Where do you buy new batteries?

[glen]

I just got one from Amazon, and it is supposed to be an OEM.
It seems to be no better than my old battery.
Is there an app that tests the actual battery and gives some specs?

 

[shortylickens]

I dont. I steal them from congress. Its my only way of fighting back.

 

[gorcorps]

I get mine from amazon. What battery did you order? For what phone? What capacity? Is is any bigger than the stock battery? Did you reset your battery gauge after charging by charging it to 100% and then letting the phone run itself entirely out of juice until it shuts itself off, then charge to 100% again? Do you charge it in your phone or in an external charger?

 

[pm]

Shorty, you know they are watching us, don't you?

I buy mine from Amazon too - but I try to get ones that are highly rated. Glen, this is perhaps a bit unlikely of a suggestion, but if you know anyone who flies electric-powered model airplanes or helicopters, a lot of the RC chargers can cycle batteries and will give stats on them. When I buy batteries, I stick them on my RC charger (with banana plugs and a bit of creativity to get the contacts to line up) and measure them and I have to say that most of the time, the capacity matches with the advertising.

The ones to watch out for is someone who sells a battery that is exactly the same dimensions as another battery but that person claims >10% higher capacity for theirs. Lithium polymer batteries can vary in capacity per volume, but usually not by that much so I just figure they are fudging the numbers to get more sales.

Also I think there's some truth the idea that batteries take a couple of cycles to "break in". I have no idea why this happens, but I also think it's worth giving it a week or so to see if things get better.

 

[glen]

Shorty, you know they are watching us, don't you?

I buy mine from Amazon too - but I try to get ones that are highly rated. Glen, this is perhaps a bit unlikely of a suggestion, but if you know anyone who flies electric-powered model airplanes or helicopters, a lot of the RC chargers can cycle batteries and will give stats on them. When I buy batteries, I stick them on my RC charger (with banana plugs and a bit of creativity to get the contacts to line up) and measure them and I have to say that most of the time, the capacity matches with the advertising.

The ones to watch out for is someone who sells a battery that is exactly the same dimensions as another battery but that person claims >10% higher capacity for theirs. Lithium polymer batteries can vary in capacity per volume, but usually not by that much so I just figure they are fudging the numbers to get more sales.

So, basically, most cell phone batteries are just a little anemic for current phones.
I remember when a cell battery would last for a week.
Now, I think I keep my phone plugged in almost all the time, be it car or home, or office.

 

[shortylickens]

I got a bunch of Tenergy's from Amazon and a big bank charger. Have 30 AA's and 20 AAA's and the charging unit can handle 10 at a time. You can mix and match and leave some slots empty and slap in dry ones while others are charging or fully charged.

Slowly been replacing all my flashlights with models that can handle either AA's or AAA's. I'd rather swap out 10 little rechargeable's than keep buying a bunch of D's or 6V. Still keep my 6D maglight but when I use up all the leftover D's I'm not buying any more, and will give away the light (or keep it to fend of bears). Also got a surefire L7 digital with specialized NiCd'. When they stop working they will be gone, and I will give the light away.

 

[shortylickens]

Oh, whoops.
Forgot this was the cell phone forum.


I get mine from Amazon too. If it doesnt work right I send it back. Have an extended for my LG Voyager, Droid 1, HD7, and will eventually have one for my Atrix2.
Trying to get my mom to use an extended battery in her Blackberry, but she prefers the snug otterbox defender so that wont work.

 

[spacejamz]

I just got one from Amazon, and it is supposed to be an OEM.
It seems to be no better than my old battery.
Is there an app that tests the actual battery and gives some specs?

I'm confused...Why would an OEM battery be any different than your old battery? Aren't they the same??

 

[amdhunter]

I just bought my first battery ever - straight from Verizon. Extended battery for GNexus. $25.
I'd probably go to Amazon in the future.

 

[glen]

I'm confused...Why would an OEM battery be any different than your old battery? Aren't they the same??

1. As batteries age, they just dont hold as much charge. It is better now with these Lion batteries, but I think think they still loose something.

2. Just because it says it is an OEM, doesn't mean it is.

 

[corkyg]

I get mine in town at Batteries Plus.

 

[Oyeve]

My sons Samsung blast is at least 3 years old, holds a charge for at least 5 DAYS and works great. Why cant we get a battery to last more that 8 hours without losing 50% of its charge even with the screen off? Yeah, the Blast ain't a smartphone but damn, hes on it a lot!

 

[alent1234]

home depot, it's like $10 for 40 AA Duracell's

 

[poofyhairguy]

I buy all my batteries from Amazon.

The real trick though is buying a separate battery charger.

 

[draknon]

I bought a 2 pack with external charger from Amazon for my Incredible. They were some no name never heard of ones but for $20 total I figured it was worth the gamble. The batteries are stock size but rated higher and seem to easily last 3x as long as my year+ old stock battery did. Now I have a spare and an external charger so that I can always have one ready to go in case I don't charge up.

 

[Binky]

OEM batteries are usually made in China. Knock-off (i.e. fake) batteries are guaranteed to be made in China. They often look nearly identical, so it's pretty tough to tell the difference, except for maybe the price. If a bunch of reputable vendors are selling it for $25, and Verizon/ATT is selling it for $35, and the cheapo "OEM" you're looking at on ebay/Amazon is $5...it's not real.

Of course, reading the OP, maybe the problem is not the battery, but the phone.

 

[Pliablemoose]

I have found that only the OEM extended batteries are worth the effort...

 

[China_E_Insider]

There are a lot of counterfeit batteries out there, so yea buying from a reputable source for batteries is quite important!