I will keep updating this Google spreadsheet as we go. I'm the only one that can edit it for now, but I'm willing to add contributions from others, just email me. If you wish to do a few of them, I'll give you edit rights. I'd make it fully public, but every time I've seen someone try that, they spend more time reverting vandalism from random children on the net than updating it.
http://goo.gl/ws87w
There's only one battery in there right now, the Hyperion 3500, but I'll be adding more as I get them. I'll also be testing the stock GSM 1750. I'm re-testing the Hyperion now and I will keep the doc updated with the latest/averages. The next battery purchase I make will likely be the Samsung 2000 mAH, just to compare.
Testing method:
I'm using an R/C battery charger/discharger for the testing. It measures true battery capacity on charge and discharge. For discharge, I set the voltage cutoff to 2.9V (2900mv) which is the safe zero point for a single-cell lipo. I'll report averages when multiple tests are performed. I will also be evaluating the effect of various discharge rates, currently I'm testing at 1A discharge. For extended batteries, 1A is well below .5C, this is well within range. The next Hyperion test will be at .5A just to see if it makes a difference.
What will NOT be reported on this spreadsheet is anecdotal evidence like "ran my phone for 12 hours with screen on for 2.5". I am interested in real data across a known load. There are plenty of stories on here now, there's no point in restating them.
What about <random ebay battery>???:
You have a couple options. You can send me one for testing, which I will return to you at your option (I'll pay for return shipping), or you can set up a tester of your own and report data to be included in the list. I don't have unlimited money to spend testing batteries. That's also why I won't be testing Mugen/Sedio batteries unless someone sends me one. They cost too much. Though if someone has the offer for a $20 NFC upgrade from Sedio, I will cover that cost if you send me the non-NFC battery for testing.
I think your method sucks:
Well, that's your right. If you think you have a better one, post. I'm willing to listen. Know this though, I've tested this setup against known batteries and get consistent results. If you don't have data to back up your claims, I probably won't change my mind.
What about "reserve capacity" (below 2.9V):
Discharging below 2.9V will damage the battery cells. I have no interest in doing that. Cell phone batteries include a protection circuit that would likely prevent discharge much below this level anyway. If a user can't actually USE the capacity, it's irrelevant to the user. If I have to destroy the battery cell to get at the capacity, it's not really there. Unless what you are selling is a single use battery?
Why should I care? It's still a good deal:
Perhaps you don't. But consider this, if they lied about capacity, what else might they lie about? Perhaps they used the cheapest cells they could find, so you only get tens of cycles instead of hundreds. Perhaps there are other problems. Perhaps not. I also take issue with made-up numbers being used to sell products. It's no different than advertising 1 gallon of milk, then only giving the customer 75% of that. It's not acceptable with other products, why should it be acceptable for batteries? The OEM cells test out fine, I see no reason aftermarket batteries should be held to a lower standard. Particularly for those that cost significantly more than OEM batteries.
License: Anyone is welcome to repost the data anywhere. I do ask that you link to this post though, just so that any other data reports can be added.
Updated with the stock battery. As expected, it performs a little above the rating. All the Samsung OEM batteries I've seen tested do what they say they do. The second test on the Hyperion pushed up the capacity a bit as well. To call it a 3000Mah is about as generous as I can be. For the price, not bad, but still irritating. And hopefully capacity doesn't fall to nothing over time. NFC would be nice as well. I see they released an extended for the LTE version that has it, hopefully the GSM version will get updated as well.
Good thread.....yea, would be really interesting how well the 3rd party batteries hold their charge over time compared to stock.
I've heard Mugen/Seidio batteries can't hold their original capacity very well over time and then they're terrible.
As well as being an avid android user, I have been flying electric RC planes for years.
I have seen very expensive (not made in China) lipo batteries of 2200 mah explode
or create a long flash fire. I would like to ask some of the gurus on this forum what
their thoughts on the safety of the Zerolemon 7000mah battery. I recently received it,
and love the long life and even the size (but not weight) of my GS3 now. I am quite
concerned that the battery is basically 3 regular batteries slapped together in China.
