I have had many cellular phones over the last few years, as I am sure most people have, and while none have been particularly amazing, some have absolutely been useless. The most common problem I have ever had with my cell phones has been with the batteries. The cellular phone battery has either broke or it just would not last long enough and I would need to purchase and carry a replacement battery.

I generally use my cell phone regularly, both for my work and for private use, so having a backup battery is often worthwhile but having to replace a faulty or damaged battery is disappointing. My latest phone is working well but I would like a replacement battery for times when I am not in the office.

Cell Phone Batteries

These are the details of my latest phone (yep, I know it is a bit past it, I really should purchase a new mobile phone):

Samsung SCH-i730

Positives:
Five-way wireless support (IrDA, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, CDMA 1xRTT, and EV-DO); speakerphone; comfortable slide-out QWERTY thumb keyboard; two batteries included; excellent third-party software support.
Negatives:
No support for modem use with a laptop; Wi-Fi and phone can’t work simultaneously; Wi-Fi is a battery hog; no camera in initial Verizon release.
Facts:
Small, light, and powerful, the Samsung SCH-i730’s high-speed data support and built-in Bluetooth and Wi-Fi make it an excellent choice for those who have to stay connected at all times, though the crippled Bluetooth support may spoil the party for laptop road warriors.

The Samsung SCH-i730 for Verizon Wireless manages a pretty impressive feat: It shrinks a Windows Mobile-based smart phone into a form factor that actually fits comfortably in your pants pocket and includes broadband wireless, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, a built-in keyboard, and a speedy processor. Despite some irritating quirks in its wireless support, the Samsung i730 stays in the running for the "Treo killer" title.

The Samsung SCH-i730 is much smaller than typical Windows Mobile-based handhelds; only the diminutive I-mate Jam is smaller, but the Jam lacks the i730’s keyboard and Wi-Fi support. In fact, other than being slightly thicker, the i730 is virtually identical in size to Palm’s popular Treo 650. At 2.28 by 0.97 by 4.49 inches and 6.4 ounces, the i730 is close in size to other Windows Mobile-based smart phones, but it has the touch screen and the full Windows Mobile application compatibility that many smart phones lack.

The well-designed i730 is destined to give the Treo 650 a run for its money.

With the slider closed, the i730 is relatively small.

The i730’s screen resolution is lower than the Treo 650’s (240×320 pixels vs. 320×320 for the Treo), but its 2.8-inch rectangular screen is better for Web browsing and video playback than the Treo’s square display, particularly when using the Windows Mobile 2003 SE screen-rotation feature, which lets you easily switch the screen between Landscape and Portrait modes. Though the screen is on the smallish side, it’s extremely bright and sharp.

With a cool black and silver design, the i730 sports a large display.

It’s hard to avoid Treo comparisons when discussing the i730. Though it hides its full QWERTY keyboard behind the screen using an innovative slider design, this thumb keyboard is the first we’ve used that matches the Treo’s comfort level and potential typing speed. The backlit keys are raised bubbles, rather than the small, flat keys used by the Siemens SX66, which has a similar slider design. The keyboard is very comfortable, but because of its sliding design, the Samsung i730 hasn’t been as well optimized for one-handed use as the Treo. Also, gamers take note: The i730 can recognize only one button press at a time, so you won’t be able to move and fire simultaneously in games such as Galaga.

The sliding form factor hides a nifty full QWERTY keyboard.

Thanks to the combination of its operating system and specs, the Samsung SCH-i730 is a processing powerhouse. It sports a 520MHz Intel PXA272 processor, 64MB of internal RAM, 128MB of flash memory (more than 80MB of which is available for program storage), and an SDIO/MMC expansion slot. It runs Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition, which offers a full set of PIM functions as well as Pocket versions of Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel. Music and movie fans will appreciate the inclusion of Windows Media Player 10.0, which supports PlaysForSure WMA files from online music stores such as Napster and Musicmatch and easy syncing of television programs recorded by Windows Media Center PCs. The Samsung i730 also includes a few bonus applications, including Sprite Backup, an excellent program launcher, and Verizon’s Wireless Sync push e-mail client. While Microsoft’s Windows Mobile push functionality won’t be built into devices until we see units featuring Windows Mobile 5.0, Verizon’s push e-mail client does the trick. Though some preproduction i730s were shown with a built-in 1.3-megapixel camera, this feature is missing from the initial i730 released by Verizon. It’s possible that the camera could appear in a second model or in a version from another carrier, but no camera version has been announced. Nevertheless, we had hoped that a high-end smart phone such as the Samsung i730 would have at least a VGA-quality camera.

