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Does the battery charger that comes with the Kasina monitor the charging process, adapt to it and shut charging off when 100% is reached as a smart charger will do? Or, is there risk of overcharging or shortening the life of the battery by leaving it to charge overnight?
Hello and welcome!
The "smarts" of the charging circuit are in the Kasina itself. The AC adapter is simply a 5v power supply. Works the same as plugging it into a powered USB connection on your computer or using any other USB power supply, except that the supplied adapter has a higher current capability to allow the Kasina to charge a little faster than with the limited current of a normal USB port on a computer.
To answer you question, The Kasina makes sure the maximum lifespan of the internal battery is achieved, so leaving it charging is fine.
Basically, though, the best possible way to maximize the life of the battery (or any Lithium-Ion/Lithium Polymer battery) is that when you're using it, charge it often so that the battery level drops as little as possible between charges. However, if you are planning to store it for a long period of time (months) it's best if you discharge the battery to between 50 and 80%.
Thanks very much Andy, I did not know that about recharging often. I'm used to using smart chargers for NiMh batteries, but not the lithiums.
It's actually the same for NiMh batteries, charge often, charge slowly. Heat is the #1 killer of rechargeable batteries. Quick chargers and non-smart-chargers which heat up the battery by charging too quickly or over-charging are the fastest killers of battery life. If your battery is getting warm, that's a bad thing.
I have several dozen Ni-Mh batteries that have been charged 100's of times, (I've had them over 6 years and use them continuously) and they've only lost about 20% of their original capacity. It's through using great batteries and chargers. I test them once a year to see how they are doing.