I know enough about lipo batteries that a dropped battery, a battery left in the car, sun,
or hot pocket, or even just an old battery can spontaneously combust. I would have
felt much better if it was actually one battery, but since it is 3 ran together in series,
even if one is faulty or shorts, it will set up an instant fire bomb. From what I have
seen with my RC batteries, you would be severly injured if the phone was on the desk
by you or charging, and if it was in your pocket you would surely be killed or permanantly
injured and disfigured. I don't want to sound like an alarmist, but my vast experience
with lipo batteries has taught me to be very cautious, even storing the large ones.
Every once in a while you will see or hear of an iphone or android phone blow up, and
luckily they were on the passengers car seat or a picnic table, but even with a 2100 mah
battery the damage is devastating. Any serious comments or discussion of this safety
issue would be appreciated.
Frightened me half to death
Sent from my XT890 using xda app-developers app
Yep, now I'm nervous
Sent from my SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 2
Think I'm about to take this battery out now. Lol.
Sent from my SCH-I605 using xda app-developers app
Send it to me Maurr. I'll hold on to it for you.
Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 4 Beta
There are tons of them spontaneously bursting into flames. Just Google it, tons and tons of threads made every day to. They narrowed down the fires last summer in Australia to be caused by one last year.
With that being said I'll take yours from you if you don't want it. Oh and all other batteries you own since they all pose the same risk.
I am pretty certain they are run in parallel, and with built in charging circuits I think they are just as safe or dangerous as any other after market battery. I have flown my brushless lipo E-Stater for years and even shorted one of the batteries (only for a few seconds), it swelled but never spontaneously conbusted. My RC boat is lipo too and no probs there, nor with either is my Cox foamies.
Sent from my SPH-L710 using xda premium
Thanks for a sensible reply. And I spoke to an engineer friend and he said they were run in parallel, he said in the rare event one ignites in your pocket you are just as screwed with one than with three. I kind of disagree since setting off 3 2100mah firebombs in your pocket would certainly do more damage than setting off one 2100mah, and the Zerolemon is just 3 2100mah batteries slapped together in parallel, and if one goes off they all do, chain reaction.
My friend has also been flying RC for 30 years and last week was his first lipo fire. We both have had many puffed batteries,
but he was flying a new Parkzone Corsair and it just burst into flames and smoke mid air. He had a very expensive but old
battery in it, but Parkzone is sending him all replacement parts for free, so I suspect they know they had a bad ESC in a
batch of them. Then again it could have just been that old battery, we will never know.
My thought process is this. That rc is using the battery at a much faster rate than the phone. So I think most regular use discharge explosions are flukes. Maybe 15 phones blow up a year but how many phones are being used every day. It's pretty simple; If your phone starts getting extremely hot, take the battery out and let it cool off, don't keep your phone in direct sunlight, and always be mindful of your phone's temperature even in your pocket. As far as explosions while charging always make sure you're using a compatible adapter with the correct voltage and use your phone as little as possible.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-T999 using Tapatalk 2
Yes the RC does use the battery at a far faster rate, but they are designed for that.
RC batteries and Cell Phones are both dropped all the time, cell phones much more.
This dropping can damage, vibrate, or short the battery and even if not first apparent,
this damaged battery can combust right away or later after more wear. That is what
I am concerned about. The zerolemon is 3 batteries packed together, and heavy, when
you drop your GS3 the battery is the whole back and takes all the damage (unless
dropped on the glass facing). The standard battery is embedded in the phone and is
therefore protected from drops.
hotstocks said:
As well as being an avid android user, I have been flying electric RC planes for years.
I have seen very expensive (not made in China) lipo batteries of 2200 mah explode
or create a long flash fire. I would like to ask some of the gurus on this forum what
their thoughts on the safety of the Zerolemon 7000mah battery. I recently received it,
and love the long life and even the size (but not weight) of my GS3 now. I am quite
concerned that the battery is basically 3 regular batteries slapped together in China.