With a 1GB SD card, the i730 stores enough digital music to hold you over during those commutes.

The i730 has the full laundry list of wireless features: It includes Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and both 1xRTT and EV-DO cellular data. The Bluetooth support worked perfectly with the hardware we tested, including the Think Outside Stowaway Bluetooth keyboard, the Stowaway Travel Mouse, the Logitech Mobile Freedom Bluetooth headset, and the Pharos Bluetooth GPS. However, Verizon has chosen not to include Bluetooth dial-up networking support, so you can’t use the i730 as a wireless modem in conjunction with your laptop. Given the blistering speeds we saw in our EV-DO testing–download speeds ranging from 520Kbps to 640Kbps, compared with 60Kbps to 110Kbps for 1xRTT–we can see why Verizon would be concerned that laptop users might use this feature more than the company would like. This omission means you’ll have to do your work directly on the i730 if you can’t find an access point for your laptop.

Another quirk: The phone feature shuts down when you’re using the i730’s Wi-Fi radio, so incoming calls will go directly to voicemail. (And you have to manually turn the phone radio back on after shutting down Wi-Fi.) This is less of an issue in areas where EV-DO support is available, since our speed tests showed EV-DO data speeds were comparable to that of a Wi-Fi connection or a DSL modem. EV-DO support is still rolling out in major cities; in the Seattle area, we found some suburbs have EV-DO coverage, while in others, the phone fell back to 1xRTT support.

The dual-band (CDMA 800/1900) Samsung SCH-i730’s phone features worked smoothly in our tests on Verizon’s network. Voices sounded clear on both ends of the call when speaking directly into the phone, but conversations were a bit quiet when using the Logitech Mobile Freedom Bluetooth headset. Speakerphone quality, though, is excellent. A nice bonus is the inclusion of VoiceSignal software, which lets you dial by pressing the button on your Bluetooth headset and saying "Call name." Voice and data coverage were excellent, though the lack of analog support means you may have trouble finding a signal in some rural areas. (That said, digital CDMA coverage is more widespread in the United States than GSM.)

The i730 includes a pair of batteries: a 1,100mAh standard battery and a thicker 1,700mAh extended battery. Battery life will vary dramatically depending on how you use the phone. Wi-Fi is a real power hog, and the extended battery will come in handy if you plan to use this feature much. The standard battery is rated at 2.5 hours of talk time, which we surpassed by an extra half hour in our tests. For standby time, it promises 5.4 days; this seems accurate from our testing. The package also includes a stereo headset, a belt holster, and an extremely portable folding USB sync cradle.

So I guess the real question is do I spend the money purchasing a new Samsung SCH-i730 cellular phone battery or do I just get a new phone with a better performing battery? Replacement batteries are very cheap but a new phone would be fun. Always decisions need to be made.

I have owned a number of cell phones over the last few years, as I am sure most people have, and while none have been especially outstanding, some have most definitely been useless. The main problem I have ever had with my mobile phones has been with the batteries. The cell phone battery has either broke or it just would not last long enough and I would need to purchase and carry a replacement battery.

I always use my cell phone often, both for my job and for private use, so having another battery is often a good idea but having to replace a faulty or damaged battery is a pain. My latest phone is working well but I would like a replacement battery for when I am travelling.

Cell Phone Battery

These are the details of my current phone (yep, I know it is a bit old, I really should find a new cellular phone):

Samsung SCH-U540 (silver)

Product Short Spec:

Band / mode:

CDMA 800/1900

Talk time:

Up to 210 min

Combined with:

With digital camera / digital player

Weight:

0.2 lbs

Note: This product is part of the Samsung SCH-U540 series. .

review

So I suppose the true question is do I spend the money buying a new Samsung SCH-U540 (silver) cell phone battery or do I just buy a new phone with a better performing battery? Replacement batteries are fairly cheap but a new phone would be fun. I must make a decision…

I have bought a number of cellular phones over the years, as I am sure many people have, and while none have been particularly outstanding, some have absolutely been rubbish. The only problem I have ever had with my mobile phones has been with the batteries. The battery has either died or it just would not last long enough and I would need to purchase and carry a replacement battery.

