What Is Milliampere-Hour (mAh) On A Battery - Jackery Australia

When purchasing a new device, viewing unboxing videos of recently released products, or engaging in other activities involving advanced technology, the term "mAH" (milliampere per hour) may appear or be mentioned. Yet, have you ever pondered the meaning of the battery unit mAh? Moreover, what does the mAh on a battery indicate? 

mAh is an abbreviation for milliamp (or milliampere) hour, a power measurement unit that represents the capacity of a battery over time. This page explains the mAh, the relationship between mAh and Ah, and the method for calculating the mAh rating of a battery. In addition, the mAh rating of the most popular Jackery Portable Power Station is 50,000 (or 50 Ah), which enables this robust rechargeable generator to supply power for hours, sufficient to charge large and small appliances.

The unit mAh denotes the capacity of a battery to both store and discharge energy to supply power to a device. As the mAh rating increases, so does the battery's capacity to store energy and the duration for which it can provide power to a device before requiring recharging. Thus, mAh is a crucial metric to consider when procuring a battery for electronic devices.

mAh is a more precise indicator of how long a device will operate on a single charge. In contrast, the estimated battery life hours listed in the specifications guide many consumers when purchasing a machine. It is a critical determinant in buying any electronic device due to its direct correlation with its operational duration.

To power larger appliances, such as a clothes dryer, with a solar generator, for instance, you will need to locate one with a greater capacity in mAh, which enables it to operate high-wattage appliances for hours.

The milliamp-hour (mAh) is a unit used to quantify the progression of electrical power. It is frequently employed to determine a battery's energy capacity. Typically, an extended capacity or lifespan corresponds to a more significant number of mAh. A more excellent numerical value indicates that the battery possesses a more remarkable ability to store energy. This results in an extended battery life for a given amount of use.

This formula can be utilized to estimate the operational lifespan of a device, assuming a consistent or mean power consumption rate. It is possible to acquire knowledge regarding amp hours or ampere hours. A 2000 mAh battery, for instance, could supply power to a device consuming 100 mA (milliamp) for twenty hours. A device finishing 100 mA would have a 20-hour lifespan.

Ampere hours, also denoted as Ah or amp hours, refer to the quantity of energy stored in a battery sufficient to facilitate the passage of one ampere of current for one hour. An alternative formulation would be to define 1 Ah as the capacity of a battery to supply amperage for one hour. 

Typically, large batteries are quantified in ampere-hours. On the contrary, the rating for tiny batteries such as personal vaporizers and notebook computers, as well as standard AA and AAA batteries, is expressed in milliampere hours (mAh). A minimum 4Ah capacity is typically indicated conspicuously on a battery, similar to the 5Ah capacity depicted in the image.

In the context of batteries, the battery's capacity is typically expressed in one of two units. Ah, and mAh are the units. Although both mAh and AH are energy measurement units, their magnitudes of measurement are distinct.

The more prevalent usage of the unit mAh, which stands for milliampere-hour, pertains to batteries, specifically those found in smartphones, tablets, and other portable electronic devices. It is a metric used to quantify the capacity of a battery or the quantity of charge it can store. One-thousandth of an ampere-hour is the definition of a milliampere-hour; therefore, one megaampere-hour equals 0.001 ampere-hour.

In contrast, the standard unit for quantifying the quantity of electric charge that traverses in a single hour is the ampere-hour (AH). The rate of electrical charge-discharge is represented by the unit of the ampere, which is the electric current. Therefore, the discharge of a charging current of one ampere for one hour equals one ampere-hour.

In essence, mAh and AH denote the identical concept; however, they diverge in magnitude. In contrast to AH, which is utilized for larger applications such as solar panels and vehicles, mAh is typically employed to measure the battery capacity of smaller devices.

Rather than milliampere hours, battery specifications frequently specify volts and watt-hours (Wh) or kilowatt-hours (kWh) to denote storage capacity. Multiplying the watt-hours by 1000 and dividing the result by the voltage yields the mAh value, which indicates the duration the battery can maintain at that output level before requiring recharging.