I know enough about lipo batteries that a dropped battery, a battery left in the car, sun,
or hot pocket, or even just an old battery can spontaneously combust. I would have
felt much better if it was actually one battery, but since it is 3 ran together in series,
even if one is faulty or shorts, it will set up an instant fire bomb. From what I have
seen with my RC batteries, you would be severly injured if the phone was on the desk
by you or charging, and if it was in your pocket you would surely be killed or permanantly
injured and disfigured. I don't want to sound like an alarmist, but my vast experience
with lipo batteries has taught me to be very cautious, even storing the large ones.
Every once in a while you will see or hear of an iphone or android phone blow up, and
luckily they were on the passengers car seat or a picnic table, but even with a 2100 mah
battery the damage is devastating. Any serious comments or discussion of this safety
issue would be appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is the possibility of ANY battery exploding. First of lets get the terms correct. Per an E-Mail from ZeroLemon the batteries are not Lithium polymer (lipo) they are Lithium Ion. They do have the built in circuits to prevent overcharging and to regulate the charge going in. Now a Phone does not get the abuse that a RC Car gets. The Phone is not charged as fast as the battery for an RC Car. When it come to the 2 RC Car or Phone, Apples and Oranges. I don't see it being a problem.
GTWalling said:
There is the possibility of ANY battery exploding. First of lets get the terms correct. Per an E-Mail from ZeroLemon the batteries are not Lithium polymer (lipo) they are Lithium Ion. They do have the built in circuits to prevent overcharging and to regulate the charge going in. Now a Phone does not get the abuse that a RC Car gets. The Phone is not charged as fast as the battery for an RC Car. When it come to the 2 RC Car or Phone, Apples and Oranges. I don't see it being a problem.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am talking about RC airplanes that do not get any abuse (unless crashed and you throw it away), not RC cars.
Cell phones are dropped all the time.
This dropping can damage, vibrate, or short the battery and even if not first apparent,
this damaged battery can combust right away or later after more wear. That is what
I am concerned about. The zerolemon is 3 batteries packed together, and heavy, when
you drop your GS3 the battery is the whole back and takes all the damage (unless
dropped on the glass facing). The standard battery is embedded in the phone and is
therefore protected from drops.
All batteries will always be at risk to explode. That being said the chances of your phone exploding and seriously injuring or killing you is probably lower than you getting hit by lightening so, you can live in fear or take your very good chances.
If this has scared anyone away from using their battery I'd be more than willing to buy it from you.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-T999 using Tapatalk 2
I just bought this phone and am thinking about keeping it long term (beyond two years) and am thinking of buying a battery now in case I'd like to replace it later on in life. It just seems like finding batteries now would be easier than a couple of years from now.
Anyone know where to find an OEM 3000mah battery?
Lithium Batteries need to be recharged regularly, if you put it in a drawer for a few years without charging you're in for a nasty surprise once you build it into your phone.
You ought to be really sure if you plan to replace this device's battery one day...
I mean, the whole disassembly process is a pain in the ass. I just recently f*cked the display trying to fix the buttons.
Why not invest in a good powerbank instead like Xiaomi's 10k Mah?
Use it to prolong your phone battery by not letting it drop too low and thus saving your phone battery from degrading faster
offiial Motorala repair kits
kkn14 said:
Why not invest in a good powerbank instead like Xiaomi's 10k Mah?
Use it to prolong your phone battery by not letting it drop too low and thus saving your phone battery from degrading faster
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have you guys heard about Motorola now supplying repair kits and parts? pretty awesome.
jaunie said:
Have you guys heard about Motorola now supplying repair kits and parts? pretty awesome.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yea, I heard Moto is giving iFixit some OEM replacement parts to sell to customers. Cool.
kkn14 said:
Why not invest in a good powerbank instead like Xiaomi's 10k Mah?
