Portable Battery - Motorola P790 Review

BigDaddyNYY

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I apologize if this has been covered, I found posts mentioning it as an option, but not much on reviews.

I recently ordered/received a Motorola P790, portable battery/charger, from ebay along with a mini to micro USB adapter and wanted to pass along my initial review. I will admit that I was hesitant to purchase it based on limited reviews, but figured for $10 shipped for both, worst case I would have another paperweight.

So far the battery has performed well. I have used it multiple times on my X, each time when the remaining power level on the phone was less than 30%, and the Motorola P790 was able to recharge the phone's battery within 2 hours. Each time the indicator on the portable battery was flashing orange, which indicates that the charge is low (don't have the manual with me, but I thought flashing orange was between 30-50% remaining), but I have not tried to charge the X further before recharging the portable battery. I will have to try this, but my concern was whether I could get at least a full charge out of the battery.

I have also used it while watching a movie, and was able to watch the movie with no discharge to the X's battery. Without the P790, this was a major drain on the phones battery. Again, I am not sure how long the portable battery would last while watching movies, but since it is a 1700 mah battery, it should provide enough juice to prevent the phones battery from draining for 2-3 hours of movies while on a flight or other situation where a charging source is not available :)

The size of the P790 (approx 2"x3"x1") makes it convenient to throw in my carry-on luggage, but depending on the situation could be easily carried in a pocket as well. The battery will also charge any other devices that use mini USB (i.e. mp3 players, bluetooth headsets, etc.) Another nice feature (which I haven't tried yet) is that you can charge the portable battery and phone simultaneously, if this works it will cut down on the number of charging cables I need (as the P790 needs a mini USB cable to charge and most phones now need micro usb).

The only negative that I have so far is the fact that the portable battery connector is a mini usb, the mini to micro adapter solves the connection issue but means that I have to carry the adapter as well. I did make sure that I purchased a Motorola adapter, but a generic should work as well.

Hope this helps anyone in the market for a portable battery/charger. I know it has saved me a couple of times while traveling so far, and I have only had it a couple of weeks. If I find any other negatives, I will try to update this review.
 

jcrocks

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Thanks for the info on the P790. Will the mini-USB AC and DC charging cable for my Droid Incredible recharge the P790 also? While the P790 is connected to the Droid, is it also charging the internal Droid battery or is the phone only working off the juice coming off from the P790? Thanks.
 
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BigDaddyNYY

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I am not sure what type of usb connection the Droid Incredible uses, but I can charge both the portable battery and my Droid X simultaneously when I use the adapter and a mini USB cable from one of my old phones. When you have both connected, the phone will charge first, then once the phone if fully charged it will charge the battery.

Just make sure that you actually have a mini USB charger and port on your phone, the Droid X charger and USB port is a Micro USB, the portable battery uses mini USB, so a separate mini USB charger and an adapter to connect a mini USB device to a micro USB port is needed.

Sorry, just re-read your question. The portable battery will recharge the phone's battery if the phone is not being used. If you are using the phone while the battery is connected, in my experience you will conserve your phones battery life and work off the portable battery. To answer your question, the portable battery will charge your phones battery, but if you are using your phone while it is connected it will maintain the battery life on your phone.

Hope this helps.
 
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jcrocks

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Thanks for the comeback. Now that you mention it and looking at the adapter I have, I believe it is a male micro usb (not a mini) to a regular male USB2.0 (to connect to my notebook)that came with my DI. Does the P790 not come with a mini to micro adapter cable? If not, guess I have to get a male mini to male micro USB adapter cable to connect to the P790?
 
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BigDaddyNYY

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When I bought the battery, it did not come with a charging cable or the adapter. You will need a mini usb charger, and a mini USB to Micro USB adapter. You should be able to get both the charger and the adapter for under $10 if you don't already have them. I just found the adapter on amazon for under $3, I bought mine on ebay last year for around the same price with free shipping.

Again, you will need a charger and the adapter to make the battery work with your phone. You may want to check to see if motorola has come out with a new portable battery that works with micro USB before going through all of the trouble.
 

jcrocks

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I already have both an AC charger and a DC cable (separate units/cables) but both with a male micro USB plug (that goes into my DI). The AC obviously I plug into a 110v wall outlet. The DC cigarette lighter cable I plug into my car outlet. Just to clarify, I just need the P790 and a male mini/male micro USB cable adapter? Thanks for your help.
 

jcrocks

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BigDaddyNYY, first my apologies to make sure I am thinking correctly.
For a standalone use of the P790, the male connector I see in the picture on top of the unit appears to be a male micro USB I can connect directly to my DI for supplementary juice.
To recharge the P790 when it is connected in series to my DI (if above is correct), is the outlet in the P790 a female micro USB or a mini USB? If it is a female micro USB, then I will need a male mini USB to female micro USB outlet cable to connect to my micro USB charging system (regardless AC or DC)? Thanks for your patience.
 
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BigDaddyNYY

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Unless they made a change to the P790 since I bought mine, both the in and out on the battery are Mini USB. So you will need a mini USB with a male adapter to charge the P790, I had a mini usb charger from my previous phone that I use for this, I am not sure if there is a micro USB to mini USB adapter available.

To go from the P790 you need a Mini USB (female) to Micro USB (male) adapter, here is the link to an adapter as found on amazon Amazon.com: Motorola Mini-USB to Micro-USB Charger Adapter: Cell Phones & Accessories

Hope this helps, let me know if you have any additional questions.
 

jcrocks

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Thanks, BigDaddyNYY. Took the plunge and bought the 790 and a few adapters for the mini/micro biz. Hope they work. Did unearth a mini USB car adapter cable from an old Nav system.

Thanks for your help and patience again.
 
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