[ajmatson]

Sweet Review SanFrancisco. I almost wanted to take the plunge and get it but the case issue has me. Do you know if they will still be releasing the Higher MAh standard Battery that was discussed in other threads? Keep up the great work I look forward to more from you.

[YMark]

Great review....... however that battery/cover is like putting a mask on a beautiful woman. I'd be hard pressed to find a way to make your phone more ugly. Your Pearl just went from a sleek professional looking phone to a humpback. For what? It's not like charging takes very long. You can charge via USB, AC, your car, etc. I don't understand why you would make your phone so ugly.

[secrecyguy]

You almost sound like an ad SanFrancisco!

But thanks for the review!

[TheBigNewt]

Personally I don't need it/won't get it. But I can see how it'll appeal to the heavy (sic) users. And really, at $50 for the bat/cover it isn't a bad deal. The standard battery is about the same most places. Nice pix as usual, SF.

[tchao]

standard OEM Blackberry on ebay is around $12 shipped. please let me know when you want to pay $50 for a battery

[tchao]

aftermarket battery like Seidio is selling around $10 shipped for standard size one

[SanFrancisco]

Originally Posted by tchao

i wish i have something to sell... some people will buy ANYTHING

No need to be a jerk about it. You don't know anything about me or my intellect, so lumping me in with the gullible or stupid is uncalled for.

Side Note: My sympathies that at this point in your life you don't have "something to sell."

[SanFrancisco]

In reply to comments:

Recall in the other thread I said I needed this because I don't have a land line at home as I went wireless four or five years ago. That being the situation, I like have spare batteries for emergencies, e.g., should the power go out. [Other than earthquake danger, for some strange reason the power goes out here about twice a year, for a few hours at a time. So that kind of alerts me to prepare for such emergencies by stocking up, etc. In a sense those power outages are good for test runs on making sure I am prepared for things like when the Northwest went without power for a week or longer].

Second, when on the road I like lots of battery power on the phone. I do NOT want to rely only on the car's charger as that may not be available. [Recall the "Kim family in Oregon" tragedy. Also, another woman somewhere had been trapped in her car that had gone over an embankment. She was in the weeds for about a week. They were able to home in on her cell phone signal. That's how they found her].

Before this extended battery came out I went on eBay and bought two OEM standard batteries to address my specific needs and concerns. Call me excessive or overly worried, but I note that most people don't prepare for emergencies or unanticipated events because they have a "not me" attitude or they are just plain stupid.

Anyway, I posted that I got this battery but it would probably just be tossed in a drawer because it was too big.

But when I got it I was very surprised at how small it is. I don't think one can take a picture that will make the extended battery look small as it is. If you look at the pic with the phone in my hand, I guess that gives you some idea as to how small the phone remains.

All I can tell you is that I used to pay $500 for phones whose only attribute was that the phone was the smallest made at the time. I am that picky about cell phone size.

When I got the Pearl one of its main features to me was the size. I noted that it was so small that when putting a rubberized case on it the phone still looked small, so that was great for me.

So before this battery and cover arrived it was destined to sit on a shelf, to be charged on occasion, since I did not want to ruin the look and feel of my Pearl.

Well, I was so impressed by how much this battery and cover improves the feel of the Pearl, I started to think about wanting to keep it on the phone all the time.

Of course I still had to deal with the look. But I noted right at the beginning that the phone did not really look different from the front and the side. The only way one could notice it is if one had the phone face down on a desk or table. Face up it looks like it is floating on air [kinda cool]. When in the hand, the Pearl still looks very small because the cup of the hand covers the back.

In fact, this extended battery and cover has caused my phone to get smaller than before, when it had the rubberized case on it. Here's why.

I always thought the battery cover was the weakest and flimsiest part of the Pearl. Fix that and the phone would feel and act more solid. The crappy battery cover is why I enclosed the phone in a hard plastic case.

Last night I put the BSE skin on the new cover. Because the phone is now totally skinned, I am considering not putting the phone into a hard plastic case. So as it now sits, the phone looks great and it now shows off the Pearl's cool face [which I think is attractive].

Without a rubberized case my phone has gone back to looking very small. It feels rock solid and the BSE skin will protect it from scratches and marks.

That's my take on it.

[phungy]

Have you tried Energizer's Energi-To-Go? I wonder how well that would do on the extended battery..

[SanFrancisco]

Originally Posted by tchao

standard OEM Blackberry on ebay is around $12 shipped. please let me know when you want to pay $50 for a battery

You are saying nothing new. We all know that.

In fact, I bought two of those standard batteries [the actual yellow ones] for $15 each about two months ago [on eBay].

Even then, a single extended battery had/has advantages to me [see my other posts]. Plus, this battery comes with the cover that 1) has a speaker grill; and 2) has beefed up lugs to address the poor fit issue.

