Charging should be simple. But with charging horror stories all over the internet, and plenty of counterfeit or low-quality chargers for sale online, it’s unfortunately not that easy.

That’s where our guide to staying safe while charging comes in. Read on to make sure that you’re doing everything you can to protect yourself and your devices.

How to Find the Right Charger

It’s best to tackle a problem at the source, and that’s no different when it comes to charging safety.

It might sound obvious, but it’s best to choose a reliable charger. Buy from big brands like your phone manufacturer or reliable brands like...erm...Anker!

To figure out whether a charger is reliable or not, look on Amazon for products with plenty of reviews, and stay away from dirt-cheap electronics; there’s a good chance that a charger cheaper than a cup of coffee isn’t using the best components.

Another great thing to do is to actually read through some of the negative reviews. Go straight to the 1-star reviews, and have a quick flick through. If you keep seeing complaints about safety issues, turn off your computer and RUN AWAY!

If you’re an iPhone user, look for charging cables that are MFi certified. MFi stands for Made For iPhone, and all MFi certified chargers have passed safety and compliance checks to work well with Apple devices. You can even check if a device is MFi certified  here.

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Important Safety Tips

No matter what charger you’re using, there are a few general tips that can help to make charging safer:

• Don’t charge in ambient temperatures above 30°C
• Don’t cover your phone or other devices while charging (like under your pillow)
• Don’t overload your wall outlet
• Always unplug after you’ve finished charging

For UK readers, Electrical Safety First—a charity that aims to reduce accidents caused by electricity in UK homes—has a handy  3-point safety test on its website to help you check the safety of your charger.

What to do with Damaged Chargers

I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Well, when it comes to chargers, a good rule of thumb is if it’s broke, get rid of it. 

If your cable is frayed or your charger has loose pins, then it’s time to move on. It’s not worth risking yourself or your devices to save the price of a new charger or cable.

Of course, don’t just throw that old stuff away. If you can, try to find a place to recycle it. A lot of people recommend Best Buy’s recycling program. Find out more  here.

A Few Last Words

We hope that after reading this article you’ll have a better idea about how to charge safely. And if you didn’t read the article but somehow ended up here, remember these 3 things and you should be okay:

• Avoid crazy-cheap charging equipment. It’s not worth it.
• Heat is bad. Don’t charge in hot conditions or cover your phone while charging.
• Never use damaged chargers or cables.

And while we have you here, and if you’re looking for anything charging-related, why not check out what Anker has to offer?

We’re not trying to give you the hard sell, but we do have 10 years of experience, over 65 million happy users, and all of our chargers are equipped with our  MultiProtect safety system.

Go  here to see our range of chargers, and  here to see our charging cables.

Power On!