Battery Charge Doesn't Last

 

My Nuvi 2350LMT doesn't hold a charge. I use an optional AC charge cable to charge it, leave the unit connected for 5 or 6 hours to get the job done, turn it off, then store it a closet where the temperatures are well within Garmin's acceptable range. Two weeks later I find the unit dead as a doornail.

The good news is that it works fine on trips when connected to the car using the vehicle power cable. Still, I'd like to plan trips at home using Garmin Road Trip or simply add a Favorite without having to charge the battery again.

I've emailed Garmin Support and will share what they say. Meanwhile, I'd like to know if anyone else was confronted by this problem and whether he or she solved it.

Thanks,
Bill

How long

How long have you had the 2350?

Bad Battery?

It's quite possible the battery is not holding a charge so after 2 weeks sitting it dies.
If weak enough some unit won't even boot.
Unfortunately Garmin does not warranty the batteries with there 1 year warranty.

I highly doubt the 2350 has a sleep mode so my first thought would have been the unit is not completely off and slowly draining the battery. One vendoe (Crutchfield) claims the 2350 has sleep mode but I don't think so.

As far as you wanting to plan road trips or add favorites you do have an option. Since the 2350 has a powered cradle you can purchase a 110v wall charger. Just mount the Nuvi onto the cradle and plug the wall charger into the cradle. You can fiddle to your hearts content.

Below are two links from Amazon, the first is for the part # your Nuvi calls for its.s $20.02.
The second will work on your Nuvi, it's an international one and the one I use on my Nuvi 2460.
That one is only $13.91 and works fine.

Garmin 010-11478-02 AC Charger U.S $20.02
http://www.amazon.com/Garmin-010-11478-02-AC-Charger-U-S/dp/...

Garmin Intl Adapter $13.91
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002OL2MUO/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UT...

Also, should you decide to change your battery, here is a link with instructions.

Battery Replacement Video
http://www.newpower99.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=GAR...

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Nuvi 2460LMT 2 Units

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Every battery cycle slightly decreases the life of the (Lithium) battery. As the battery life decreases, the time that the charge lasts decreases too.

It sounds like your battery just needs replacing, they are available relatively cheaply. If it needs replacing at less than year, I would definitely contact Garmin.

Re: How Long

jgermann.

I think I got it in July of last year.

Re: Bad Battery

muelll9k
.
My unit doesn't boot, but I am using Garmin's AC charger to charge the battery. Thanks for the links for changing the battery, if it comes to that.

It's charging right now and I'll be sure to keep that up for 6 hours so I'll know I did everything recommended.

Bill

Dead Battery?

Once charged does it boot?
If it does, it sure sounds like the battery needs replacement. Maybe try to leave it charging overnight

It's good you have the genuine Garmins AC charger. Many of the generic chargers you can buy will put the unit in computer mode, in this mode you cannot do anything other than charge the battery.

Using the method I described by connecting it to your power cradle you should get your normal screen but without the battery life displayed.

You can search on Ebay for cheaper batteries but you will need the tools along with it. Look for one that includes tools. It's a simple fix when you have the proper tools (torx head screw driver & plastic pry tool).

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Nuvi 2460LMT 2 Units

AC to DC adapter

You can buy a small adapter which plugs into an outlet and delivers 12 volt. Just plug your GPS car cord into it.

On eBay for $ 2.99 and free shipping.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/LED-Indicator-VR3-12-Volt-110-Watt-C...

Also on eBay a battery for the 2350 for $ 13.00

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Battery-for-Garmin-Nuvi-2300-2340-23...

Watch the video and I am sure you will find something you can adapt as a tool from somewhere.

--
Nuvi 2797LMT, DriveSmart 50 LMT-HD, Using Windows 10. DashCam A108C with GPS.

Replace Battery

I would try replacing the battery it is very cheap way to go. I replaceed the one in my 660 overy year ago and I can let it set for month and and it will still have a full charge.. nd it it not hard to do yourself. Good Luck

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johnm405 660 & MSS&T

I speak from my own

I speak from my own experience but I have never owned a Garmin that lasted more than 2 hours, so I have it plugged in all the time.

