Four Reasons Why Your Tablet or Smartphone Feels Hot

 

Tablet computers and smartphones have changed the
way we interact with each other and have become indispensable to many people.

Therefore, a problem with the performance of the tablet or smartphone can affect us more than we can imagine.

In this series of caring for your devices, we will discuss why your tablet or smartphone feels so hot and what to do about it.

Generally, electronic devices use processors which generate heat. If you feel  the back of your TV, DVD, laptop etc, you are bound to feel some level of heat. Therefore, a little heat is to be expected you’re your tablet computer or smartphone.

However, if the heat feels higher than usual or longer than usual, the following 4 reasons could explain the reason for the excessive heat and what to do about it.

 
1.      Poor Signals

Here in Africa, we are currently developing a lot of our infrastructure including telecom infrastructure. As a result, the telecom signals tend to have various strength levels particularly when you move from one location to another. As a direct consequence, our tablets and smartphones will constantly keep searching for signals thereby drawing on the battery power and this may cause your device to heat up.

Unfortunately, whilst there isn’t much you can do about the poor signals. You may have to switch your phone off to allow it to cool down or disable mobile networks for a short period.

 

2.     Damaged or Improper Charger

Damaged chargers typically channel the wrong voltage to your phone’s battery, causing the excess electrical energy to transform into heat.

It should also be noted that older devices use nickel-based batteries, while newer devices (such as the Bamboo range of devices) use lithium-ion batteries, popularly referred to as Li-ion batteries. Using a charger that is not rated for your battery type can cause your device to heat up.

Generally, it is recommended that you use the chargers provided by the manufacturer of your device or check the battery ratings. In Africa, chargers are sometimes damaged by fluctuations in current ie low voltage or high voltage caused by the electricity companies or by generators. When not in use, please unplug your chargers.

 

3.     Overactive Processors

As stated in the introduction to this article, your tablet computer and smartphone operates using processors that generate some level of heat. The more the processors are used, the hotter the device feels. These processors can get hot when searching for signals or when there are applications running in the background.

You may have used some applications and not shut them off or there may be updates running in the background. An accumulation of these applications running in the background may cause your device to heat up. We recommend checking to see if there are any apps running in the background. On Bamboo devices, you can click on ‘Settings’ then click on ‘Battery’.

If you are using your device for an extended period of time, or if you are using it for process-heavy applications as you will find in most gaming applications, your device may heat up more than usual.

 

4.  Poor ventilation

Most tablet computers and smartphones are designed to take heat from the processor and transfer it somewhere where it won’t damage sensitive internal components. Some devices such as the Bamboo range of phones or tablets are built in such a way that the casing acts as heat sinks where the excess heat is disbursed by normal air. circulation.

However, keeping your phone in your pocket or in any similarly closed location for an extended period prevents the air from cooling your device and leads to excessive heat.

In addition, device accessories such as leather or rubber casings may limit normal air from disbursing excess heat especially if there is a dust buildup..

We recommend that you take a look at the exhaust or intake holes on both your device and accessories on a periodic basis as dust buildup can result in severe overheating.

Allow your device to go ‘naked’ from time to time ie remove the external casing and allow your device to ‘breathe’.