I generally use my cell phone heaps, both for my job and for home use, so having another battery is often worthwhile but having to replace a faulty or damaged battery is disappointing. My newest phone is working well but I would like a replacement battery for those times when I am travelling.

Cellular Phone Battery

These are the details of my most current phone (yes, I know it is a bit old, I really should find a new cell phone):

Sanyo 6600 Katana (Mystic black)

Positives:
The Sanyo 6600 Katana has a slim silhouette and offers a VGA camera, Bluetooth, a speakerphone, text messaging, voice dialing, a voice recorder, and a wireless Web browser. It has a large external screen.
Negatives:
The Sanyo 6600 Katana’s feature set is rather underwhelming and doesn’t have 3G support like many of its slim counterparts. It also suffers from flat keys that are slippery and difficult to dial by feel.
Facts:
The Sanyo 6600 Katana pales in comparison to the Motorola Razr and the Samsung MM-A900 in terms of design and features. But on its own, it’s a pretty good midtier phone.

Note: This product is part of the Sanyo 6600 Katana series. .

When the Samsung MM-A900 arrived from Sprint late last year, we called it Samsung’s answer to the Motorola Razr, thanks to its slim shape and similar, flip-phone design. Fast-forward several months, and Sprint has yet another Razr competitor on its hands: the Sanyo 6600 Katana. Having named it after a type of samurai sword, Sanyo clearly has high ambitions with this slim and slender handset, perhaps aiming to draw people away from the widely popular Razr. But without features such as a megapixel camera, a music player, or 3G support, the Sanyo 6600 Katana pales in comparison to both the Samsung MM-A900 and Verizon’s Razr V3m. On the upside, its retail price of $279.99 is markedly cheaper than that of the Samsung and Motorola phones, and you can get it for $79.99 after a two-year service contract with Sprint. It also comes in Mystic Black, Sapphire Blue, Cherry Blossom Pink, and Polar White. The white phone is sold exclusively at RadioShack.

The major draw of the Sanyo 6600 Katana is, obviously, its design. It has a superslim form factor that measures 3.9 by 2.0 by 0.6 inches, much like the MM-A900, and it weighs a very light 3.4 ounces, much like the Razr. Its thin profile means it slips into a pocket easily, and we found the phone comfortable to hold in hand and next to the ear.

The Sanyo 6600 Katana has a VGA camera.

At first glance, it’s easy to confuse the Katana with the Razr. The camera is located at the top of the front flap with the external display just underneath, which is very similar to the Razr–although the Katana has a slightly beveled front, while the Razr’s front flap is flat. We liked the Katana’s large, 1-inch-diagonal, 65,000-color external display; it demonstrates the usual signal strength, as well as battery life and time; plus, it shows photo caller ID and acts as a camera viewfinder for self-portraits. On the left spine is the volume rocker, while the right spine is home to a dedicated camera button.

Flip open the phone and you’ll find a large 65,000-color, 2.2-inch-diagonal screen, which is rather disappointing when compared to the 262,000-color support of the Samsung MM-A900. What’s more, the screen was difficult to see in bright sunlight. You can change the display’s backlight time and font size, but you can’t adjust the brightness or contrast. The menu design has a brushed-metal look, which we found boring, but it was easy to use.

Below the display are the navigational controls and keypad, which are arranged in a blocky, gridlike layout. The navigation keys consist of two soft keys and a five-way toggle that also act as shortcuts to text messaging, voice recording, the My Content folder, and the Web browser. These shortcuts are not user-customizable. Below the left soft-key is the dedicated camera button and below the right soft key is the Back button. Above the keypad are the Talk and End/power keys, with the speakerphone key in between. As with the MM-A900 and the Razr, the keys are flush to the surface, making them difficult to dial by feel. Perhaps worse than either of the two, the keys on the Katana are terribly slippery, which made navigating the menu even trickier. The keys glow bright blue when activated, and you can adjust the backlight timer on the keys.

