[davemack]

My wife has a Curve 8300 that she bought new in Nov of '07. For the past couple weeks, it's been just shutting off on her during calls even though the batt indicator says it still has plenty of charge. Finally, it wouldn't last a couple minutes. I figure the battery is shot.

She needs her phone critically so she stops at the AT&T store and for about $48, she comes out with a new battery. Made the phone work fine so we charged it all night and the phone works perfect.

I see on Amazon.com that I can get the same battery for about $3 plus shipping. So, I would like to find out what the shelf life is of these batterys it you DON'T use them. I would like to know for two reasons. #1, is it possible that the battery on Amazon has sat around in a package for a year? and #2, does that matter? I would like to know if there is any advantage to buying a spare battery just to have it and how long it will last not being used. Also, if you do store one of these lithium Ion batteries, is it better to be stored charged or dead?

Any ideas would be appreciated, thanks.

[Dubdub]

My philosophy on cell phone batteries and things like that, don't go cheap. Not worth the hassle if it doesn't work. Much easier to return to a store and talk to a real person face to face and get a replacement than over the phone and having to wait a few days. In the meantime your phone is out of action waiting for parts.

[monkeypaw]

Amazon seems to turn it's inventory pretty good. I'd have no qualms about buying from them especially for a popular battery. In fact I buy from them all the time, just haven't bought a battery in a while.

[david9962000]

This is not a bad place to get them;
BlackBerry C-S2 1000mAh Standard Battery - ShopCrackBerry

[davemack]

Originally Posted by david9962000

This is not a bad place to get them;
BlackBerry C-S2 1000mAh Standard Battery - ShopCrackBerry

Less than half of what my wife paid, looks like a good deal. But I'd still like to know how long they last if you just store them as a spare.

[davemack]

Originally Posted by monkeypaw

Amazon seems to turn it's inventory pretty good...

I buy a lot of stuff from Amazon all the time and it seems like everything is first-rate. But a battery for under $3 seems a little fishy. But that still might not be too much to spend to find out.

[monkeypaw]

Originally Posted by davemack

I buy a lot of stuff from Amazon all the time and it seems like everything is first-rate. But a battery for under $3 seems a little fishy. But that still might not be too much to spend to find out.

Oh yeah, big distinction. I didn't notice the $3 in the OP. That's definitely not shipped from Amazon, it's from another internet retailer and Amazon is operating as the order taker.

I have bought from some of those other retailers through Amazon and have had no problems at all. But generally I will go with the slightly higher price directly from Amazon if available.

[wooch]

Wirelessly posted

Regarding your question about shelf life of Li-Ion batteries, I believe its around 3 years. I don't like to keep spares around if I don't use them. I just purchase them when one goes bad.

Storage: It's recommended to store li-ion cells with a 40% charge. If they're in a state higher than 40%, storage at cooler temps will prolong cell life by slowing the deterioration of the cells. I store my li-ion cells in ziplock bags in the fridge.

[Trimix]

I know the OP's original question was regarding battery storage, but I just want to add that if a battery is that cheap, can you really trust it? Obviously for that price it's a "compatible type battery" instead of an OEM one. With those types of batteries you are taking a gamble on the quality, whereas if you go with OEM, it's more certain you have a better product.

[davemack]

Originally Posted by wooch

Wirelessly posted

Regarding your question about shelf life of Li-Ion batteries, I believe its around 3 years. I don't like to keep spares around if I don't use them. I just purchase them when one goes bad.

Storage: It's recommended to store li-ion cells with a 40% charge. If they're in a state higher than 40%, storage at cooler temps will prolong cell life by slowing the deterioration of the cells. I store my li-ion cells in ziplock bags in the fridge.

Thanks, that's what I was looking for..

Maybe I'll wait till mine is a year old before buying a spare. That is if the 15 or 16 months that my wife's lasted is typical.

[wjereb]

I am a pretty hard user of my BB and after 7 months my battery started to fail in my Curve. As I do when I need new OEM batteries I bought one off of Ebay for $7. Unfortunately it did not arrive before I left on my trip to Florida two weeks ago. Sure enough it failed completely while I was at the Daytona 500. I stopped at the Sprint trailer, told them I was an AT&T customer and asked if there was anywhere within walking distance that I could buy a Curve battery ( I expected to spend around $30). They looked at it and installed a brand new battery and told me no charge. Now that's Customer Service!

