More than two terminals on cell phone battery

[jackson6612]

Most batteries have only two terminals with symbols ''+'' and ''-''. I uderstand the function of two terminals. But almost all the cell phone batteries I have seen have more than two terminals. What is the reason for having more than two terminals? Please check this link:
http://www.batteries.com/images/256x256/17753.jpg

Best wishes,
Jackson

 

[mgb_phys]

Usually a temperature sensor ( check if one terminal is marked 'T' )
one way of charging these batteries is to just supply current and monitor the internal temperature rise - then back off the current to keep it in control.

 

[tony873004]

My cordless phone has 3 terminals. The two outer terminals are common to each other. This way I can place the hanset on the cradle either face-up or face down.

Your 4 terminals might be so it can accept different chargers/phones. Or perhaps a discharge pair and a charge pair. I'm only guessing.

 

[Stingray]

Some batteries also allow connections to each individual cell (or some subset of them) to allow for more careful monitoring and charging. I don't know if this is common for cell phone batteries, though.