Use it to prolong your phone battery by not letting it drop too low and thus saving your phone battery from degrading faster
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually after 30 charges, you should pretty much let your battery drain before charging.
How about buying battery from iFixit?
i bought one with a bad esn from ebay for parts.
Is it morally reprehensible? probably.
Do i care? no
I usually do this for every phone i've ever owned for any real amount of time.
It would be useful if people stumbling upon this thread mention their country in the thread so that people who know the process and source can help better
First of all i know there is a similar post here https://forum.xda-developers.com/go...ent-direct-replacement-battery-nexus-t3905671
i buy the battery because of that post so believe me, im aware of... The battery is a brand new item from a german manufacturer of pollarcell goods (premium battery as they claim to be)
I order it at ebay for GBP 17.90 (US $23.28) but i had a 10 dollars coupon so i just had to pay 13 dollars plus free shipping. It took 9 days germany - argentina so WOW not bad, bad is the postal service here but anyway, after two months local shipping i got the battery; here:
{
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and then i proceed to replace it (u can see i still had an original battery replacement (was excellent but after so long i can only get 3 nice hours of use)
so after all the waiting the battery wasnt working!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! nothing, was like no battery there at all, the bolt was gone as soon as i took the power cord away.
I had two options, send it back (and wait 3 or 4 more months with a battery that exponentially decrease its performance day after day) or open it and see what is going on with a small chance that if nothing is wrong i lose the 13 dollars because the warranty is gone...so guess what
those two metal plates have to make contact with each other so, after fixing that with some tape (i guess u can solder with tin also) now the battery works fine
now i will charge it fully and in a few days i will update with the performance in a regular day and sot test. Thanks
Wow, i have my old Nexus 5 catching dust somewhere in mi home. This could be interesting. Thanks for the info mate. Will follow your updates.
Enviado desde mi SM-G965F mediante Tapatalk
ok first update, 21:41 june 18, disconnected 100%, and last till 22:21 june 19 with 2% remaining, with no signal of sudden drops of charge or else. yes ok i have an app always running 24/7(followers assitant) and thats whay it took 17% and im a big instagram user BUT in constast to that i have another cellphone solely for work so this is my personal phone and is mostly social media and stuff, i will says any user will get simillar performance if you are in stock like me (im running full stock android 6.0.1 with xposed and gravity box) or may be lower performance if u use too much gps i guess. Sorry i cannot give more useful feedback like "what about using custom roms or greenify" .
Thanks, next test will be SoT, regardless of https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Zt2j8lFbJQ
I just ordered this battery for my ancient Nexus 5.
I hope I don't screw this up. It's still a neat little device and I want keep it around.
---------- Post added at 08:30 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:30 PM ----------
This was an easy swap, watched a video and read some tips ahead of time. Worked out great.
The battery life is acceptable now, and I can easily make it through the day. I don't have any good stats on it, but the difference is very noticeable.
My experience so far...
I've been using this battery for about 2 months now. Battery life is good, better than the 5 year old stock battery I was using before. Well, don't expect any miracles, but at least now the phone can make it through the day without the need for charge, with mild usage. Mine lasts about 22hrs, whereas with the stock one it lasted about 17hrs at best.
The only disadvantage I have found is that it lacks a temperature sensor. Mine always shows a temperature of 28-29C no matter the load, charging or not. However, it works well, and since its price is quite reasonable, that's fine by me!
I've had a previous experience of buying an "original" battery (identical sticker and lettering with the stock), which proved to be a potato wrapped with aluminium foil.... So if someone is looking for a decent replacement for their aging battery, that is easy to swap, I think this is the battery to go for. Big thanks to Polarcell for keeping the hammerhead beast alive!
I bought a very expensive Polarcell (£25) for my Nexus 6. I had no quality problems with it, and even with my QHD screen I rarely drop below 50% battery by end of day with moderate but regular use (emails, texts, Telegram, news, XDA, updates, etc.)
Polarcell seem to provide quality products, so I'm surprised that the OP had a physical failure. Good work getting it fixed.