Since 1998 I have bought batteries on eBay, OEM, standard, extended and Chinese/Mexican crap. What I have learned is that there are many ripoffs on eBay, selling poorly made batteries that are dangerous.

It's so bad that I usually try to buy OEM unless I can see that the seller is a specialist in the manufacture of quality batteries. If the auction is for low priced batteries from a seller in Hong Kong, I usually steer clear because those are two indicators that the batteries are junk.

You also have to factor in the price of the cover. Considering that OEM covers are about $10 to $15, this improved cover could sell for more than that by itself. To me the cover is worth about $20, so that means the battery is selling for about $30. That's a good price for an extended battery, which if it is a brand name or OEM always sell for more.

So one should not be basing a decision on price tag alone, unless that is the type of shopper one is.

[ChumsGum]

any issues with heat? how's the heat after playing a 2 hour movie?

[SanFrancisco]

By the way folks, I simply wanted to provide an in-depth review on this battery and cover and to address the concerns I think BBF members might have.

I don't see any need to post worthless comments on what a fool I am for getting this battery nor posting otherwise snide or derisive statements.

[paulmac]

Originally Posted by SanFrancisco

By the way folks, I simply wanted to provide an in-depth review on this battery and cover and to address the concerns I think BBF members might have.

I don't see any need to post worthless comments on what a fool I am for getting this battery nor posting otherwise snide or derisive statements.

Agreed, as BBF member I appreciate your review, and the pics, and while the battery is not for me, to each his or her own. No need to knock a guy for buying something for his BB. If you don't like just don't buy it, but don't knock a guy becuase he did.

[NorthStar]

Personally, I didn't think the battery life on my Pearl was a problem. From my point of view this product sacrifices form factor to solve a non-problem. Others may have different usage patterns and power needs so maybe a bulge in their pocket is no big deal.

It sounds like it does solve a couple problems that matter to me:
1) Better speaker grill
2) Poor fit issue that causes the battery cover to open

The battery cover on my original Pearl came off almost every time I put it in my pocket. I took it back to TMobile and got a new one. The latch on my new one isn't great but the cover does not come off accidentally.

I would definitely purchase a new cover that has a better latch and provides better speaker sound. BUT, I will not sacrifice form factor to get it.

[seidioseidio]

seidio is also working on the BB 8100 battery door that has the camera cover. It will be released later


David Chang
Seidio

[SanFrancisco]

Originally Posted by NorthStar

Personally, I didn't think the battery life on my Pearl was a problem. From my point of view this product sacrifices form factor to solve a non-problem. Others may have different usage patterns and power needs so maybe a bulge in their pocket is no big deal.

It sounds like it does solve a couple problems that matter to me:
1) Better speaker grill
2) Poor fit issue that causes the battery cover to open

The battery cover on my original Pearl came off almost every time I put it in my pocket. I took it back to TMobile and got a new one. The latch on my new one isn't great but the cover does not come off accidentally.

I would definitely purchase a new cover that has a better latch and provides better speaker sound. BUT, I will not sacrifice form factor to get it.

The phone with the extended battery does not really add that much of a "bulge." Although my pic with the ruler fails to show it, in inches the extension only adds 1/4th an inch to the thickness of the phone. That is not much.

As to the cover, I think I recall Seidio saying somewhere on BBF that they were thinking about or going to sell replacement covers for the standard size one that comes on the Pearl.

[SanFrancisco]

Originally Posted by ChumsGum

any issues with heat? how's the heat after playing a 2 hour movie?

Absolutely ZERO heat issues.

I have my phone set for 100% brightness and audio typically at max. Below is a pic of the display after playing a movie for 1.5 hours. [I turned down the volume as the credits tune was hideous. So that is why the volume indicator registers off].

As you might be able to see, the battery wear indicator barely shows 1 "bar" of use.

At the end of the movie I removed the cover and battery. The battery was not even warm to the touch.

[I81u812]

Wal-mart RIM car chargers are $9.74 am I missing something here?

I would like a differnt battery cover though :(

[phungy]

You've got mail

[SanFrancisco]

Originally Posted by I81u812

Wal-mart RIM car chargers are $9.74 am I missing something here?

I would like a differnt battery cover though :(

Like I said, it's not the point of being able to charge the phone via outlets or a car charger, it's having extra capacity so that one does not have to charge the phone as often, or for me, so that I have enough capacity to keep the phone operable in emergency situations, e.g., if the power goes out or I can't otherwise charge the Pearl.

Since the days extended batteries came into being, people have bought them for any number of reasons. Most people like being able to use their devices for a longer period without charging or having to carry extra batteries. And as to cell phones, extended power is needed in emergency situations [hence why many emergency services use extended batteries on cell phones].