Picture of the JBL Flip 4 portable Bluetooth speaker, showing logo side, horizontal view.

JBL Flip 4 Battery Life

The JBL Flip 4 battery life we discuss here in terms of either how long the speaker will play after a full charge, before going dead again.  Or, we will talk about how long the battery will last before the battery needs replacement.

Picture of the JBL Flip 4 package, front view, horizontal.
JBL Flip 4 package, front view, horizontal.

JBL Flip 4 Battery Life, Per Charge

How long should the battery last?  The built in lithium ion battery lasts up to twelve hours per full charge.  Note that this time varies depending on how loud you play the speaker, and the type of audio you’re listening to. At lower volumes, you might get longer life.  At full volume, you will no doubt experience shorter battery life per charge.





JBL Flip 4 Battery Life, Before Replacement

How Many Full Charges Should the Battery Take ?

The JBL Flip 4 battery should provide at least 500 charge-discharge cycles before it loses much ability to hold power.

Signs of a Bad Battery

The JBL Flip 4 Takes Too Long to Charge

Using the USB-C cable that comes with the speaker, or a higher power model, the battery should fully charge in under three hours.  It make take longer if your charger adapter provides less than fifteen watts (5 volts at 3 amps).  But if your cable and charger are hefty enough, and yet the battery takes longer than three hours to fully charge, it may be going bad.

The JBL Flip 4 Doesn’t Play as Long as it Should

You may also notice that your speaker doesn’t play as long as it did before running down from a full charge to a completely dead state.  This is another sign of a battery that is nearing the end of its useful life.

The JBL Flip 4 Distorts or Shuts Off by Itself at Higher Volumes

When you raise the volume, particularly on music that has lots of bass, you may hear crackling or other distortion.  Or, the speaker may cut out or power down when a deep bass drum thump occurs in the music.  This could mean that the battery, even when fully charged, can no longer provide sufficient current for the speaker drivers to play these sounds.  Again, this may indicate a need to replace the battery.





The Battery Gauge on the JBL Flip 4 Gives Wrong Readings

The gauge may show that the speaker has full, or nearly full charge.  But yet, it goes dead within minutes of reading the indicator.  This is a common symptom when lithium ion battery life is declining.

How to Get the Most JBL Flip 4 Battery Life

Work that battery !  That is, charge it all the way, and discharge it all the way.  The power management system in this speaker appears robust and well protects the battery from over charging or completely draining, as both of these extremes are very hard on lithium ion batteries in the JBL Flip 4.

But we suggest that you do not leave the speaker connected to the charger once the battery gauge shows that it is fully charged.  Also, when the battery does run out of power, do not leave it in this deadened state for very long.  We recommend that you recharge your speaker as soon as possible, as these batteries hate being dead.  A dead battery for too long often results in a ruined battery.

Conclusion

Replacing the battery in the JBL Flip 4 usually fixes the above mentioned issues.  However, only replace with a battery of similar type — preferably the same make and part number as the original.

Finally, you can often avoid ever having to replace the battery due to shortened battery life, by keeping your JBL Flip 4 speaker battery charged, but exercised as well. This provides the most deep charge-discharge cycles from it in our experience.

Picture of the JBL Flip 4 portable speaker with a RavPower USB charger and micro USB charge cable.
JBL Flip 4 portable speaker with a RavPower USB charger and micro USB charge cable.

Other Posts About the JBL Flip 4

    1. The Charging Indicator Details
    2. Review of the JBL Flip
    3. JBL Flip 4 Specs, Specifications for this Speaker
    4. Pairing Instructions
    5. JBL Flip 4 Low Frequency Mode Help

Related Posts to JBL Flip 4 Battery Life

    1. JBL Flip 5 Battery Life
    2. JBL Charge 3 Battery Life
    3. JBL Charge 4 Battery Life
    4. JBL Boombox 2 Battery Life
    5. JBL Flip 3 Battery Life

References for JBL Flip 4 Battery Life

    1. Official JBL Flip 4 Product Page at JBL.COM

Revision Diary

    • 2020-07-05: First published.