It's a good upgrade if your battery is dying.
Just another thumbs up for this battery - ordered one after seeing this thread. Thanks so much! It was getting really frustrating with all the fake or useless aftermarket batteries out there that last 5 minutes.
Ha ha ha... I'm genuinely glad you're one of the (IMO) lucky ones. Have a look at this thread.
https://forum.xda-developers.com/ne...-late-2019-t3997575/post80912967#post80912967
My Nexus 6 Polarcell is still giving me stellar battery life. If you check out the Polarcell reviews for the Nexus 5 on Amazon UK you'll see that I'm at least the third to get a dud battery. Shame.
Hey guys, I need some help with choosing a battery. After many years with the original battery lately the performace droppes drastically and sometimes when I'm below 35% and I'm taking pictures I experience shutdowns. So I finaly decided that it is time to buy a new battery. After reading here and on reddit I'm wondering if I should order a Polarcell battery. I was going to order a Polarcell one, but then I saw a review on amazon saying that after 2 years it has bloated and lost a lot capacity. While searching for batteries I found another one with good reviews and I'm wondering which one I should get. Your help will be highly appreciated. I need to order from Germany or somewhere in the EU so they can deliver it to my country.
sorry I am a new user and cant post the links directly
PolarCell: amazon. de/cellePhone-PolarCell-Li-Polymer-kompatibel-Google-Polar-Wei%C3%9F/dp/B00VJ8FIV8
Green Cell: amazon. de/Green-Cell-Li-Ion-Zellen-2300mAh/dp/B07JJFXDMV/
I'm also wondering if I order Polarcell, should I order from amazon or ebay?
Having had one great Polarcell for my Nexus 6 and a totally dud one for my Nexus 5, I wouldn't gamble again on getting a good Polarcell. If there are good reviews for Green Cell, I would go for that one.
Why do you guys keep operating on the assumption that replacement batteries for cell phones that came with sealed in batteries (i.e. essentially all phones manufactured for western markets in the last decade, or so) are actually available? I understand that this perverse business model of selling almost exclusively premium-only products that turn into useless paper weights after ~2 years invariably leads to a desperate hope in the purchaser, which makes them more susceptible to fall for scams that profit from desperation, uncertainty, and the magical thinking that makes up the gap (even I, being aware of the simple facts I'm about to point out, nevertheless fell victim to what of course had to be a cell phone replacement battery scam -- because they all are, to varying degrees, scams; I'll elaborate on that below).
Here are some basic facts:
1. The claim that cell phones would be bulkier if they had replaceable battery is an egregious lie. Look up the dimensions of the last western Android device whose battery was replaceable, the LG V20. It was neither any thicker, nor did it come with a battery with substantially lower capacity than its peers at the time.
2. The claim that a replaceable battery limits the functionality of the phone is dubious at best. Around the time the V20 was still produced, the recent fad was "water proof" cell phones. Except, as I recall, they turned out not so water proof after all. "Water proof" in the end turned out to mean little more than "could be splashed with water, like when taking a shower). And if you read all the restrictions in the EULA on where exactly you were allowed to use the phone without losing warranty, the "water resistant" feature in reality was nothing of the sort. I don''t recall any other similar claims regarding other features that would be severely hampered by a removable battery door, so I'll leave it at this.
Now, to get to the availability of batteries: this may come as a surprise, but manufacturing LiPo batteries is not so trivial (in terms of barrier to entry) that you have all these previously unheard-of (in reality, fly-by-night -- and I'll get to that in a bit) companies that magically produce exact replacements for popular phone models. In fact, phone manufacturers rely on two sources for their batteries:
1. In-house: this is the case with Sony/Samsung/LG/etc. They manufacture both the phones and another division makes the batteries.
2. Contracted manufacturers: This was the case for at least the Huawei made Nexus 6P, where the battery maker was a different entity that was contracted by Huawei to produce the batteries they used in the 6P.