Behind the Katana’s slim silhouette is a disappointing feature set. It doesn’t have nearly the multimedia clout that the Razr and the Samsung MM-A900 have in terms of a megapixel camera, media-player functionality, and 3G support. Yet the Katana has several basic features that should satisfy most users. The 500-entry address book holds up to seven numbers per entry, an e-mail address, a Web site URL, a home address, and a memo. Plus, you can assign a contact to a group, a photo ID, and one of 16 polyphonic (72-chord) ring tones. There’s also text messaging, instant messaging, e-mail, picture mail, voice recording, Bluetooth, a calendar, an alarm clock, a countdown timer, a stopwatch, a world clock, a calculator, a vibrate mode, a speakerphone, and a wireless Web browser. We liked that you could activate the speakerphone before you make calls.

The Sanyo Katana produced disappointing picture quality.

The Katana offers a VGA camera, which produced predictably disappointing picture quality with washed-out colors (not to mention way too much orange) and blurry object edges. You can take pictures with three different resolutions (640×480, 320×240, or 160×120 pixels), three quality settings (Fine, Normal, Economy), and the choice of either two shutter sounds or silence. Other camera settings include five picture modes (Normal, Beach/Snow, Scenery, Night/Dark, and Soft Focus), a self-timer of up to 10 seconds, multiple shot, stitch shot, 10 picture frames, eight color tones, brightness, and white balance.

You can customize the Sanyo Katana with a variety of screensavers and animation graphics, though there doesn’t seem to be an option to change the wallpaper. Plus, you have the option of downloading more screensavers, graphics, and ring tones from Sprint via the wireless WAP 2.0 browser. On the gaming front, the phone comes with Midnight Pool, World Poker Tour, and demos of Ms. Pac-Man and Tetris. You also have the option of downloading more games from Sprint.

We tested the dual-band, trimode (CDMA 800/A900; AMPS 800) Sanyo Katana in San Francisco using Sprint’s service. Signal strength and call quality were great, as both parties could hear each other loud and clear. Speakerphone quality was similarly good, and we were impressed with how loud the calls were. We successfully managed to pair the Sanyo Katana with the Jabra BT160. Browser speed was predictably poky, taking a few seconds to load each page.

The Sanyo Katana has a rated talk time of 3.5 hours and a rated standby time of seven days. In our tests, we eked out an impressive 4 hours of talk time, but battery life fell short at just four days. According to FCC radiation tests, the Sanyo Katana has a digital SAR rating of 0.678 watt per kilogram.

So I suppose the real question is do I spend the money getting a new Sanyo 6600 Katana (Mystic black) cellular phone battery or do I just get a new phone with a better performing battery? Replacement batteries are fairly inexpensive but a new phone would be nice. I must make a decision…

I have owned many mobile phones over recent years, as I am sure everyone has, and while none have been that extraordinary, some have absolutely been crap. The most common problem I have ever had with my cellular phones has been with the cell battery. The battery has either died or it just would not last long enough and I would need to purchase and carry a replacement battery.

I usually use my mobile phone heaps, both for work and for private use, so having another battery is often worth it but having to replace a faulty or damaged battery is annoying. My newest phone is working ok but I would like a replacement battery for when I am travelling.

Cell Phone Battery

These are the details of my most current phone (yes, I know it is a bit outdated, I really should buy a new mobile phone):

RIM BlackBerry 7100g

Positives:
The slim and trim RIM BlackBerry 7100g features a bright display and a pseudo-QWERTY keypad in a slim and trim package. It also has Bluetooth, and it syncs with Microsoft Exchange, Lotus Notes, and BlackBerry servers.
Negatives:
The BlackBerry 7100g’s modified keyboard takes some time to master, and the Bluetooth works only with wireless headsets. The 7100g also lacks a instant-messaging client, and Java apps are not downloadable.
Facts:
Cingular subscribers looking for on-the-go e-mail access in a slim, lightweight device will warm to the RIM BlackBerry 7100g–that is, if they’re patient with the tricky keypad.

Note: This product is part of the RIM BlackBerry 7100 series. .

