Fairphone 5: intermittent charging issue (shows "charging" but barely charges when left unattended)

Help Fairphone 5
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1

Hi all,

I’m experiencing an inconsistent charging problem with my Fairphone 5 and I’m having trouble pinpointing the cause.

The problem
When I leave my phone on the charger, it shows as charging, but when I come back hours later, the battery has only gained a few percent. using the AccuBattery Pro App: there is no actual charging current during these periods, even though the phone reports that it is charging. When I plug it in, it does charge normally at first.

It seems to happen mainly when the phone is left alone for a longer time. It doesn’t seem to happen when I’m navigating in the car, or when I charge it quickly somewhere for half a day.

Suspects

  1. The original Fairphone charger (30W)
  2. The USB-C port on the phone (it was already replaced earlier this year for an audio issue, so it could be faulty again)
  3. My Hema USB-C to USB-C cable (my first guess, but I’ve seen the same behavior with other cables when swapping them for testing), using a second Hema cable in my car no issues ther, same type of cable.
  4. The battery. AccuBattery reports about 70% of its original capacity.

What I’ve noticed with different chargers

  • Old Samsung charger (from a tablet, old type USB-A, rated 2A) with an old, cheap, extra-long USB-A to USB-C cable: I have never had the problem with this one, and charging is surprisingly fast, only slightly slower than a modern charger.
  • Fairphone charger (30W): usually charges at around 15-20W, but it is the one where I often come back to a phone that hasn’t charged.
  • No-name 20W PD charger (USB-A and USB-C): charges at around 8W, but the AccuBattery reading jumps around constantly, sometimes much higher, sometimes much lower.
  • a new 12V car charger wite a old type USB-A and normal USB-C PD connection. no issues.
  • an xtron power bank No issues.

Side question
I’m trying to use AccuBattery to determine the maximum current and power of my chargers and cables, but the results look quite random, even after multiple attempts. I don’t have a quality USB-C cable with an e-marker chip. Does that mean the 30W Fairphone charger and the 20W charger can’t use PD properly? I’m still learning how all of this works, so any explanation is welcome.

My questions

  • Has anyone seen similar behavior (“charging” but no current)?
  • Is there a way to rule out the USB-C port, charger or battery?
  • Is AccuBattery reliable enough for measuring charging power?

Thanks in advance!

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2

Hi
I have had a similar thing sometimes when I leave the phone to charge at night.

I am prone to blame the cable and/or the connection - it is possible that I move a phone when sleeping; -)

Not sure whether that helps your cause.

Could you please edit your post so it is not doubled?

3

Yes, had the exact same issue. Replacing the usb c port fixed it. I didn’t get a reply back from CS so replaced it myself as I needed the phone for work and couldn’t afford to send it back for a warranty repair.

Customer services replied back after 6 months and apologised for the delay, that they were very busy.

4

Sounds similar to the issue I had earlier this year. The combination of changing the USB port and the charger solved it for me: Charging interruptions: FP5 discharges while still "charging" - #12 by janweiss

5

Maybe way off base here.Leave your phone on until the battery is fully drained and the phone shuts down. Then charge the battery.

6

I have the same problem: the charging power gradually increases up to 20 Watts. After a few minutes, the charging drops to 0 Watt. The only solution is to turn off the phone, which allows for continuous charging at up to 30 Watts.