The 5 Best iPhone 4 External Battery Devices
Poll
Can You get through a Whole Day without Recharging your iPhone?
iPhones, including the new i4s, are notorious for short battery life. You don't need to be a power user to run your phone down before the end of the day. If you are a power user, you are certainly going to need some kind of back-up to get the most from your phone.
The neatest and most reliable way of extending battery life is to use an external battery.
- These can be small units that push onto the bottom of the iPhone.
- They can be the sort of separate device that will recharge your iPhone battery using a USB cable.
- A solar powered re-charger can be useful
- Phone cases that include an external battery are available.
Each approach has advantages and disadvantages.
- A push-on external battery will mean you don't have a mess of cables to think about but they are low on extra capacity.
- A case with battery included can be very neat and secure- but only if you want to use a case at all.
- The external batteries that use cables are more versatile and will power a lot more devices- like the iPad and iPod. They can be pretty big, though.
- Solar power sounds attractive but it can be a slow option.
Battery Cases
Boostcase for both the iPhone 4 and 4S
This is quickly becoming the most popular battery case around, after being launched in 2012.
It has an ingenious 2-part design that allows you use it as a slim, lightweight case for protection or, when you snap on the external battery, as a juice pack re-charger.
Color choice is unrivaled, as you can see in the picture below.
There is enough juice in each 1900 mAh battery to double the time you can use either the iPhone 4 or 4S.
Mophie Air Case-- iPhone 4 only
This is one of the most popular cases around.
There is a choice of colors- red, white, yellow or black.
It is one of the most snug fitting and stylish battery cases.
It is even certified by Apple as a compatible device- a rare, acknowledgement.
The 'soft touch' finish is appealing in the hand and, of course, there is full access to all ports with no need to remove the case for charging.
It can add around five hours of browsing on 3G networks or nine on Wi-Fi.
Works with AT&T and Verizon phones.
New Trent Battery Case for IPHONE 4 and 4S
Some people would say I have saved the best case to last. Certainly the level of appreciation from buyers around the web is very high for the Astro. It has a discrete, ultra slim design and the renowned build quality and reliability of New Trent (who make the most powerful external batteries available, see below).
The inbuilt battery offers 1700 mA and it can be recharged around 500 times before you need think about a replacement.
iPhone 4 and i4s Juice Packs
New Trent External Batteries
New Trent make the most popular iPhone 4 juice packs around. One of the biggest is pictured right
The iCarrier will not only recharge the battery of an iPhone 4 or i4s, several times, it will connect just as easily to an iPad or iPod. With a $5 adapter it can be used with a PS3. It even has enough power to give a boost to a netbook.
The battery is charged via an AC wall plug charger or via USB from a PC (or similar).
It connects to Apple devices with a mini USB cable.
Satechi iCel 4800 mAh Battery Extender and Charger
This is a neat, soap-bar sized and very tough unit that will charge an iPhone4 plus PDAs, USB camcorders and mp3 players such as Sansa, Zune and Creative Zen.
YooBao 4800mAh External Battery Pack
This is a no name product but it gets great reviews around the net for performance and reliability.
The range of tips is certainly impressive and it will do a lot more than charge an iPhone.
This means you need to make sure you get the right product. There are YooBao battery packs for all kinds of smartphones- from Nokia to LG.
1000mAh Mini
This is the least expensive external battery that will give you a real extension of battery time. Even so, if your iPhone 4 battery is getting old, or is out of condition, don't expect much more than a few hours of extra use.
Apart from the price it has the advantage of being a neat fit and your phone won't look like it has a mechanical parasite attached to it. The connection is also secure so it won't fall off. And no wires!
If you only need a short time boost for an iPhone 4, this has to be worth thinking about.
Solar Power Juice Pack for the iPhone 4
This is less of a solar charger, in truth, than a useful and inexpensive battery case.
In a strong light, the solar cells will replenish the 2400 mAh Smart lion-polymer battery in around 4 or 5 hours, This can be handy if you live in sunny state or like hiking, beach days or whatever.
You can also recharge the case in the usual way from a wall outlet with the adapter provided.
The battery pack will recharge an iPhone to more or less full capacity,
