Battery case or external battery? Please help!

By Maya, 10 July, 2012

Forum
Apple Hardware and Compatible Accessories
Hi to all. Are there any battery cases available which protect IPhone the way like otterbox defender case does? I mean I would like to have the whole device covered and use external battery or battery case when I am out. Another question is are the battery cases able to charge the Iphone to full capacity (I mean 100%)? I know this question may sound stupid, but I got an external battery (not battery case), and it charges Iphone just by 20% and then the charging process is done. It is not good when you are out all day, need to use GPS with all the other apps and do not have the power by hand to charge the Iphone. Would you recommend to get a battery case or an external battery? Which one is better? And which model would you recommend? I would be very grateful for your advice. Thank you in advance.

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By Scott Davert on Sunday, July 8, 2012 - 16:29

Member of the AppleVis Editorial Team
Hello. What you would get depends on what you want and how much you are willing to pay. It could also depend partially on where you are in the world. My guess is that if you purchased a battery pack and your phone is only charging to 20%, that the battery pack is defective, has a flashlight feature that is draining the battery, or very small. The flashlight feature is becoming more common as of late, but it's a real issue for people who are blind. Essentially, the pack doubles as a flashlight and external battery. When you press the button, either on purpose or by accident, the light gets activated if nothing is plugged in and this drains your battery quickly. The most popular case with a battery pack is by far the mophie Jucepack. if you do a search on the site, you'll find an accessory review on this product along with a link to it on Amazon. It's quite expensive though, the Pro version being at $99 and the Air being at $80 here in the US, but it works well for doubling as a case and an external battery. If you recharge the battery in your phone from 10%, you should get about 85% with the Air, and the Pro version should give you a full charge. However, there are other options for external battery packs. The line of products that remains most popular at this time are those made by New Trent. They make a 7000 MAH battery pack that has 2 USB ports and takes about 5 hours to charge when it has been fully depleted. You can find it on Amazon for $45 or so. In terms of charging, it comes with a bunch of different ends that you can use, one of them is for the iPhone. You should be able to get 2 or 3 full charges out of this battery pack. The other great thing about these types of batteries, aside from the fact that they're offering you more power for less money, is that you can charge other things with them. I often charge my braille display with the battery pack. This product does not have a flashlight feature.

Scot, thanks for your excellent info. The question is if the mophie juice pack is all the same protective like the otterbox deffender is. I don't necessarily need battery case, having just external battery which is able to charge iphone to 100% would be enough. Another thing is that the battery should fit into my handback so I can charge my iphone on the go. Yes, the battery pack I have bought has a flash light feature and a button.

greetings Maya. The Jucepack doesn't offer the same protection as an Otterbox Defender, because it does not cover the front of the phone. Honestly, if you have an Odderbox case, I'd say just go with an external pack. The New Trent that I mentioned in my previous posts fits very easily in to my pocket, so it should fit in to your handbag. I'm willing to bet what caused your phone to charge to only 20% before the battery shut off was most likely caused by you accidentally turning on the flashlight.Some of those battery packs are built in such a way that bumping the on button is way too easy.

Maya: no, it doesn't have a flashlight, which is why a lot of people like it. The 7000 MAH moddle can charge the iPhone at least 2 times fully before it needs to be recharged.

Thanks Scott. And does the battery pack fit with otterbox deffender case or do you need extra cable to plug it to the phone? I hope my questions don't bother you much, but I'd rather ask as it seems I have bought something which doesn't suit me at all and I do not want to make all the same mistake again.

Hi Maya. That's why we're here. TO ask questions and have them answered by people who hopefully can help. As for your question about the external battery packs, they plug in to the same plug that you would use to charge your phone. Most come with an end that is specifically made for the iPhone. Most external battery packs should work with the case already on the phone, so you don't need to worry much about that. The biggest thing is to make sure that flashlight feature isn't on the pack.

Scott, I am asking all this because the battery pack I have bought did not fit with my otterbox defender case so I had to get an extended cable to plug the battery to the phone. When I decide to get another external battery pack, I would like to get the one of which I know people on here have used it and are really satisfied.

Try this link: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002D4IHYM?ie=UTF8&tag=douglangleyco-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=1789&creativeASIN=B002D4IHYM A lot of people I know are very satisfied with the pack in the above link.

Is there any way of finding out how much charge there is in an external battery without looking at the LCD lights built into them? and I'm thinking of getting this battery pack which is 12000MA and is on sale: http://www.amazon.co.uk/New-Trent-Sensation-Thunderbolt-Blackberry/dp/B004CHMP50/ref=zg_bs_329078031_3 It doesn't list its dimensions or weight so I can't compare it with their 7000MA model to see which would be lighter or if they are both the same weight and dimensions. I would like to be able to comfortably carry it around in my pocket.

As far as I know, there is no battery pack which provides a way to tell how much charge is left for someone who is totally blind. However, if you pay attention, you can figure out an estimate. For example, if you've charged the pack overnight, and you know you get 3 full charges out of it, after the 3rd charge you'll probably want to recharge the battery pack. If you can't remember, you could always just charge it regardless. That's the best solution I can offer. I have not seen the new 12 amp battery pack, so I cannot comment on it. I know the 11 amp (11000 MAH) battery pack fits in my pocket, but that's about all that will if I have it there.

Hi to all, In my very first post I have mentioned that I bought an external battery which charges my iphone just by 20% and then the charging process is done. I've just found out the external battery is only 1000 mAh. Do you think it might be a problem why my iphone is charged by only 20% from this battery?

I would think even 1000 MAH should give you more than 20%, unless the light is also activated when the thing is charging. That would explain why you don't get much out of it though, yes.

By Chelsea on Wednesday, August 8, 2012 - 16:29

I have a battery case for my iPhone. I think it is one of the Mofi models, but am not sure because a friend gave it to me. Will be sad when the redesigned iPhone comes out. Anyway, I found a trick at convention. Don't expect a case to power on a dead start; I usually plug in at 10 percent or so. with that, I get about 50 percent charge. Then the case automatically turns itself off. I was puzzled by this till I removed the phone and realized the back of the case that touches the phone was considerably warmer. Plastic case and metal phone... Not the best. So if I leave the two devices unconnected and turn off the case for 10-15 minutes, it will cool down and then begin charging again. So maybe try that.

About a month ago I purchased a iBattz Mojo VOGUE Removable Battery Case for iPhone 4 & 4S - White (1700mAhX2 fits all... Sold by UNUCASE. It works terriffic. It comes with 2 1700 MA batteries but I only use 1. It works as a protective case as well with an on off button. I tend to leave it on and by the end of the day i still have 100% battery life. I'd definitely recommend it if you're looking for extra punch and don't want to carry an external battery for heavy use when out.

Hi Scott, Since you know people who have the battery pack that you gave the link for, do you know if it comes with the attachments, such as an 8-pin, that you would plug into the device, or would I have to use the lightning cable that came with my device? I looked on the Amazon page that you gave, but could not find that information anywhere. I want to use this battery pack with an iPod 5th gen, as mine doesn't hold a charge very long.