1.5 hours

gadget_man wrote:

I speak from my own experience but I have never owned a Garmin that lasted more than 2 hours, so I have it plugged in all the time.

My 40 lasts about 1.5 hours with normal usage on a trip.

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NUVI40 Kingsport TN

Battery bad?

Bill McQ wrote:

My Nuvi 2350LMT doesn't hold a charge. I use an optional AC charge cable to charge it, leave the unit connected for 5 or 6 hours to get the job done, turn it off, then store it a closet where the temperatures are well within Garmin's acceptable range. Two weeks later I find the unit dead as a doornail.

If you charge the battery, disconnect the charger and turn the unit on, how long does the charge last? Two to three hours is about average.

After sitting in the closet for two weeks, does it try to boot?

If your AC charger is the Garmin unit then you should be able to use the GPS while powered by the charger. If it is an after-market charger then you are probably out of luck, it will go into computer mode. There are hacks that will allow you to use it but they don't always work.

Replacing the battery isn't hard. The most difficult task is to open the case without destroying it. I've replaced the one in my 750, took me about half an hour total. There are several venders on eBay and Amazon who will sell you a battery including the tools you need to crack open the case for $20 or less.

All of my previous units I

All of my previous units I had before the 3490 had removeable batteries and that is one reason I really dislike when Garmin made the batteries non-removeable, I know you can take it apart, but it was so much easier when a unit got hung up, you just pulled the battery similary to a smart phone, wait a few seconds and the unit would reboot and you be on your way, never did understand why they make these units with non removeable batteries..

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NickJr Nuvi 3597LMT

Planned obsolescence

nickjr wrote:

...never did understand why they make these units with non removeable batteries..

How many users don't bother to replace the battery when it dies and just discard the old unit and buy a new one? I bet the percentage is pretty high.

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Alan - Android Auto, DriveLuxe 51LMT-S, DriveLuxe 50LMTHD, Nuvi 3597LMTHD, Oregon 550T, Nuvi 855, Nuvi 755T, Lowrance Endura Sierra, Bosch Nyon

avoid storing in hot areas

Storing your garmin in a hot car will shorten the life of your Lithium Ion battery. Its always advisable to not leave things such as cell phones, ipods, laptops and GSP units in a hot parked vehicle.

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Are we there yet?

Dead Battery?

muell9k.

The unit boots after I charge its battery. My AC charger is actually a HQRP Replacement AC Wall Charger Adapter for Garmin Nuvi 255W 205W 260W 265WT GPS Device that I bought in May 2009 for a 265WT that our current unit replaced. I thought it was made by Garmin, but a search of my Amazon.com order history proved me wrong.

When using this AC charger I get a normal screen with the the icon of a lightning bolt over the battery life display. I charged it from 12 PM to 6 AM the next day and the lightning bolt displayed throughout that period.

I intend to check the unit's battery charge every day until Saturday when we'll be driving up to ID from here (CO). So far the charge seems to be holding.

May have to go back into trouble shooting mode when we get back, though. There isn't enough time to see if the charge hold after two weeks of inactivity.

self-discharge v little vampires...

Executive summary:

If your battery doesn't hold a charge over 2 or 3 days, replace it. If it doesn't hold a charge over 10-14 days or more, so what.

Discussion:

Modern lithium cells such as those used in Garmin products have a very low self-discharge rate. In ancient times (5 years ago or so), NiCd cells were (and still are) notorious for self-discharge, going from fully charged to discharged under no outside load over a period of days to weeks.

The flip-side of low self-discharge is a device with no real off switch.

There's a micro in there that's watching, doing things, and that takes power.

Even if it's only updating the time-of day clock. Well, and checking the list of alarm entries for the alarm clock function. Oh, and checking periodically to see if someone has pressed the power switch. Oh, and checking external power to see if that has come up to take the unit back to running.

Unless very carefully designed, and measured, these tasks can add up to enough current to drain a battery over a period of a few weeks.

(As an aside, when replacing watch batteries, it's good to wear gloves, as a thin film of skin oil over the contacts of a watch battery can induce a leakage current greater than the operating current of the watch, resulting in a far shorter battery life.)