-In the first case, the manufacturers make their own batteries -- for phones that aren't expected to have their batteries replaced. For warranty related issues, they simply issue a new phone and program the existing IMEI into it, making it indistinguishable from the failed device. Salaries in every part of the world have risen, even while the cost of producing electronics monotonically fell at the same time. There was a point in the past where the two lines crossed and it became unprofitable to repair devices, rather than simply replace them and throw the defective device in the trash.
-In the second case, the manufacturer is contractually forbidden from independently making and selling batteries. The extra profit to them is nothing compared to the loss of profit incurred by manufacturers if their planned obsolescence schemes were foiled by a third party, so this exclusivity requirements forms the basis of any such contract.
What the above effectively means is this: one battery per phone. One digitizer per phone. One...of each component in each shell, as well as the shell itself, for each phone. In other words, the idea that there are warehouses full of OEM parts is a remnant of the (relatively recent, thus the misconception) past. Let me be as crystal clear as I can be: when you are buying a so-called OEM component for any device today, what you are receiving -- irrespective of what the seller claims -- is very nearly always a part that was removed from another existing phone that had been in use for X hours before it was scrapped and gutted for parts (*) (and when I say very nearly, this is simply to accommodate the sporadic exceptions to this hard rule that exist; of course, if you brought this up with any distributor, they would insist that all their products are magically exempt from this universal fact).
(*) To put it plainly: when you buy a "replacement battery" for your phone, you are buying an OEM component that may have optionally been rewrapped to make it seem like someone else manufactured it. To that, I have to say: please provide sufficient documentation (photos, public records, etc.) to prove "Polarcell" (or Green Battery, et al.) has the resources / manufacturing capabilities to make their own LiPo batteries. When invariably it becomes clear that they don't and "outsource" manufacture, then show me the same records for this imaginary, benevolent, hidden giant that's cool with routinely breaking major order contracts that could instantly turn them into the "persona non grata" of the industry (does "you'll live out the rest of your days in a pain amplifier!" ring a bell with anyone?).
Now, to finally cover the seemingly most baffling aspect of the replacement LiPo aftermarket: the fact that there is so much variance from user to user -- that, indeed, not every satisfied real review is a swindle. When you think about it, the reason is quite obvious and follows from the aforementioned facts: because the replacement battery was taken from another device (i.e. in a used state), the actual wear and tear varies widely and to my knowledge there are only two factors that can help in roughly estimating the likelihood of receiving a near-perfect battery on one hand, vs an utter dud on the other (and one factor merely builds on the worst case scenario of the other):
1. How long has that particular phone model been on the market? Chances are, if it's only been a few months, then the batteries sold come from devices that were smashed, or otherwise rendered inoperable. This means there's a good chance that the battery hasn't gone through too many charge cycles and therefore retains a decent amount of capacity. You could even bank on this knowledge, buy up all batteries at the beginning the moment they start appearing, and later gain an excellent reputation as a seller of quality batteries (yes, LiPo batteries lose capacity even when not in use; OTOH, my Nexus 9 was used for 10 days in December 2015 (before I dropped it and smashed the screen) and remained dormant until the end of last summer. Its battery capacity was 17% when I powered it back up and the AccuBattery app shows remaining capacity to be within 90% of OEM/new rating). Conversely, you could buy them for yourself and keep them for later.
2. If the phone came out some time ago, how much time has gone by since production ended? Because all "replacement batteries" were previously used in existing devices, this helps establish the likelihood that you may still come across a replacement that has seen little use. If it's been years since production ended, it means the probability that any battery you buy has decent remaining charge is very low. But keep in mind: as with anything else involving stochastic math, this means only that the mean remaining capacity of the replacements being sold is low -- not that all of them are. Due to the high number of batteries in circulation, you can apply the central limit theorem of probability theory to establish that the probability function regarding capacity of the replacements forms a Gaussian (bell curve): the vast majority are near the mean, but there are extreme outliers as well (but in diminishingly small quantity). So if you consider yourself blessed by Gaia, you can test this out by ordering a replacement under such circumstances.
