What's the fastest way to discharge the internal rechargeable battery in
a wireless USB keyboard?

The white keyboard in question has a type-C USB port for connection to a
PC, and a USB dongle of course. It also has a switch to select wired (mis-lablled as "OFF"?) and wirelss mode (mis-labelled as "ON"?).

BTW, the keyboard in question has LEDs under all keycaps. You can choose
light shows using hot keys.

--

@~@ Simplicity is Beauty! Remain silent! Drink, Blink, Stretch!
/ v \ May the Force and farces be with you! Live long and prosper!!
/( _ )\ https://sites.google.com/site/changmw/
^ ^ https://github.com/changmw/changmw


--- PyGate Linux v1.5.18
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

Mr. Man-wai Chang <toylet.toylet@gmail.com> wrote:

What's the fastest way to discharge the internal rechargeable battery in
a wireless USB keyboard?

Why would you want to discharge the battery? For battery life it's
best to leave it charged. As regards risk I think it's trivial,
problems only tend to occur when charging or discharging the battery.

--
Chris Green
ú

--- PyGate Linux v1.5.18
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

On 27/06/2026 05:21, Mr. Man-wai Chang wrote:

What's the fastest way to discharge the internal rechargeable battery in
a wireless USB keyboard?

I would just leave it in its "last used" state.

The last thing you want to do is to store it fully discharged - depending on the
battery design, it may never recover from a full discharge.

Cheers,
David
--
David
Web: https://www.satsignal.eu

--- PyGate Linux v1.5.18
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

Mr. Man-wai Chang,

What's the fastest way to discharge the internal rechargeable battery
in a wireless USB keyboard?

Why would you want/need to do that ? What do you think (c|w)ould go wrong
if you didn't ?

But the fastest way would be to open the keyboard, take some electrical wire and connect the positive and negative battery terminals. Depending on the kind of battery it might cause sparking and a glowing, *very* hot battery though. It might even explode. But hey, its fast. :-)

It also has a switch to select wired (mis-lablled as "OFF"?) and wirelss mode (mis-labelled as "ON"?).

You mean when its "on" the wireless mode is active - regardles of if the (PC
/ USB) connector is plugged in and its recharging the battery - and when its "off" the wireless doesn't work - even though it could still charge the battery - and its just a standard PC / USB keyboard ?

What do you think that the switches labeling should have said instead ?

Regards,
Rudy Wieser



--- PyGate Linux v1.5.18
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

On 6/27/2026 1:46 PM, R.Wieser wrote:

Mr. Man-wai Chang,

You mean when its "on" the wireless mode is active - regardles of if the (PC / USB) connector is plugged in and its recharging the battery - and when its "off" the wireless doesn't work - even though it could still charge the battery - and its just a standard PC / USB keyboard ?

What do you think that the switches labeling should have said instead ?

Keyboard in question: Acer OKW132 mechanical keyboard

ON - WiFi Active LED flashes. That keyboard is in wireless mode,
I suppose.

OFF - WiFi Active LED no longer flashes. I suppose that means
wired mode, and I need to plug in the USB cable from the PC.

Regardless of the state of the switch, the type-C cable always
charges the battery, as displayed by the battery LED.

I haven't had the time to open the keyboard, because you need
to unmount all Cherry switch first, nearly 80 of them.



--

@~@ Simplicity is Beauty! Remain silent! Drink, Blink, Stretch!
/ v \ May the Force and farces be with you! Live long and prosper!!
/( _ )\ https://sites.google.com/site/changmw/
^ ^ https://github.com/changmw/changmw

--- PyGate Linux v1.5.18
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

On 6/27/2026 1:46 PM, R.Wieser wrote:

But the fastest way would be to open the keyboard, take some electrical wire and connect the positive and negative battery terminals. Depending on the kind of battery it might cause sparking and a glowing, *very* hot battery though. It might even explode. But hey, its fast. :-)

Can you do it via its Type-C USB port?

--

@~@ Simplicity is Beauty! Remain silent! Drink, Blink, Stretch!
/ v \ May the Force and farces be with you! Live long and prosper!!
/( _ )\ https://sites.google.com/site/changmw/
^ ^ https://github.com/changmw/changmw

--- PyGate Linux v1.5.18
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

Mr. Man-wai Chang,

What do you think that the switches labeling should have said instead ?

Keyboard in question: Acer OKW132 mechanical keyboard

ON - WiFi Active LED flashes. That keyboard is in wireless mode,
I suppose.

OFF - WiFi Active LED no longer flashes. I suppose that means
wired mode, and I need to plug in the USB cable from the PC.

Regardless of the state of the switch, the type-C cable always
charges the battery, as displayed by the battery LED.

Thats a description of what the switch (supposedly) does, not an answer to
my question.

