Maximizing Lithium battery life safely and inexpensively when charging portable devices

The portable devices, such as cell phones and digital cameras and MP3/MP4, continue to grow even with the global recession in full swing. Most of these portable devices are powered by Lithium batteries. These Lithium batteries will need to be charged anywhere between 1-7 days, on the regular basis. Seeing the opportunity, many manufactures have rushed to the scene with all type of chargers specifically designed for single-cell and multi-cell Lithium batteries. However, most of these chargers fall far short of charging the Lithium batteries correctly. Some would shorten the battery life by a factor of 3 to 5 times. Some would even pose safety concerns. The correct answers tend to be very elaborate and consequently very expensive. This tutorial will present a few common mistakes people make when designing chargers for Lithium batteries. In the end, a number of very inexpensive solutions, which are designed for various different applications, are presented.