As for the rest of us mere mortals: so knowing all this, how badly did I personally get burned? Let's just say, I ordered a replacement for my Nexus 6P last year or the year before (i.e. past production cessation) -- from a well known website that provides excellent DIY repair documents (I feel for the guy because no corporation will logically ever sponsor him, and because I firmly agree with his philosophy; but I'm still miffed after being cheated and cannot ignore this -- so as a compromise, I won't name names) and ended up with a battery that (by rough estimate) about 50-60% of the remaining capacity of the battery I was replacing. That battery was down roughly 50-60% of original capacity -- so you do the math.
---------- Post added at 07:59 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:54 PM ----------
zszabo said:
Why do you guys keep operating on the assumption that replacement batteries for cell phones that came with sealed in batteries (i.e. essentially all phones manufactured for western markets in the last decade, or so) are actually available? I understand that this perverse business model of selling almost exclusively premium-only products that turn into useless paper weights after ~2 years invariably leads to a desperate hope in the purchaser, which makes them more susceptible to fall for scams that profit from desperation, uncertainty, and the magical thinking that makes up the gap (even I, being aware of the simple facts I'm about to point out, nevertheless fell victim to what of course had to be a cell phone replacement battery scam -- because they all are, to varying degrees, scams; I'll elaborate on that below).
Here are some basic facts:
1. The claim that cell phones would be bulkier if they had replaceable battery is an egregious lie. Look up the dimensions of the last western Android device whose battery was replaceable, the LG V20. It was neither any thicker, nor did it come with a battery with substantially lower capacity than its peers at the time.
2. The claim that a replaceable battery limits the functionality of the phone is dubious at best. Around the time the V20 was still produced, the recent fad was "water proof" cell phones. Except, as I recall, they turned out not so water proof after all. "Water proof" in the end turned out to mean little more than "could be splashed with water, like when taking a shower). And if you read all the restrictions in the EULA on where exactly you were allowed to use the phone without losing warranty, the "water resistant" feature in reality was nothing of the sort. I don''t recall any other similar claims regarding other features that would be severely hampered by a removable battery door, so I'll leave it at this.
Now, to get to the availability of batteries: this may come as a surprise, but manufacturing LiPo batteries is not so trivial (in terms of barrier to entry) that you have all these previously unheard-of (in reality, fly-by-night -- and I'll get to that in a bit) companies that magically produce exact replacements for popular phone models. In fact, phone manufacturers rely on two sources for their batteries:
1. In-house: this is the case with Sony/Samsung/LG/etc. They manufacture both the phones and another division makes the batteries.
2. Contracted manufacturers: This was the case for at least the Huawei made Nexus 6P, where the battery maker was a different entity that was contracted by Huawei to produce the batteries they used in the 6P.
-In the first case, the manufacturers make their own batteries -- for phones that aren't expected to have their batteries replaced. For warranty related issues, they simply issue a new phone and program the existing IMEI into it, making it indistinguishable from the failed device. Salaries in every part of the world have risen, even while the cost of producing electronics monotonically fell at the same time. There was a point in the past where the two lines crossed and it became unprofitable to repair devices, rather than simply replace them and throw the defective device in the trash.
-In the second case, the manufacturer is contractually forbidden from independently making and selling batteries. The extra profit to them is nothing compared to the loss of profit incurred by manufacturers if their planned obsolescence schemes were foiled by a third party, so this exclusivity requirements forms the basis of any such contract.
What the above effectively means is this: one battery per phone. One digitizer per phone. One...of each component in each shell, as well as the shell itself, for each phone. In other words, the idea that there are warehouses full of OEM parts is a remnant of the (relatively recent, thus the misconception) past. Let me be as crystal clear as I can be: when you are buying a so-called OEM component for any device today, what you are receiving -- irrespective of what the seller claims -- is very nearly always a part that was removed from another existing phone that had been in use for X hours before it was scrapped and gutted for parts (*) (and when I say very nearly, this is simply to accommodate the sporadic exceptions to this hard rule that exist; of course, if you brought this up with any distributor, they would insist that all their products are magically exempt from this universal fact).
