Battery issue reason enough to pass on DG2?

[HarryW]

Hello Droid community!
My wife and I are looking to move up to our first smart phones. I like the DX, she prefers the DG2 because of the slide out physical key board. Verizon has a BOGO deal right now that would get us both phones for $150 (with my nu every 2). Plus the smart phones talk free promotion.

After reading all the reviews I am concerned that the battery life on the Global may be a deal breaker. My wife is not one for playing with settings and tinkering with her phone. She is a heavy texter along with a few calls a day. The smart phone would let her surf the web a bit, check her email etc. What is a realistic expectation of battery life under this useage profile? Will it make it from 7am till 10 or 11pm? We are OK with charging every night, but not interested in rooting or modding the phone while it is under warranty.

Would the larger capacity optional battery work?

The DX doesn't seem to get near the criticism for its battery life, though I know it barely makes it through the day with average use.

Thanks!
HarryW

[PowrDroid]

Hello Droid community!
My wife and I are looking to move up to our first smart phones. I like the DX, she prefers the DG2 because of the slide out physical key board.

I've had my D2 Global for about 5 weeks now. I love the physical keyboard, especially for browsing the web, and of course texting. I love the ability to place the cursor exactly where needed and the ability to highlight the small link buttons on web pages using cursor arrows rather than tapping and selecting the incorrect one, then going back, then tapping again, etc.

After reading all the reviews I am concerned that the battery life on the Global may be a deal breaker. My wife is not one for playing with settings and tinkering with her phone.

I was worried about it as well, but I've found I can make it the whole day. I'd say I use it as a voice phone for about 15-20 minutes a day, browsing the web for about half an hour, look at email for perhaps 15 minutes, maybe send/receive a dozen texts, plus my kids play Bubble Ball and Angry Birds for about a half hour a day.

You could set some of the simple battery saving things like turning the screen brightness down--no fiddling for her.

She is a heavy texter along with a few calls a day. The smart phone would let her surf the web a bit, check her email etc. What is a realistic expectation of battery life under this useage profile? Will it make it from 7am till 10 or 11pm? We are OK with charging every night, but not interested in rooting or modding the phone while it is under warranty.

Sorry, I can't say how much texting affects battery life. When I check Battery Usage it's always Display and Browser as the two top users of battery juice.

Would the larger capacity optional battery work?

Based on posts on this forum, quite a few people are happy with that. They are kind of spendy though, and the larger battery door could cause problems with docks and cases (if you should be so inclined.) An alternative would be to have another regular sized battery charged and ready to go. Or if your wife is around a computer for part of the day, plug the phone into it and charge via the USB cord. I'd definitely pick up an in-vehicle charger since you both could use it.

What is the alternative phone for her if she doesn't get the D2 Global?

[NiceGuysFinishLast]

As an experiment, I played games and ran the web/texts/email on 3G all day one day. I got roughly 11 hours to 10%. That was HEAVY use. The screen was on for like 6 of those, at 33% brightness, I played almost three hours of games, had about an hour and a half of web browsing, 30-40 texts, 15 minutes of voice calls, and 20 or so emails.

With normal use, I can see 2 or 3 days. I wrote a thread on how to maximize your battery life.

[jbdow]

two or three days sounds good for any smartphone, i would think


r, john

[NiceGuysFinishLast]

two or three days sounds good for any smartphone, i would think


r, john

2 or 3 days for me is slightly different than for others. I use my phone mainly as a GPS when I need it, and an MP3 player/texting/emailing device. Like 70% of my phone use is with the screen OFF, so I get better battery life. But if you click the link I posted and look at it for recommendations, you should be able to find something that helps. I'd say that 10.5 hours(ish) with very heavy use is quite impressive.

[Simba7]

If not, you could always invest in a 3300mAh Mugen Battery. I bought one for me and my wife and it usually lasts for 5 days to a week.

Some say it looks like a "tumor", but it works rather well.. it also holds the phone up when on its' side (kinda an added hidden bonus).

Also, it fits well in your hand, can rest on your shoulder when you're talking.

[RVdroid]

I still have 70% battery after 7 1/2 hour normal use, ie: a little web, a little music, about an hour of talk time. I haven't had my battery die yet after a good overnight charge. Everyone's battery usage will differ but I don't think the battery life is a total fail.
NiceGuysFinishLasts' battery thread is helpful, definitely check it out if you do decide to get this phone.

[HarryW]

Thanks for all the responses. Sounds like battery life is not as bad as I thought. I was pretty set on a X for myself, but I have admit the keyboard looks appealing.
HarryW

[hookbill]

Every smartphone out there has "a battery issue." If you've never had a smart phone it does indeed seem like a battery issue, but it's quite normal for a battery to dissipate.

Battery issue is the number 1 topic in this forum on every smart phone we cover. I've seen a lot of hypothesis about how to improve battery life, and quite honestly those are more of a placebo then anything else.

So please don't let the battery keep you from getting a D2G. It's no better or worst then any other android phone.

[Bilgediver]

If your interested in a battery that doesn't make it look like a tumor, there is always the official Motorola Extended Battery that fits the Droid, Droid 2 and the Droid 2 Global. It has about 30% more capacity, easily makes it last all day on a single charge with heavy use, and it fits in most of the Cases made for the Droid 2 (bought from Verizon, they all have a small "hump" where the eztended battery fits).

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