There are some ways to restore your rechargeable batteries instead of throwing them out. You could be saving yourself some money by learning the procedures for battery reconditioning. All it takes is some simple electrical tools and materials and you can do this right at your home.
Most of the types of rechargeable batteries can be reconditioned or restored back to almost new condition. If you could do this you could extend the life of your batteries out much longer than their normal life span. You could expect a life of up to 1000 charge and discharge cycles for some types of batteries depending on the manufacturer and the conditions that the battery was used in.
Some batteries like the NiCads used in power tools will not last as long as they could because of their developing a memory effect. Some people say this condition does not exist but that is open for debate. Memory effect comes about by not letting the battery fully discharging before charging it again.
After developing this condition the battery does not fully take a charge, it is only a partial charge. As the battery goes through more charge and discharge cycles it continues to take less of a charge until it becomes useless. There is a repair for this that can be done at home.
Reconditioning can be used on your cell phone battery, laptops, power tools and many others. Lithium-ion can give you about 300 to 500 charge cycles and last for a few years. These batteries are better off recharging before they go dead, unlike the NiCad batteries. Lithium-ion batteries do not develop memory effect either, and are normally not reconditioned like other types of batteries.