@gRuFtY @dysphoricunicorn From what I can gather by reading Apple‘s website and talking to a friend who knows more about how batteries work:
For Li(po|ion) batteries as in phones, half a cycle is only half a cycle, so it doesn’t matter how often you plug it in. For Ni(mh|cd), half a cycle is as bad as a full cycle.
On the other hand, Li-ion batteries like to be between 20% and 80% loaded. iOS 13 has a “machine learning” algorithm to learn when you get up in the morning and will keep the battery at 80% before that.
On even another hand, the batteries also like to not be charged or discharged, so when they’re on a charging mat or plugged in and kept at a constant charge, that is also good.
If you plan to store your device, charge it to 50% and turn it off, re-charge to 50% every 6 months.
In summary: It’s complicated. The “if I charge it a bit it uses a whole cycle” is from nickel and not relevant for lithium batteries.
https://www.apple.com/de/batteries/maximizing-performance/
tech, long, questionable information about charging cycles
@toni @gRuFtY thank you for researching that ^^
Now I can be a bit less scared about picking up my phone from the mat and maybe actually use it on my desk :D