A phone battery is not worn out by use alone. It is worn out by the hours it spends brimming. Apple and Samsung both ship a setting that stops the device short of full, and both leave it off by default.
On an iPhone
From iPhone 15 onwards, Apple lets you pick a charging ceiling anywhere between 80 and 100 per cent, in steps of five. Older iPhones have no ceiling at all, only Optimized Battery Charging, an on-off toggle that Apple says reduces the time the phone spends fully charged.
On a Galaxy
Settings, then Battery, then Battery protection. Samsung offers three modes: Basic charges without restriction, Adaptive learns your habits and spreads the charge across them, and Maximum stops at 85 per cent.
What it costs you
Between fifteen and twenty per cent of the capacity you have to spend each day. The setting suits anyone whose phone sleeps on a charger overnight or sits plugged in at a desk. It does not suit anyone who leaves in the morning on one charge and needs it to last until night.
Photograph: a phone charger and cable on a white background. CC0 via Openverse (rawpixel).
Source: Apple support page on charging an iPhone; Samsung Gulf support page on the differences between the battery protection options.
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