So don't worry if your battery doesn't last when your unit hasn't been powered up for two or three weeks. On the other hand, if it goes dead in a few days, I'd replace the battery. There are other threads that go into this, and it's a simple procedure.

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Nuvi 2460, 680, DATUM Tymserve 2100, Trimble Thunderbolt, Ham radio, Macintosh, Linux, Windows

Agreed

I agree with Kilo Six Romeo Tango Mike (K6RTM) forgive the phonetic humor.

I just spent time scouring the web looking for the quiescent current draw on your model Garmin. But could only find that it will provide power to the 'powered up' unit for 2.5 to 3.0 hours. Not knowing what the Amp Hour or Mili-amp hour rating of the battery is and what the current draw is with the unit off, it's hard to calculate what the discharge rate is, but as he stated. After 10 to 14 days who cares? Honestly, when it won't hold a charge for 2 to 5 days then get concerned.

Battery

I wish ALL of the Garmins had an easy user changable battery like my 885 has.

I always keep a couple,fully charged, spare batteries and it's an easy matter to open the battery compartment and drop in a fresh battery.

It's really handy when using the GPS in Pedestrian mode all day long.

8x5 battery charging

pratzert wrote:

I wish ALL of the Garmins had an easy user changable battery like my 885 has.

I always keep a couple,fully charged, spare batteries and it's an easy matter to open the battery compartment and drop in a fresh battery.

I don't mean to hijack this thread, but I am curious how you keep multiple 8x5 batterys charged. Do you have an external charger? It is kind of a pain to charge them in the unit.

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Alan - Android Auto, DriveLuxe 51LMT-S, DriveLuxe 50LMTHD, Nuvi 3597LMTHD, Oregon 550T, Nuvi 855, Nuvi 755T, Lowrance Endura Sierra, Bosch Nyon

Extra battery

I swapped the battery in my 295 for an old one that has been in the drawer for months. I was surprised that it booted up. It soon kicked back off. I do carry an extra battery when I ride on an excursion train and swap it before the return trip.
Yes I do have to charge it in the unit, but not a problem because I have a 12v outlet in the house.

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1490LMT 1450LMT 295w

Self-Discharge V Little Vampires

k6rtm,

I just had an email from Garmin and it looks like my problem isn't the battery.

Garmin offered a tip: "Another note you may keep in mind is when you want to completely power down the nuvi 2350 device, please hold the power button down for at least 4 seconds, or until the message displays prompting you to press 'OFF'. Otherwise, the device just goes into a sleep-type mode to conserve battery charge, but will eventually the battery will drain completely."

This was news to me and I expected it to be the solution. Unfortunately, several tries, including one when I held the power button down for 5 minutes, failed to invoke an "OFF" prompt.

So, unless I can find a way to completely power down my unit a new battery wont do me any good.

Bill

2350 With Sleep Mode?

I did bring this point up in my first post:

muell9k wrote:

I highly doubt the 2350 has a sleep mode so my first thought would have been the unit is not completely off and slowly draining the battery. One vendor (Crutchfield) claims the 2350 has sleep mode but I don't think so.

Quite frankly I think that person at Garmin gave you bad advice. I think the sleep mode feature only became available in the 37xx and 34XX models.
If you check your manual you will see there is no information about sleep mode, only to turn down your brightness to conserve power.
Yet if you check on the manual on a 3450, on page 4 it gives the information about sleep mode

My belief is if it did have sleep mode, and it was in the sleep mode, you would know since tapping the power button would wake it up and be at your screen ready to go.
If no sleep mode when you hit the power button it will boot. I think that's how sleep mode works, maybe a 34XX or 37XX seires owner can chime in and confirm.

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Nuvi 2460LMT 2 Units

750

My 4-year-old 750 quit holding charge, dying after a few minutes of unplugging from the power.

I got a replacement battery from Amazon (comes with instructions), and now it's working fine.

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nüvi 750 & 760

Nuvi 660

My Nuvi 660 battery wouldn't hold a charge after I had it for about 3 years. Broke down and bought a new battery and installed it - best decision I ever made. Works like a charm again.

Lots of instructions for your GPSr on the internet. Just Google it and you will get all kinds of guidance. Good Luck.

