[gartm]

Does anyone have a good rule of thumb regarding charging the 7130e?
We were always told with conventional cell phones never to charge them for longer than 4 hours.
Any recomendations?

[dasupaman23]

With the new batteries it doesn't matter. I say keep it charged as much as you can. If you are at a pc, plug in the USB and let it charge. Personally I hate to see the battery indicator down one level. It just 'looks' bad

[Hotbox]

The charging circuitry in Li-Ion keeps us from over charging our batteries (and keeps them from exploding), so I wouldn't really worry about keeping it plugged in too long. One thing that I would consider is that Li-Ion batteries will only take a charge so many times. I just read something last night from Motorola that said their Li-Ion batteries can only be charged about 500 times before they lose their ability to hold a decent charge. They said that this is true whether you start the charge at 90% full or at 10% full. This means that if you charge you BB overnight, and also give it a boost from the USB port on your PC during the day, you're looking at less than a year of battery life. Yikes!

My current rule of thumb is to charge it every other night. If it looks like my battery isn't going to make it a full 2 days, then I'll plug it into my USB port at my desk and skip that evenings charge at home.

[melissaox]

I generally keep mine charged up as much as possible. I have never had a problem with a cell battery dying. And I have kept some phones for years. They always say that you should let the battery discharge all the way before recharging, but I just can not do it. I get to nervous and paranoid something will happen. I have a car charger, plug in charger, and pc charger. The world would have to end for me to not have access to at least one of these. Doesn't matter though... I mean I guess I could be trapped in the woods lost... no car and no plugs... but I am in Florida, how far would it be before I found a house or road?

[andrebsd]

I just charge my phones at night; plug it in on the nightstand and it doubles as an alarm clock.

Haven't had any batteries go bad yet; and I don't have to worry about running out of battery power durring the day, even if I'm doing lots of lexture notes or whatever on the BlackBerry.

Batterys do have a limited amount of cycles though; I had a habbit of using my laptop for a few minutes somewhere else in the house and then putting it back on the desk with power. My battery declined rather quickly; but I guess maybe it was a good thing. Now I have my BlackBerry replace the laptop; since I get horrible battery time on the notebook (its down to about 1:30) and now I no longer worry about weight, power, or finding an internet connection.

Though I'll have to say, the first few days of class and having to explain to the professors that it's not being used as a cellphone isn't easy to get across. They all think I'm some text messaging freak or something till they relize I type my papers and email them to my desk to be printed.

[melissaox]

That is an interesting idea.... BB to replace a laptop for notes. I like that

[hayden]

Other tips for long your BB battery:

Use the holster when not actively using or viewing your BlackBerry. It turns the screen off, which goes a long way toward preserving battery life. Also, turn off your BlackBerry’s radio when in areas that offer poor service or no service at all. The BlackBerry will attempt to transmit at full power while in these areas to establish a connection, which will devastate your battery’s remaining power. If you’d rather not worry about manually managing your radio’s activity, go to Options and set Auto On/Off to help conserve your battery’s life.

[officer]

I was in Japan last month and basically used my BB7105t as a clock and alarm clock. I had turned off the radio and my battery lasted 7 days without turning it off. Pretty amazing.
A good rule of thumb is that if you run your battery down past 5%, charge it with the power off. I have a spare so I usually run my battery all the way down anyway - switching out batteries and letting the dead one charge in the seperate charger. I get in around 4 days with average use (10-15 calls a day with about 30-60 minutes of browser/email on each battery.

[melissaox]

I keep thinking about getting a second battery. I have to decide if I am going to keep the 7100 or leap into an 8700

[SalaH]

I have never had a battery problem in my life with cell phones but then again I never had a bb b4. I was a little concerned the first few days when I got my bb because the battery would go down rather quickly but that was due to me doing all types of playing around with the settings. I charge mine about every other day. Imake about 30-40 calls in a day but I don't see to much decline in the battery life. ~~~Posted via Blackberry @ wap.pinstack.com~~~

[SalaH]

I have never had a battery problem in my life with cell phones but then again I never had a bb b4. I was a little concerned the first few days when I got my bb because the battery would go down rather quickly but that was due to me doing all types of playing around with the settings. I charge mine about every other day. Imake about 30-40 calls in a day but I don't see to much decline in the battery life. ~~~Posted via Blackberry @ wap.pinstack.com~~~

[Madleroy]

Being a RC plane pilot, I have planes that are worth thousands of dollars. Batteries can mean the difference of a good flight or a smoking hole in the ground.
There is alot of info on the net about these 3rd gen batteries.
It's worth a google search for information.
As a RC pilot, I stand to lose planes that are hand built of cutting edge materials. This is not even factering in the months of trimming out the aircraft for precion needed for contests.
The last thing I want to happen is lose one from a simple battery problem.
Check it out. Lots of info out there.


Chuck

[EricaJ1073]

I have 3 batteries now, 3 chargers and a couple USB cords so I am never without a charge wherever I am until I start driving again and get a car charger lol

[djeaton3162]

Where is the best place to get a spare battery and charger for a 7100g?
Daniel
~~Posted via BB (wap.pinstack.com)~~

[msbrenda64]

Thanks! This is very informative, I think I'll start charging every other night unless absolutely necessary. Perhaps my approximately 500 charges will go for a stretch longer.