Also, that led is blinking as long as its in wireless mode ? I would go crazy because of the distraction (I would either disconnect/remove the led
or throw the whole keyboard out)

I haven't had the time to open the keyboard, because you need
to unmount all Cherry switch first, nearly 80 of them.

The last time I opened a keyboard I could just remove the plastic bottom
shell and leave the actual keyboard (with its buttons) with the top shell.
It might even just be a foil keyboard, with a small circuit-board located under the leds (the mechanics of the keys being a part of the top shell).

Regards,
Rudy Wieser



--- PyGate Linux v1.5.18
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

Mr. Man-wai Chang,

Can you do it via its Type-C USB port?

Definitily not.

There is a bit of electronics between the cables power-lines and the
battery - to make sure that the battery doesn't load to fast and not gets over/under charged (both can kill a battery rather quickly), and also to
make sure that when the connector pins *accidentily* gets short-circuited
you don't end up with a laptop-bag or backpack bursting into flames (or just fries the keyboards electronics).

And for the record : you should *never* short-circuit a battery (or any power-source for that matter).

But as asked, why do you think you should discharge the keyboards battery to begin with ?

Regards,
Rudy Wieser



--- PyGate Linux v1.5.18
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

On 6/27/2026 2:41 PM, R.Wieser wrote:

Also, that led is blinking as long as its in wireless mode ? I would go crazy because of the distraction (I would either disconnect/remove the led
or throw the whole keyboard out)

I don't mind flashing lights. You can turn your back or close your eye
and eyelids to ignore it. It's just light.

Unless your brain is born with weaknesses that reacts crazily when
seeing flashing lights, or hearing drum rolls. :)

--

@~@ Simplicity is Beauty! Remain silent! Drink, Blink, Stretch!
/ v \ May the Force and farces be with you! Live long and prosper!!
/( _ )\ https://sites.google.com/site/changmw/
^ ^ https://github.com/changmw/changmw

--- PyGate Linux v1.5.18
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

On Sat, 6/27/2026 12:21 AM, Mr. Man-wai Chang wrote:

What's the fastest way to discharge the internal rechargeable battery in a wireless USB keyboard?

The white keyboard in question has a type-C USB port for connection to a PC, and a USB dongle
of course. It also has a switch to select wired (mis-lablled as "OFF"?) and wirelss mode (mis-labelled as "ON"?).

BTW, the keyboard in question has LEDs under all keycaps. You can choose light shows using hot keys.

The 3.7V single cell battery in your keyboard, loses charge with time, as others have
pointed out, and eventually it will drop to zero.

Don't worry about it.

If it bothers you, take it to an electronics recycler, they know what to do.

Paul

--- PyGate Linux v1.5.18
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

On 6/27/2026 6:01 PM, Paul wrote:

On Sat, 6/27/2026 12:21 AM, Mr. Man-wai Chang wrote:

What's the fastest way to discharge the
internal rechargeable battery in a wireless USB keyboard?

The 3.7V single cell battery in your keyboard,
loses charge with time, as others have> pointed out, and eventually

it will drop to zero.


Can I do it without extracting that stupid hidden
rechargeable battery? Say, via the exposed USB
Type-C port.

I know how to play with 1.5V dry, non-rechargeables
AA battery! The spark is fun! :)

Don't worry about it.

I am not worrying but fire risk as a result of
self ignition and spontaneous combusion.

If it bothers you, take it to an electronics recycler,
they know what to do.

I don't wanna trust others, nor spending money.

--

@~@ Simplicity is Beauty! Remain silent! Drink, Blink, Stretch!
/ v \ May the Force and farces be with you! Live long and prosper!!
/( _ )\ https://sites.google.com/site/changmw/
^ ^ https://github.com/changmw/changmw
The game is afoot... Meow...

--- PyGate Linux v1.5.18
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

Mr. Man-wai Chang <toylet.toylet@gmail.com> wrote:

On 6/27/2026 6:01 PM, Paul wrote:

On Sat, 6/27/2026 12:21 AM, Mr. Man-wai Chang wrote:

What's the fastest way to discharge the
internal rechargeable battery in a wireless USB keyboard?

The 3.7V single cell battery in your keyboard,
loses charge with time, as others have> pointed out, and eventually

it will drop to zero.

Can I do it without extracting that stupid hidden
rechargeable battery? Say, via the exposed USB
Type-C port.

I know how to play with 1.5V dry, non-rechargeables
AA battery! The spark is fun! :)

Don't worry about it.

I am not worrying but fire risk as a result of
self ignition and spontaneous combusion.

If it bothers you, take it to an electronics recycler,
they know what to do.

I don't wanna trust others, nor spending money.