Research in Motion’s slim, lightweight 7100 series makes its way to Cingular Wireless with the arrival of the RIM BlackBerry 7100g. Nearly identical to T-Mobile’s BlackBerry 7100t, this new addition to the 7100 family boasts the same quasi-QWERTY keypad, the ability to sync with corporate servers and POP/Web e-mail clients, and a refreshingly compact form factor. That said, the reasonably priced 7100g ($299; $199 with a two-year service plan) comes saddled with some of the same limitations: Bluetooth that’s restricted to headsets only, no onboard chat client, and a keypad that can be tricky to master. However, those who want on-the-go access to their e-mail without being weighted down by a hefty device will likely warm to the RIM BlackBerry 7100g–as long as they’re willing to deal with the keypad’s learning curve.

The slim and trim RIM BlackBerry 7100g looks almost identical to its BlackBerry 7100t sibling; both measure 4.6 by 2.3 by 0.8 inches and weigh about 4.2 ounces, small enough to fit snugly in a jeans pocket and easy to hold against your cheek during voice calls. Some of the cosmetics, though, are slightly different. For example, the 7100t’s blue and silver look gives way to a silver and black color scheme. Also, the 7100t’s blue soul patch beneath the keypad has been replaced by a simple Cingular logo, and the sharp V-shaped keypad arrangement on the 7100t gets a more subtle treatment on the 7100g. While we thought the handset’s design looked pretty sharp, we noticed it was all too vulnerable to scrapes and scratches. Within a mere week or so of moderate use, both the plastic screen and silver lining just above it were scratched up and scuffed; we suggest you use the included protective case.

The RIM BlackBerry 7100g’s 2.1-inch, 65,000-color-plus screen is easy on the eyes with plenty of detail, thanks to its 240×260-pixel resolution. You can change the font size and style, as well as switch on antialiasing to smooth the rough edges of characters on the screen, but we disliked the fact that the 7100g’s display goes completely dark when the backlighting turns off. In standby mode, the main screen shows signal strength, battery life, the time, the date, caller ID info, and a mail icon that notifies you of unread messages. Unlike the nice-looking, icon-driven menu of the 7100t, the 7100g’s main menu appears only in list mode, which is unfortunate but not a deal breaker.

The RIM BlackBerry 7100g features a modified QWERTY keyboard that takes some getting used to.

Like the 7100t, the RIM BlackBerry 7100g manages to fit a QWERTY-style arrangement on a phone-size keypad by squeezing two letters on to each key, but it takes some getting used to, as with SureType’s word-recognition technology. At first, our fingers had a hard time accepting the modified keypad as a true QWERTY keyboard, but with some time and patience, we eventually stopped hunting and pecking and began typing away normally. True to its word, SureType did an impressive job of guessing the words we were attempting to type; when it was confused, a contextual menu appeared, allowing us to pick a word. And while on the whole we were pleased with the results, the setup still got annoying when we wanted to type in a proper name or a number, as we had to stop and change modes midstroke. Those used to painstakingly tapping out words in a standard phone keypad might love the 7100g’s modified keyboard, but speed typists addicted to their full BlackBerry QWERTY setups may regret making the switch.

Wheelin’ and dealin’: Navigate the menus with the jog dial and the Escape button.

The rest of the RIM BlackBerry 7100g’s controls are pretty standard. On the right edge of the handset, you’ll find the typical BlackBerry jog dial–just scroll up or down with your thumb to move the cursor and press to select a function. Just beneath the dial, there’s also an Escape button that brings you back to the previous menu. A headphone jack and a USB port sit on the left side of the phone, while an inset power button is perched along the top. Turn the 7100g around, and you’ll find the speakerphone grille just above the broad plastic battery door.

The RIM BlackBerry 7100g comes with a well-balanced meal of phone basics. The phone book handles as many entries as will fit in its 32MB of onboard RAM (the SIM card can hold an additional 250 contacts), and there’s room in each entry for eight numbers, home and work addresses, Web pages, and more. You also get a speakerphone, which you can engage only once you’re on a call; a calendar; task and to-do lists; a memo pad; a WAP wireless Web browser; an alarm; and a calculator. Some unexpected extras include the ability to search the 7100g’s messages, calendar, address book, memo pad, and tasks, either individually or all at once; there’s also a detailed help section. Unfortunately, the Bluetooth-enabled phone only supports wireless headsets, so if you’re looking for Bluetooth file transfers or syncing, you’re out of luck.

