lvovich needs to tell them to proof things before sending BPP-L503 battery out. This shop (hopefully Aliexpress one) needs to be asked politely to (re)test them (original ones) before sending those to you again (this is important).

[Lvovich]

@Quarnero

needs to tell them to proof things before sending BPP-L503 battery out

I don’t quite see how seller can verify battery for this defect without L5…
PS. I bought battery from ali

[Quarnero]

@Lvovich

verify battery for this defect

Having this dialog helps me to research further. That why I think now that BPP-L503 is protected battery with the lockout voltage at 3.088V (not to be discharged any further/below 3.088V). But it is to late for myself to think any further about this today. Anyway as related BPP-L503 batteries sleep now (being under rated voltage) we need to find the way to precharge those with a current of cca. 100mA (do not think that Librem 5 is capable of this, if flickering of red … doesn’t mean this, just do not know, but about to search (not tomorrow) for some external (low current) precharging device, if helps (might help).

[Lvovich]

I don’t have a voltmeter at home, so I cant monitor battery voltage status every time.
Today I tested battery voltages at my work by Flux multimeter (I measured voltage without load resistance):
Original battery = 3.9V
FIRST battery = 3.405V
SECOND battery = 3.283V

Trying again to charge FIRST battery by my L5. L5 still wont boot with FIRST battery and show 91% on charging.

The FIRST battery had voltage 3.088V at first day when I got it from parcel and trying to charge first time. Apparently my attempts to charge the battery increase its voltage but battery still loose voltage at load

[Quarnero]

@Lvovich

FIRST battery = 3.405V
SECOND battery = 3.283V

Here is my short and final judgment: with those two defect batteries you’ll never reach/get or be able to measure 4.20V. Which actually means you’ll never be able to use them with … nothing. Very same behavior with my defect battery, it will never reach higher voltage than approximately 3.40V (not usable today and neither was usable from the very first day I received it, yet its replacement battery worked out-of-the-box, as received from the very same supplier).

[Lvovich]

thanks, I see the same.
I also wanted to test my batteries how voltage lowering with resistor but I am very busy at work and have no time for this.

[dos]

I don’t think anyone else than Purism sells officially sanctioned Librem 5 batteries at this moment. If you buy it from some other source, I guess you may even end up with a rejected unit that failed QA process which someone took out from the factory in China to sell for easy buck.

[Lvovich]

The seller immediately returned all money without returning battery and without any questions.
Perhaps he himself did not expect that there would be a repeat defect.
If seller had better checked the goods before sending, I would be lucky as Quarnero with working battery.

[Hristo]

I found this video on the topic of buying batteries from untrusted sources:
Its all a Scam! - Before Replacing Your Phone Battery Watch This - Scams Explained - YouTube

[Quarnero]

@Hristo, in addition to the Purism source, I know of at least one source that works well for me, as already published this original product photo here. And sure that I can do some comparison (measure real mAh capacity by performing full charge/discharge cycle and/or quickly measure used battery internal resistance that relates to the “age” of any particular battery) tests but currently no time for such on my own (yet confirming that I can rely firmly on this 4400mAh battery). Further info about related 1ICP10/57/53 battery you will get here: subtel GmbH - Mainzer Str. 3 - 10247 Berlin - Deutschland. And link toward this (another) Librem 5 related (QA for certain) battery is here (+ https://www.ebay.de/itm/195237105943), distinguished original product of its own (product that isn’t fake, while includes ★ 3-Year Guarantee ★, and not even having any other markings that might lead you wrongly).

[Quarnero]

As my Librem 5 discharges at rate of 0.21A (screen off, as with screen on consumes cca. 0.53A, and no-WiFi on due to currently having its related HKS enabled) yesterday afternoon I’ve chosen to discharge externally connected BPP-L503 battery with 0.40A (charging is therefore performed at 0.70A rate). Actual OPUS chargers operation mode is called DISCHARGE REFRESH:

OPUS BT-C100, within discharge refresh mode, discharges any connected 1S battery three times and actually the second discharge measurement (after around 09:30 hours constant 0.40A “downhill walk”, external one as shown here, from 4.05V to 2.780V, although not saved with some photo, but luckily with my eyes) of, from my side independently purchased (without QC PASS marking), here used non-originally delivered BPP-L503 shows its full capacity measured at 3856mAh. Third full capacity measurement (under discharge refresh) of the currently connected battery will not vary much, yet and if so I’ll update this post afterwards. Here are my very first capacity measurement related method (pictures actually) with my dummy (while its charging motherboard connections disabled) battery holder (through differently used/enabled +/− pins):

@Hristo

buying batteries from untrusted sources

Now, after above test, I do consider my here related purchase as justified (although not quite ) while: “Another model is to sort batteries into functional and non-functional groups and give those with capacities of 80 percent or more a second life.”

@Quarnero

measure real mAh capacity by performing full charge/discharge cycle

Next weekend (or so) I might “feed” my OPUS BT-C100 related setup with the CELLONIC battery (my prior post related), perform another (in public) discharge refresh mAh measurement, anyone interested?

P.S. Never noticed any overheating issues with the above battery, when in use within my Librem 5 Linux smartphone. And none touch measurable heat produced today (as well) on this externally connected battery.