If the keyboard has a lithium ion cell then storing for extended period
above 80% state of charge is indeed dangerous, likewise under 20% state of charge (or more particularly below approx 3.2volts) risks permanent damage.
If the keyboard is able to report state of charge then best bet is to run
it down to somewhere between those limits before storing.


--
piglet

--- PyGate Linux v1.5.18
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

On Sun, 6/28/2026 12:11 AM, Mr. Man-wai Chang wrote:

On 6/28/2026 3:30 AM, druck wrote:

DO NOT try to quickly discharge Lithium batteries, either let it
discharge naturally, or take to a place which disposes of Lithium
batteries safely.

USB-C's increased power capability is from being able to use higher
voltages, and not increasing current over thin wires. It has nothing to
do with discharging.

So there is absolutely no way to quickly discharge rechargeable batteries so as to return them to safe state?

I will open a thread targetting only rechargeable batteries including ones made out of lithium.

The "recommended" discharge interval for lithium energy storage, might
be on the order of two hours.

Yes, people routinely beat the piss out of them, by running model cars
above the current limit, and all this does is drastically cut the capacity.

Heating the cell itself above say, 50C, is not good for it. This is one reason we don't abuse them. The electrolyte is flammable. Some "tapes" used
in the construction of cells, begin to dissolve in the electrolyte at
high temperatures. In automotive applications, there is an active cooling system in the automobile to keep the 3.7V cells below temperatures
like that.

A dead short across Lithium is no more clever/desirable, than carrying out
your experiment on an automotive battery.

An automotive battery, can make 150 amps when the voltage across the
terminals drops to 9.5V (I measured this in my driveway). That's 1425 watts being drawn by the car starter motor, and if you did that with a
resistor instead of a starter motor, the resistor would be
glowing red hot. That's the power level of your kitchen toaster.

The Lithium battery has a mAh rating, like maybe 3600 milliamp/hours.
I could draw 1800 ma (1.8 amps) for each hour of my two hour period.
That's 6.7 watts, so I would be using a ceramic resistor (because
of the heat). 3.7V over 1.8A would be approximately 2 ohms. I would
purchase a 2.2 ohm 25 watt resistor. Next, I want the precision grabbers
as I do not know what exposed conductor I can access inside the keyboard.
The battery could be the welded tab type. Alligator clips fall off
randomly and can be irritating for a job like this.

Now, I personally, would not be in a rush like that. I could use
a higher resistance value for my resistor (the discharge interval
would be correspondingly longer). In terms of hobbyist
fabrication, I need.

1 resistor 22 ohms (1 watt or higher, I've got a couple ceramic ones)
2 pieces of wire
2 precision grabbers with the spring steel wire jaws (not alligator clips, which will slip)

You want a grabber that won't slip off. The Pomona ones can deform with abuse, and you might want a two or three hook grabber, depending on what conductor
you can easily access. Alligator clips leave exposed metal when they fall off, and the alligator clip could touch some part of circuit you were not intending to touch.

https://www.digikey.com/en/products/filter/test-leads/grabbers-hooks/620

That list of three items needs to be soldered up, the solder joints
covered with polyolefin shrink wrap (to prevent accidental contact
with the specimen).

Now, I'm ready for my discharge experiment. I could discharge to 3V.

https://www.ersaelectronics.com/blog/18650-battery-voltage-a-complete-guide?srsltid=AfmBOoqhb1UAhmBMGZpBGDWE7biCOFn1K23lLtMUDansB5SSw37EGdIO

4.2V Fully charged, the "stress-limited" voltage (when you stop charging, it does not stay there)
3.7V The settled, long term voltage during the two hour discharge
3.0V The knee, a good place to stop the discharge
0.0V A single cell 3.7V rechargeable *can* be discharged this low,
but it may affect the long term 3600mAh rating. Second grade
Chinese cells from no-name shops, are 800mAh (despite what it
says on the sleeve), but this makes no difference to the
charge and discharge rules, only the runtime is affected).

As a hobbyist, you need to know how to measure voltage and current,
to monitor how the discharge operation is going. The BMS on battery
packs, it checks whether the pack is below <number-of-cells * 3.0V>
and a MOSFET in the BMS can cut off current flow to prevent discharge below that level.

If you absolutely want the cell at 0.0V, you can do it. Leave your
22 ohm resistor on there all week, and it'll be flat. And the resistor
will no longer be hot.

3.7V +---------+ If you use 2.2 ohms instead, resistor gets *hot*
| | Convenient form factor is a white ceramic power resistor.
----- 22 ohms
--- 1 watt or preferably higher wattage
| |
+---------+

Examples of ceramic resistors. I use some of these for testing ATX power supplies.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005007544570307.html

Paul

--- PyGate Linux v1.5.18
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

On Sun, 6/28/2026 5:35 AM, Andy Burns wrote:

Mr. Man-wai Chang wrote:

So there is absolutely no way to quickly discharge rechargeable batteries so as to return them to safe state?