Loud and clear: The 7100g features a speakerphone, but you can turn it on only once you’re on a call.

Clearly, push e-mail is the big draw for the RIM BlackBerry 7100g, and the handset doesn’t disappoint. The device syncs e-mail and calendars in real time with Microsoft Exchange, BlackBerry, and Lotus Notes servers, plus it grabs messages from up to 10 POP3/IMAP accounts or Web mail services such as MSN Hotmail, Yahoo, and AOL. Configuring the device to work with our Gmail account was a breeze; we simply logged on to the BlackBerry Web site and entered our username and password, and we began receiving messages within about 20 minutes. The 7100g’s e-mail client lets you view a variety of attachments, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, WordPerfect, and PDF documents, but you can’t edit them. Unfortunately, the device doesn’t have an instant-messaging client that works straight out of the box.

Extra applications on the RIM BlackBerry 7100g are on the weak side. As with the 7100t, the only title you get is the Breakout-style BrickBreaker, and you can’t purchase other games or applications from Cingular’s download service. On the personalization side, you can swap out the wallpaper with one of the six pictures available in the Pictures application (you can buy more wallpaper from Cingular), and you can choose from five ringer profiles, including Loud, Vibrate, Quiet, Phone Only, and a user-defined mode. However, you can’t assign individual ring tones to specific contacts or groups. The 7100g is pretty light on multimedia features; there aren’t any MP3 or media players here.

We tested the quad-band RIM BlackBerry 7100g (GSM 850/900/1800/1900; GPRS) in New York City, and our calls sounded loud and clear, both in regular calling mode and with the speakerphone. We also tried the handset in our gadget-heavy living room–complete with a microwave oven, a 32-inch TV set, a wireless phone, and a Wi-Fi network–and didn’t notice any interference.

Pairing the RIM BlackBerry 7100g with a Bluetooth headset was a snap; once we turned on the Bluetooth radio, the phone found our Logitech Mobile Traveller Headset within a few seconds, and we were soon chatting away wirelessly.

RIM promises 4 hours of talk time and eight days of standby time from the BlackBerry 7100g. In our tests, we beat the talk time by an extra half hour and got seven days of standby time. According to FCC radiation tests, the RIM BlackBerry 7100g has a digital SAR rating of 0.86 watts per kilogram.

So I guess the true question is do I spend the money purchasing a new RIM BlackBerry 7100g cellular phone battery or do I just purchase a new phone with a better battery? Replacement batteries are very inexpensive but a new phone would be great. Always decisions need to be made.

I have had a number of cellular phones over the years, as I am sure most people have, and while none have been especially great, some have definitely been rubbish. The only problem I have ever had with my cell phones has been with the battery. The cell phone battery has either stopped working or it just would not last long enough and I would need to get and carry a replacement battery.

I do use my mobile phone a lot, both for my career and for private use, so having another battery is often worthwhile but having to replace a faulty or damaged battery is annoying. My current phone is working well but I would like a replacement battery for times when I am not in the office.

Cell Phone Battery

These are the details of my current phone (yes, I know it is a bit outdated, I really should purchase a new cellular phone):

Hand Held Products Dolphin 9500

Product Short Spec:

OS provided:

Microsoft Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition

Installed RAM:

64 MB

Processor:

Intel 400 MHzXScale PXA255

Wireless connectivity:

IrDA,

Bluetooth,

IEEE 802.11b

Dimensions (W x D x H):

3.5 in x 1.7 in x 9.6 in

Input device type:

Stylus,

Keyboard,

Touch-screen

Weight:

1.2 lbs

Smartphones ShortSpec:

Band/mode:

GSM 900/1800/1900

RAM installed size:

64 MB

review

So I guess the right question is do I spend the money purchasing a new Hand Held Products Dolphin 9500 cellular phone battery or do I just get a new phone with a long lasting battery? Replacement batteries are quite inexpensive but a new phone would be nice. I must make a decision…