(*) To put it plainly: when you buy a "replacement battery" for your phone, you are buying an OEM component that may have optionally been rewrapped to make it seem like someone else manufactured it. To that, I have to say: please provide sufficient documentation (photos, public records, etc.) to prove "Polarcell" (or Green Battery, et al.) has the resources / manufacturing capabilities to make their own LiPo batteries. When invariably it becomes clear that they don't and "outsource" manufacture, then show me the same records for this imaginary, benevolent, hidden giant that's cool with routinely breaking major order contracts that could instantly turn them into the "persona non grata" of the industry (does "you'll live out the rest of your days in a pain amplifier!" ring a bell with anyone?).
Now, to finally cover the seemingly most baffling aspect of the replacement LiPo aftermarket: the fact that there is so much variance from user to user -- that, indeed, not every satisfied real review is a swindle. When you think about it, the reason is quite obvious and follows from the aforementioned facts: because the replacement battery was taken from another device (i.e. in a used state), the actual wear and tear varies widely and to my knowledge there are only two factors that can help in roughly estimating the likelihood of receiving a near-perfect battery on one hand, vs an utter dud on the other (and one factor merely builds on the worst case scenario of the other):
1. How long has that particular phone model been on the market? Chances are, if it's only been a few months, then the batteries sold come from devices that were smashed, or otherwise rendered inoperable. This means there's a good chance that the battery hasn't gone through too many charge cycles and therefore retains a decent amount of capacity. You could even bank on this knowledge, buy up all batteries at the beginning the moment they start appearing, and later gain an excellent reputation as a seller of quality batteries (yes, LiPo batteries lose capacity even when not in use; OTOH, my Nexus 9 was used for 10 days in December 2015 (before I dropped it and smashed the screen) and remained dormant until the end of last summer. Its battery capacity was 17% when I powered it back up and the AccuBattery app shows remaining capacity to be within 90% of OEM/new rating). Conversely, you could buy them for yourself and keep them for later.
2. If the phone came out some time ago, how much time has gone by since production ended? Because all "replacement batteries" were previously used in existing devices, this helps establish the likelihood that you may still come across a replacement that has seen little use. If it's been years since production ended, it means the probability that any battery you buy has decent remaining charge is very low. But keep in mind: as with anything else involving stochastic math, this means only that the mean remaining capacity of the replacements being sold is low -- not that all of them are. Due to the high number of batteries in circulation, you can apply the central limit theorem of probability theory to establish that the probability function regarding capacity of the replacements forms a Gaussian (bell curve): the vast majority are near the mean, but there are extreme outliers as well (but in diminishingly small quantity). So if you consider yourself blessed by Gaia, you can test this out by ordering a replacement under such circumstances.
As for the rest of us mere mortals: so knowing all this, how badly did I personally get burned? Let's just say, I ordered a replacement for my Nexus 6P last year or the year before (i.e. past production cessation) -- from a well known website that provides excellent DIY repair documents (I feel for the guy because no corporation will logically ever sponsor him, and because I firmly agree with his philosophy; but I'm still miffed after being cheated and cannot ignore this -- so as a compromise, I won't name names) and ended up with a battery that (by rough estimate) about 50-60% of the remaining capacity of the battery I was replacing. That battery was down roughly 50-60% of original capacity -- so you do the math.
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There is one place to purchase genuine LG BL-T9 batteries and that is at the official parts distributor for LG:
lg.encompass.com/item/10389517/
brisalta said:
---------- Post added at 07:59 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:54 PM ----------
There is one place to purchase genuine LG BL-T9 batteries and that is at the official parts distributor for LG:
lg.encompass.com/item/10389517/
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And the problem with that is that then I can buy a new phone instead. I have no need for 7 batteries at the same time. Min order $200 for credit card outside US.