Battery case for an Iphone 5_ what should I get?
November 10, 2014 6:11 AM Subscribe
As our Iphone ages a bit and the battery fails more and more we are looking into a battery/case combo and find that the prices are just all over the place as well as what folks recommend.I want to know, Has anyone had any good experiences with the less expensive combo case/batteries? What do you recommend?
I, too, have been happy with my Mophie.
posted by thebrokedown at 6:59 AM on November 10, 2014
posted by thebrokedown at 6:59 AM on November 10, 2014
Check to see if it is one of the iPhone 5's that need replacement batteries.
posted by saucysault at 7:18 AM on November 10, 2014 [2 favorites]
posted by saucysault at 7:18 AM on November 10, 2014 [2 favorites]
+1 for the Mophie juice pack although if you occasionally drop your phone they tend to have about a 9 month lifespan but ok complaints about the battery aspect
posted by dmt at 9:25 AM on November 10, 2014
posted by dmt at 9:25 AM on November 10, 2014
I have the Mophie Air Juice pack and I absolutely love it. It is light, not too big, and charges quickly and has more than a full extra charge in it. It isn't cheap though (I got it for $70 at radioshack but it's for a 4S, the new models are a bit more.)
Fair warning though, the first one I got worked exactly once and then stopped working. (Luckily, Radioshack let me exchange it even though it was past their 30 day warrantee.) So, save that receipt and packaging for a bit!
posted by saul wright at 9:55 AM on November 10, 2014
Fair warning though, the first one I got worked exactly once and then stopped working. (Luckily, Radioshack let me exchange it even though it was past their 30 day warrantee.) So, save that receipt and packaging for a bit!
posted by saul wright at 9:55 AM on November 10, 2014
The big drawback with Mophie is that with the 5 and 5s, a Mophie case doesn't allow physical syncing over the USB cable. You have to sync via wifi, which is slow and requires extra steps when you're not near wifi (because you have to create a local / ad hoc network between your phone and your laptop).
The drawback with no-name cases is build quality. We've tried five cases from three no-name mfrs over the last few years and all five failed physically, usually ports coming loose (within less than a year, so we got free replacements, but that sucks in terms of e-waste and inconvenience).
posted by kalapierson at 10:05 AM on November 10, 2014
The drawback with no-name cases is build quality. We've tried five cases from three no-name mfrs over the last few years and all five failed physically, usually ports coming loose (within less than a year, so we got free replacements, but that sucks in terms of e-waste and inconvenience).
posted by kalapierson at 10:05 AM on November 10, 2014
Really really check on the battery replacement thing. My partners 5 fell in to the window of ones they were replacing, and now it lasts seriously 4x as long as mine that wasn't eligible. we'll end days of similar usage with hers being at 70% and mine being at like 20%.
This is the kind of search i'd run, you want an MFI certified one so an iOS update wont break it. That said, i think mophie cases are horribly overpriced and not even that well made. Every single one i've seen on a friend/acquaintances/clients/random stranger on the buses phone has had a crack or a piece chipped off of it. They are just not worth $80. I feel like they make overpriced meh-quality stuff like otterbox that everyone buys because it's the default that's available in carrier stores and best buy, and they see everyone else having it.
I'd buy that $40 one that says it has a beefed up charging jack and call it a day. Hell, look, it has a 4.5 star review average.
Wirecutter also did a thing on this, which is worth reading. They're great at figuring out what to buy.
Notice they didn't recommend mophie, heh.
posted by emptythought at 3:41 PM on November 10, 2014
This is the kind of search i'd run, you want an MFI certified one so an iOS update wont break it. That said, i think mophie cases are horribly overpriced and not even that well made. Every single one i've seen on a friend/acquaintances/clients/random stranger on the buses phone has had a crack or a piece chipped off of it. They are just not worth $80. I feel like they make overpriced meh-quality stuff like otterbox that everyone buys because it's the default that's available in carrier stores and best buy, and they see everyone else having it.
I'd buy that $40 one that says it has a beefed up charging jack and call it a day. Hell, look, it has a 4.5 star review average.
Wirecutter also did a thing on this, which is worth reading. They're great at figuring out what to buy.
Notice they didn't recommend mophie, heh.
posted by emptythought at 3:41 PM on November 10, 2014
This thread is closed to new comments.
I can easily double the battery life of my phone and when I buy the 6s I will get one of these on day one.
They sell them with additional memory now, but that is fairly use limited.
posted by cjorgensen at 6:48 AM on November 10, 2014