There's A Reason Your Phone Screen Freezes In The Cold, And It's Basically Molasses

Winter turns your device sluggish for a reason that has nothing to do with the software and everything to do with goo.

Ever pull your phone out on a freezing morning and watch it act like it just woke up from a nap? That laggy screen isn't a glitch. It's a liquid problem you can't even see.

Touchscreens and batteries both rely on chemistry that flows. When it gets cold, the liquid crystals in the display thicken up and drag, so the picture literally can't refresh as fast.

The battery has it even rougher. Cold slows the chemical reactions that push out power, which is why your charge percentage can nosedive the second you step outside in January.

The good news is it's almost always temporary. Warm the phone back up gently in a pocket, and both the screen and the battery snap back to normal like nothing happened.