Power Supply

Josh:
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Back when I used an iPhone, I needed to replace the battery, so I ordered a replacement and took

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it to work with me. One of my colleagues was going to bring in his toolkit he used to repair phones.

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It was my first time replacing a battery, so I was a bit nervous. I started by prying the case apart,

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which is never fun, but things seemed to be going smoothly. When I got the front screen lifted up

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and disconnected, I was presented with the battery. It was attached with adhesive strips on the back

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to the phone case. There were tabs underneath the battery that you could pull that would hopefully

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release the adhesive strips and make the battery removal process quick and easy. Unfortunately,

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this was not the case. The tabs tore and I had no way to access the adhesive underneath,

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so instead, I started to gently pry it up with a plastic tool. It was going well and it seemed

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to be working, but as I was prying,

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I felt a snap. Something inside the battery had broken. Moments later, the battery started to

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inflate. This was not good. I was sitting at my desk, replacing a battery on my lunch break.

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The battery kept inflating and kept getting hotter and hotter. There was now a smell coming

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from the battery, and my colleagues were starting to get concerned. So I quickly got the battery

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the rest of the way out of the phone and tossed it into my desk garbage can. Why I did this,

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I don't really know, but it's a poor choice. Thankfully, the battery reached its peak and did

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not explode or ignite. The chemical smell it made took a few hours to go away, but that was the worst

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of it. I took the battery home and safely disposed of it. Looking back, I can fully admit that this was

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dumb. What I've learned since are a few tips on battery replacement safety. The first, discharge

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the battery as much as possible. Second, have a button.

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bucket of sand nearby, if the battery starts to swell in smoke, bury it in the bucket. It can

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block oxygen and absorb heat, which is ideal if the battery ignites. And lastly, do it somewhere

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safe, not in the office of your employer. The piece of a computer that is necessary for all

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electronics to function on this episode of In the Shell. The wrong thing to do is just go out

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and buy a computer and then learn about it. You'll learn, but you'll learn a lot of things that maybe

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you didn't want to learn. A computer that you buy today will likely be obsolete six months from now

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and there's not a dang thing that you can do about it. My name is Josh and I'm able to keep this

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podcast independent and advertisement free because of support from listeners like you. If you are

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finding value in what I'm doing here, consider becoming a paid supporter at members.sideofburritos.com

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and as a thank you, members get earned.

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early access to new videos, ad-free versions of everything, bonus content, and access to a live

03:06
monthly Q&A. Thanks for considering. Now let's get back to the show. The primary job of a desktop PC

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power supply unit, PSU for short, is to convert AC power from your wall outlet into DC power

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that your computer's components can use. Without a PSU, your PC simply won't turn on.

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And without a quality PSU, your system could suffer. A high-quality PSU delivers stable,

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reliable power to every component, ensuring your PC runs smoothly under load. Conversely,

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a poor-quality or underpowered PSU can lead to system crashes, instability, or even permanent

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hardware damage. Most modern PSUs include protective circuits like overvoltage and short-circuit

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protection to shield your expensive components.

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from power surges or electrical faults. So investing in a decent PSU isn't just about

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getting enough power, it's about protecting your entire build. If you plan on upgrades or adding

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more devices later, a good PSU gives you the headroom and peace of mind to do so.

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When choosing a PSU, two key specs often mentioned are wattage and efficiency.

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Wattage is the total power the PSU can supply. Every PC component, CPU, GPU, drives, consume a

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certain number of watts. Add those up and that's roughly what your system needs. It's wise to choose

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a PSU with slightly higher wattage than your calculated total so it's not running at 100%

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all the time. If your components require 300 watts, you might opt for a 500 to 600 watt PSU

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to have breathing room for peak loads or future upgrades. This overhead helps ensure

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return.

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Stability, as PSUs perform best and most efficiently around 50-70% load.

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But not all PSUs are built equally.

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This is where the 80-plus certification comes in.

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An 80-plus certified PSU is guaranteed to be at least 80% efficient or better at typical loads,

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meaning less energy is wasted as heat.

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The program has tiers like bronze, silver, gold, platinum, and titanium.

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And higher precious metals mean higher efficiency.

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For example, 80-plus gold units are about 87% efficient at full load,

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while platinum hits around 90%,

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and titanium can reach an impressive 94% efficiency at 50% load.

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In practical terms, a higher efficiency PSU draws less power from the wall for the same output,

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runs cooler, and often has a longer lifespan.

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It won't make your PC faster, but it will waste less electricity and generate less heat

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inside your case.

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This brings us to modular vs. non-modular PSUs, a feature that's all about cable management

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and airflow.

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Non-modular PSUs have all their cables permanently attached.

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Every possible connector for the motherboard, CPU, GPU, and drives is dangling out whether

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you need it or not.

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This is fine budget-wise, but it can lead to a lot of unused cables cluttering up your

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case.

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Semi-modular PSUs strike a middle ground.

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The essential cables, like the one for the motherboard and CPU, are fixed, while extra cables for SATA

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drives or PCIe power can be plugged in as needed.

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This reduces clutter a bit, as you only attach the cables you'll use.

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Fully modular PSUs take it a step further.

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Every cable is detachable.

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It's seen too long距離 as procedure.

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The reason for the故 – justcin large is so helpful and whatakers can be added in the

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including main connectors. You only plug in the ones your build requires,

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which makes for the cleanest build and easiest cable routing. The inside of your PC case will

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be neater, improving airflow and making any future swaps or upgrades easier.

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Shifting from desktops to portable devices, let's talk about batteries. Specifically,

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the rechargeable batteries in our laptops, tablets, and phones. While lithium batteries

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are robust and low maintenance, they do age and lose capacity over time. However, you can slow

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that aging with a few best practices. The first is avoiding extreme levels, which means trying to

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keep the charge between 20 and 80% for day-to-day use. This puts less stress on the battery than

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going from 100% down to 0% every cycle. In fact, many modern phones, like a Google Pixel running

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Graphene OS and the laptops, have optimized charging.

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features that hold the battery around 80% if they know you'll be plugged in for a long time.

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Studies have shown that staying in the middle range can extend the battery's overall lifespan.

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Next, when it comes to batteries, heat is the enemy. If there's one thing that really hurts

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lithium-ion batteries, it's excessive heat. High temperatures accelerate the chemical reactions

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that degrade battery cells. So avoid leaving your device in hot cars on summer days,

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and don't cover your laptop vents. Heat plus high charge, like a phone at 100% in a hot environment,

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is a particularly harmful combination for battery longevity. And lastly, if you are storing a device

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or battery long-term, weeks or months of no use, first charge or discharge it to about 40-60%,

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and then keep it in a cool, dry place. Batteries self-discharge slowly over time,

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and you don't want it to drop to zero while in storage.

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nor do you want it sitting at 100% for months. But at the end of the day, your device is there

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to be used, so don't take this advice too seriously. Don't be a curator of your devices,

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just use them. Power and batteries might not be the most interesting tech topics,

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but they are absolutely foundational. A solid understanding of your desktop PSU,

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its wattage, efficiency, and features ensures you build a PC that's stable,

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safe, and ready for future upgrades. And knowing a bit about your laptop or phone battery

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can keep your devices running longer. In the Shell is written, researched, and recorded by me,

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the partially discharged podcaster. If you are listening in an app that lets you rate shows,

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please take a minute to rate this one. I would truly appreciate it.

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I wanted to tell a joke about electricity, but it didn't.

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didn't conduct well. That's it, take care, and I'll see you next time.