Nonresponsive--

Bill McQ wrote:

k6rtm,

I just had an email from Garmin and it looks like my problem isn't the battery.

Garmin offered a tip: "Another note you may keep in mind is when you want to completely power down the nuvi 2350 device, please hold the power button down for at least 4 seconds, or until the message displays prompting you to press 'OFF'. Otherwise, the device just goes into a sleep-type mode to conserve battery charge, but will eventually the battery will drain completely."

This was news to me and I expected it to be the solution. Unfortunately, several tries, including one when I held the power button down for 5 minutes, failed to invoke an "OFF" prompt.

So, unless I can find a way to completely power down my unit a new battery wont do me any good.

Bill

Bill--

I'd consider the message from Garmin to be nonresponsive.

You need more data. Once the unit is charged, does it hold a charge (the majority of the charge) for a day? Two days? 3, 4, 5? When does it start crapping out?

If it loses charge over a few days (4 or less is where I'd draw the line, but it's arbitrary), I'd replace the battery and try again.

Another thing to consider -- battery replacement is around $30 or so, far less than a new GPS.

Yeah, throwing the device into its "off" mode is nice, but I still don't know what the current drain is in that mode. To me as an engineer, "off" means an open circuit between the battery and the load.

Marketing weenies may consider a very-low-drain mode to be "off" but I bet the folks in engineering don't...

--
Nuvi 2460, 680, DATUM Tymserve 2100, Trimble Thunderbolt, Ham radio, Macintosh, Linux, Windows

Replacement of the battery

I need to replace my battery also. It is nice to know what other users are doing to replace theirs.

.

The 2460 that replaced my 1490 seems to me to dishcarge a lot faster than the 1490 ever did. But that's my impression -- no fact to back it up.

I really need to do this, too

(replace the battery, that is.)

I wish it were as easy as slapping in a new set of AAs. If it were, I would have already done this! But my Garmin won't even boot up at this point because of lack of battery charge, so now it just sits there, unused.

I know the instructions make it straightforward. Just need to get a round "tuit".

Battery Life

Garmin Nuvi Battery facts.
All Nuvi’s use a 3.7 Volt battery. The difference in holding the charge is measured in mAh (milli ampere hours).
The HIGHER the mAH the LONGER the battery can sustain a charge.

Below are some guidelines for most Nuvi Replacement Batteries,
Note: This is just a guide, check, with the vendor and verify the proper battery.

2xx series – 1250 mAh
3xx Series – 1250 mAh
6xx Series – 1500 mAh
7xx Series – 1250 mAh
8xx Series – 1100 mAh
1xxx Series – 1250 mAh
23xx Series – 1000 mAh
24xx Series – 1000 mAh
2460 Series – 1200 mAh
25xx Series – 1000 mAh
37xx Series – 1200 mAh
34XX Series - 1250 mAh
30 – 40- 50 Series – 1100 mAh
Zumo Series – 2200 mAh

Years ago I wanted to change my battery for my 765T (1250mAh) with that of a 660 battery (1500mAh).
It could not be done since the 660 had a two pin battery connector where the 765T had a three pin.
I believe the 6XX series was the only one with the two pin, perhaps the 3XX series also but can’t verify.
I think all units after the 660 had three pin.

Other than the 6XX series and Zumo’s, the highest mAh would be 1250.
Since they are ALL 3.7 volts I wonder if it’s possible to put a 1250 into say the 23XX series(1000).
The only obstacle I see is the size of the battery, the vendors don’t list size, but they all look the same to me.

If you want to conserve power while in BATTERY MODE, lower the brightness and volume, that should help a bit.

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Nuvi 2460LMT 2 Units

Re: Nonresponsive

k6rtm,

I fully charged my 2350's battery three days ago and it has it booted each day since then. What's more, the battery icon shows a full charge although I don't recall if the icon's green color recedes as the charge drains or not.

I think I mentioned that my wife and I are driving up to ID Saturday so I can't check the unit for battery drain from then until return in a week or so.

Anyhow, three days without dying isn't too bad and maybe it will last a week or so.

I've reported to Garmin that holding down the power button for 4 second or up to 5 minutes doesn't invoke an "OFF" prompt. I'll let you know how Garmin responds.

Bill