Removable vs non

[baldybill]

How important is a removeable battery in a smartphone? If you don't have one, how easy is it to do a hard-reset if needed?

 

[leeshor]

Great question. I've only had to do a battery pull twice in the last few years and when I did it, it had the intended result. I hesitate to get a phone that doesn't have a removable battery for that reason.

When you say "hard reset" that means different things to different people but a reboot to clean system cache is a function of virtually all Android phones.

 

[cynkrzy]

I think the biggest issue is how long do you plan to keep the phone ? Li batteries have a limited lifespan.
I've read somewhere around a thousand charging cycles.

That's roughly 3 years if you charge daily.

If the battery is removable you can replace it, if not then the phone has to be replaced.

I've kept my Note II for 3 years and it's starting to show signs of needing a battery.
I love this pone, I will replace the battery and keep in until I find a Nexus phone that blows my skirt up. Might be this year, might be another year or two.

Couldn't have done that with a Note 5.

 

[kupkake]

Non removable batteries are trending now which seems that most of the manufacturers need a legal way to avoid people using the same phone over a long time.

 

[cynkrzy]

I think it depends on how long you keep a phone. I've had the same phone for 3 years and while the battery life had declined over the last year, it hasn't been enough to make me buy a new battery.

I'm getting a new nexus with a non removable, not terribly concerned. The lack of a sd card slot was more of an issue for me.