BJ

[Oditius]

I always buy a spare battery. Because I have a habit on not plugging in the phone for days at a time. I really hate being stuck without a spare. They are so small that in the pocket, glove-box, doesn't matter. I buy them from sellers on eBay. I have not had one be bad yet. And usually last longer than my 2 year contract!!

[davemack]

Okay, this is probably way out of ediquette but I want to know...

I think it's a good idea to carry a spare battery because Murphy's law says that you BB battery will run out much faster if you forget to bring your charger along so...

Amazon has a whole bunch of batteries and one in particular is fron a shop called the OEM shop which I have purchased some screen protectors and that's where I got my charging pod. They have a five-star rating and say they give a full money back warranty on everything. My wife's 8300 and my 8310 appear to use the same battery, one called a CS-2. These batteries range anywhere from a $1.57 to 7.00 on Amazon. The OEM shop is offering them for $1.57 and declares they are original RIM OEM batteries. They want a wapping $4.00 to ship them though.

I looked at a mini-external battery charger and they list this one...
OEM Blackberry Mini External Battery Charger 8300 8800 which leads me to believe the 8800s and the 8300s use similar batteries if they can be charged in the same charger. For $17.22 and $2.98 shipping, this seems like a worthwhile charger. BUT...

It got me to thinking. They have these EXTRA capacity batteries, listed for the 8800s. They are called CX-2 and everthing I can find on them say they are designed to fit the 8800 phones. I am wondering if since the same charger works on 8800s and 8300s, will this extra capacity battery fit my phone? They only want just over $5.00 for these batteries.

[DallasFlier]

Originally Posted by Trimix

I know the OP's original question was regarding battery storage, but I just want to add that if a battery is that cheap, can you really trust it? Obviously for that price it's a "compatible type battery" instead of an OEM one. With those types of batteries you are taking a gamble on the quality, whereas if you go with OEM, it's more certain you have a better product.

I agree that for $3, I might be wary. But there's no reason that going OEM means "it's more certain you have a better product." RIM doesn't make batteries, so they buy them from bulk suppliers too. OEM cell phone batteries are one of the MOST overpriced items on the face of the planet. I've been buying aftermarket for years - hardly ever paying more than $10 - and have had great experiences. It makes a lot more sense to buy 5 aftermarket batteries for $50 or less, rather than one OEM from AT&T for $48.

[davemack]

Well, I just ordered (2) batteries from one of Amazon's associated sellers. They have a five-star rating and the batteries are supposedly OEM BB Batteries. I got them for $1.57 each and $4.00 shipping. I can't see how I can go wrong even if they only last a short while. For that price, it's no big loss either way. And I'll get a chance to learn just what you can expect form such and I'll be sure to let you guys know exactly how they act.

I'm guessing someone s sitting on a whole bunch of batteries they want to get rid of before they get too old but who knows. Could be well worth the investiment.

[Trimix]

That's a really good price for batteries. Let us know how they work out.

[winger13]

How about battery and car charger combos like this? Any good?

http://cgi.ebay.com/OEM-C-S2-BLACKBERRY-BATTERY-CAR-CHARGER-CURVE-8300-8330_W0QQitemZ250364976681QQcmdZViewItemQQptZPDA_A ccessories?hash=item250364976681&_trksid=p3286.c0. m14&_trkparms=72:1205|66:2|65:12|39:1|240:1308|301 :1|293:1|294:50

[davemack]

Originally Posted by winger13

How about battery and car charger combos like this? Any good?

I am finding that it is a gamble at best. There are some really great deals out there and there are some real shams.

I think it's tough to know which is which until it's too late. So, somebody has to be the guinea pig and try them out.

I found one store on Amazon that sells BB stuff that is perfect and comes with all the BB warranty paperwork. It's amazing and I don't know how they do it so cheap but I know that this is the only seller I'm going to use from now on. PM me if you want the name.