[seanmcdirmid]

I saw the mercury drop from -25C to -35C on the bus from Changchun to Haerbin once (the buses, for some reason, had digital outside temperature thermometers up front). I was dressed for it well enough, but I didn’t keep my phone or camera warm enough, so I didn’t get many pictures of the ice sculptures I went to see. Too far south for northern lights though, weird it would get that cold at that latitude.

[AlotOfReading]

Northeast Asia has perfect conditions for terrible winters. Continental climate (so it gets extremely cold), the prevailing winds don't bring in moisture, and the Siberian anticyclone just adds to the frigid ambiance.

[flangola7]

Why would a phone or camera need to be warm?

[mym1990]

Lithium batteries have really really bad performance in cold weather(not even talking -40, like 32 degrees for 10 minutes out and your phone will absolutely shrivel)

[cowmoo728]

In the coldest days of NYC winters my Nexus 6p would reboot if I tried to use the camera. In cold conditions lithium batteries have difficulty keeping voltage steady when there's a sudden amperage spike from turning on the camera hardware. If it gets even colder just turning on the screen can cause the voltage to drop enough that the phone will malfunction.

[userbinator]

Batteries aren't designed for such low temperatures.

[flangola7]

I thought one of the advantages of lithium cells over other chemistries was cold temperature performance.

[pvaldes]

frozen lenses