The current draw of a
wireless device, e.g., a
cordless telephone, is minimized for a cradled remote
handset drawing power from an AC outlet. This allows a greater portion of the
total current amperage provided by the
AC to DC converter to be allowed to charge the battery in the
remote unit, and reduces the overall maximum or
peak value of the current draw of the
wireless device. With an improved peak
power budget, a smaller (and presumably less expensive) AC to DC adapter than otherwise necessary may be used to power the
wireless device. In one aspect, sniff operations of the remote
handset are disabled or otherwise suppressed while the remote
handset is in the cradle of the base unit, e.g., receiving a quick charge or
trickle charge to its battery. In a second aspect, sniff operations of the base unit are disabled or otherwise suppressed while the remote handset is in the cradle of the base unit. In a last aspect, the charging mode of the battery in the remote handset of a wireless device changes based on activity in the remote handset.