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It is okay to leave a PS5 controller charging as it has safety features to prevent overcharging. If your controller is not charging correctly, the problem may be age-related degradation, although there are ways to increase the battery’s lifespan.
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How To Charge a PS5 Controller
The PS5 comes with a charging cable for the controller that connects to one of the console’s USB ports. The Type C cable connects to the ports on the controller’s side and the console’s back. If you want to charge your device this way, remember that the PS5 needs to be on or in rest mode. If it is turned off, the controller won’t charge.
If you don’t want to rely on the cable, a second option is the official PlayStation DualSense Charging Station, available on Amazon.com. This dock doesn’t connect to the PS5, so you don’t need to leave your console running to charge the controllers, and it leaves both ports free.
Using a third-party charging station is not advised, as you risk damaging your controller’s battery with products that may not be up to the required standard.
Another key consideration in properly charging PS5 controllers is knowing when to charge them. Charging when the battery at 0% can accelerate their degeneration. Instead, you should charge the controller when the “low battery” indicator comes on.
How Long Should Your PS5 Controller Take To Charge?
Even if you don’t use the official charging cable or dock, the controllers should be fully charged in three hours. You can check the charge in your controllers by holding down the controller’s ‘PS’ button and checking the icon at the bottom.
If you see three bars, your controller is fully charged and ready to go.
Can You Overcharge a PS5 Controller?
In theory, it is possible to overcharge your PS5 controller, but the controller has safety features designed to prevent that from happening. This is also true for the official docking station, which has software that prevents overcharging.
How Long Should A Fully-Charged PS5 Controller Last?
When fully charged, your gaming session should last at least 12 hours, with the maximum reaching 15 hours of play. Having some of the extra features on the controller turned on, like lights or vibrations, will lower your battery’s lifespan.
A game requiring lots of button-mashing will also make the controller work harder and drain the battery.
What Might Keep a PS5 Controller From Charging?
If you have plugged in your controller’s charging cable or set it in the dock, yet the battery doesn’t charge properly, there are a few things to rule out before running to check your PS5’s warranty.
The first issue is that there could be a problem with the PS5 firmware. Updates can be annoying, but they can affect both the console and the controllers. It is vital to keep your console up-to-date and let an update finish downloading and installing.
Below are other major problems you should check.
You’re Using the Wrong Cable
Many electronic devices we use at home use Type C USB charging cables, and it can be easy to mix them up. However, the best practice is to use the cable that came with your PS5 to charge your controller.
Using a non-official cable with a faster charging rate increases the risk of the batteries overheating, even with the safety features in the controller. So, you should stick to the official PS5 charging cable.
Unsuccessful charging could be the result of a problem with the cable itself. The first sign of a problematic cable would be visible damage.
If the cable looks fine, you can test it by plugging it into another device to see if it charges well. If it does, the problem is likely with the controller, and you might have to repair or replace it.
The Controller’s Internal Batteries No Longer Works
The PS5’s controllers use internal lithium-ion batteries, whose capacity inevitably deteriorates with time.
The wear-and-tear that naturally happens to the batteries during each charge will mean a loss of a few seconds of battery life each time the controller is plugged in.
This article on Popular Mechanics explains how lithium-ion batteries work and why the slow loss of battery life is unavoidable.
If your controller isn’t charging or holding a charge, the good news is that it is covered by the PS5’s warranty. Check out this article for all the information and answers you need to know about sending your PS5 controller for repair.
How To Increase Your PS5’s Controller’s Battery Life?
Everyone wants the batteries in their devices to last as long as possible, and gamers are no exception. While, as mentioned above, age will eventually catch up to your controller’s ability to hold a charge, there are some tips you can use to get the most out of the PS5’s battery life:
- Turn off the controller completely when not in use. Leaving the controller on means that it goes through charge cycles faster, especially when you do it habitually. A charge cycle is when a battery is fully charged and drained, and every battery’s lifetime comprises an approximate number of charge cycles.
- If you have your controller plugged into the PS5 to charge while still playing a game and feel the controller heat up beyond a reasonable level, turn the console off and unplug it until it cools. Some heat is expected, but it shouldn’t be extremely hot to the touch.
- Charge when the ‘low battery’ light comes on, and don’t wait until the controller no longer works.
- Don’t use third-party charging cables or docking stations. Stick with the official PS5 options.
- Turn off the vibration effects on your controller.
- Physical damage to the controller can also damage the internal battery, so treat your device with care. This goes from water damage to the controller simply being dropped.
Conclusion
You can safely leave a PS5 controller charging as the device has safety features to prevent it from overheating, but using the official charging cable or docking station is still the safest bet.