New Phone

[najaB]

TBH I do see it as rather a solution looking for a problem...

Having used it on my old phone I do miss it now as it's just damned convenient. Not enough to make me not choose a phone that lacks it, but definitely enough to sway meb towards one that does.

 

[Dai Corner]

Do you know what I'd prefer to a phone that charged within a few hours wirelessly or to 70% within a few minutes when plugged in? One that I could top up in five seconds by swapping the battery out.

 

[jon0844]

Do you know what I'd prefer to a phone that charged within a few hours wirelessly or to 70% within a few minutes when plugged in? One that I could top up in five seconds by swapping the battery out.

Ha! Yes, them were the days!!

Planned obsolescence (if you believe it's a thing) doesn't go with allowing people to change parts that gradually wear out. While you can change batteries relatively easily when they begin to fail, it's a process I am sure many people don't bother with and just scrap the phone instead (or more likely leave it lying around in a drawer or cupboard).

So, given the desire to disallow users to change the battery (and it is possible to offer water resistant status on phones with removable batteries, in case manufacturers use that as an excuse), it does mean the days of buying spare batteries and investing in a dock/battery charger to keep the spare(s) topped up are pretty much over.

 

[Aictos]

Had an XPERIA Z1 once and after every software update, the battery would go normally from 100-75%, then go directly to 0%.

Spent more time having warranty repairs than it was in service.

Indeed I used to have a Z1 which was the worse phone ever made as every call would have the person at the other end asking if I was using it on Hands Free when I wasn't as the call quality was well *****!

I've used all three systems and despite the lack of support by developers and Microsoft I found the Nokia Lumia range to be quite good.

What's interesting though is you take 2 phones released around the same time ie September 2013 and you get one which is still supported by the manufacturer with the latest OS update being last month and the other with the latest OS update being over 3 years ago!

I am of course referring to the Samsung Galaxy S5 and the Apple iPhone 5s now can anyone guess which of the above is which?

A side note, does anyone know what happened to Zerolemon as I used their batteries a few years ago but they seem to have well disappeared.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Do you know what I'd prefer to a phone that charged within a few hours wirelessly or to 70% within a few minutes when plugged in? One that I could top up in five seconds by swapping the battery out.

I find power banks are a good replacement, to be honest.

 

[najaB]

Do you know what I'd prefer to a phone that charged within a few hours wirelessly or to 70% within a few minutes when plugged in? One that I could top up in five seconds by swapping the battery out.

My first two or three phones had removable batteries - never bothered to do it though, was easier to carry an external battery.

 

[Dai Corner]

I find power banks are a good replacement, to be honest.

That's what I use, but I'd rather carry a spare battery than have my phone tethered to a power bank until it's recharged

 

[radamfi]

On BBC Click a few years ago I saw a demonstration from an Israeli start up where a smartphone was charged from empty to full in a matter of seconds. What happened to that?

 

[BluePenguin]

Samsung Galaxy Notes are great for photos. iPhones are also good alternatives. I have been happily using my iPhone 6S Plus for a while now and it takes great photos.

 

[Aictos]

Samsung Galaxy Notes are great for photos. iPhones are also good alternatives. I have been happily using my iPhone 6S Plus for a while now and it takes great photos.

I used to have a Note 3 years ago, the only downside I couldn't find a car kit in which to hold the device