Because there's no *need* to do anything;ÿ how long have you owned this keyboard?ÿ How many times has it caught fire?

I think the current state of the keyboard, is a safe state.

I don't sit here worrying about the single cell 3.7V
battery inside each of my Bluetooth speakers. I do not hunger
to short them out :-) I know what size of resistor to use,
and I would also selected grabbers suited to the conductors
present in there. But there's just no need to drain it.

The battery should not be easily removable, a spring-loaded
battery holder should not be present in there. The cell should
be hard wired, it could use welded-tabs for example. Such connection
methods ensure glitch-free power delivery.

Paul



--- PyGate Linux v1.5.18
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

On 6/28/2026 2:33 AM, piglet wrote:

If the keyboard has a lithium ion cell then storing for extended period
above 80% state of charge is indeed dangerous, likewise under 20% state of charge (or more particularly below approx 3.2volts) risks permanent damage. If the keyboard is able to report state of charge then best bet is to run
it down to somewhere between those limits before storing.

I can always buy a new one. Don't worry about the
life of that stupid toy (the wireless keyboard).

Should I register my wireless keyboard with the
police and get a license plate for it? That
belongs to another thread about regulating
rechargeable batteries. :)

--

@~@ Simplicity is Beauty! Remain silent! Drink, Blink, Stretch!
/ v \ May the Force and farces be with you! Live long and prosper!!
/( _ )\ https://sites.google.com/site/changmw/
^ ^ https://github.com/changmw/changmw
The game is afoot... Meow...

--- PyGate Linux v1.5.18
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

On 27/06/2026 05:21, Mr. Man-wai Chang wrote:

What's the fastest way to discharge the internal rechargeable battery in
a wireless USB keyboard?

The white keyboard in question has a type-C USB port for connection to a
PC, and a USB dongle of course. It also has a switch to select wired (mis-lablled as "OFF"?) and wirelss mode (mis-labelled as "ON"?).

BTW, the keyboard in question has LEDs under all keycaps. You can choose light shows using hot keys.

This is quality trolling. We haven't had a good trolling session for a
while.

/me gets popcorn and sodas

--- PyGate Linux v1.5.18
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

On 6/27/2026 12:21 PM, Mr. Man-wai Chang wrote:

The white keyboard in question has a type-C USB port for connection to a
PC, and a USB dongle of course. It also has a switch to select wired (mis-lablled as "OFF"?) and wirelss mode (mis-labelled as "ON"?).

(Keyboard in question: Acer OKW132 mechanical keyboard)>

After days of use, its fixed and hidden battery
finally could not operate the keyboard. Buttons
start failing to work momentarily then totally.

--

@~@ Simplicity is Beauty! Remain silent! Drink, Blink, Stretch!
/ v \ May the Force and farces be with you! Live long and prosper!!
/( _ )\ https://sites.google.com/site/changmw/
^ ^ https://github.com/changmw/changmw
The game is afoot... Meow...

--- PyGate Linux v1.5.18
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

On 6/28/2026 11:18 PM, mm0fmf wrote:

/me gets popcorn and sodas

Is this combo healthy?

I rather drink Chinese or tea instead of soda.

Is pop-corn really corn? Or is it sweet plastic fabric? :)


Meow...

--

@~@ Simplicity is Beauty! Remain silent! Drink, Blink, Stretch!
/ v \ May the Force and farces be with you! Live long and prosper!!
/( _ )\ https://sites.google.com/site/changmw/
^ ^ https://github.com/changmw/changmw
The game is afoot... Meow...

--- PyGate Linux v1.5.18
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)

On 6/29/2026 12:25 AM, Mr. Man-wai Chang wrote:

After days of use, its fixed and hidden battery
finally could not operate the keyboard. Buttons
start failing to work momentarily then totally.

No, the battery level LED (red in color)
is still flashing when hitting a key.
There is still electricity in its
rechargeable battery.

How can I drain the battery by
mechanically, automatically
hitting a key continueously
on the keyboard using everyday
items? A motor with a crane?

Like pumping oils in the Middle-East?
Meow.... :)



--

@~@ Simplicity is Beauty! Remain silent! Drink, Blink, Stretch!
/ v \ May the Force and farces be with you! Live long and prosper!!
/( _ )\ https://sites.google.com/site/changmw/
^ ^ https://github.com/changmw/changmw
The game is afoot... Meow...

--- PyGate Linux v1.5.18
* Origin: Dragon's Lair, PyGate NNTP<>Fido Gate (3:633/10)