考虑到智能手机已经改变了我们的生活，令人惊讶的是它们在电池寿命方面的弱点。大多数人已经准备好接受智能手机几乎无法使用一天的事实。正如我们都曾经历过的那样，这还远远不够。因此，电力替代品的售后市场是巨大的。我们分析了这个混乱的市场，并希望分享一些扩展智能手机功能的最佳方法。让我们开始吧：
您的智能手机需要更多电量吗？
几年前，手机在两次充电之间可以轻松使用 4-5 天。今天，我们从手机转移到智能手机，这几乎无法让我们熬夜。智能手机时代(smartphone era)的全能应用程序，让我们膝盖发软，他们这样做是有原因的。全能(almighty smartphone)的智能手机能够以数十种方式交换消息，管理您的银行帐户(bank account s)，随时随地为您提供音乐，与您的社交圈(circle s)联系，向您展示最新消息，访问令人上瘾的游戏分数，并且列表还在继续在。这里的难题是，您可以在智能手机上做的越多，它运行的速度就越快。
所以，你可以做什么？让我们确保您面前有一个完整的选项列表。
为了使对选项的检查变得实用，我们将挑选一些流行的智能手机。我们决定从 iOS、Android 和 Windows Phone(Android and Windows Phone)中各获取一个。当我们讨论选项时，我们将放置与它们一起使用的产品的链接，以便您可以访问图片和规格，并更容易为您的智能手机获得类似的选项。
以下是本文考虑的智能手机列表及其电源规格(power specs)：
- iPhone 6s：电池 1.715(battery 1.715) mAh，Lightning 接口(Lightning connector)
- Nexus 6P：电池 3.450(battery 3.450) mAh，USB-C 连接器(USB-C connector)
- Lumia 640：电池 2.500 mAh，Micro-USB
上述所有智能手机明显缺少的一项功能是无线充电。不要失去希望。我们将找到创造性的方法(way s)来将其添加到组合中。
充电器，到处都是充电器！
为了延长智能手机的电池寿命(battery life)，您可能会考虑的第一件事是获得额外的充电器。与您为智能手机支付的价格相比，这项投资相当小，而且它的使用量翻倍或三倍的红利是物有所值的。
这里的关键是仔细考虑你在哪里度过你的一天（和晚上！）。通常需要额外充电器的地方是工作场所和汽车，假设您将原来的充电器放在家里并主要在夜间使用。如果您在家时是一名狂热的智能手机用户(smartphone user)，您甚至可以考虑在家里安装两个充电器：一个用于卧室，另一个用于客厅(living room)。
另一种情况是在你的包里放一个充电器。找到电源插座后，我在咖啡馆、火车或机场得到了无数次喘息。
照片：(Photo:) Etsy
一个显着的变化是对接充电器。这些允许您的智能手机处于直立位置，从而更容易检查通知。您的办公桌(work desk)或床头柜是此类码头最喜欢的位置。
完全成熟的充电器的替代方法是使用USB 电缆(USB cable)插入智能手机并使用任何计算机或任何设备，就此而言，USB 端口(USB port)可用作电源(power source)。
有很多制造商销售充电器。这里的风险是，从长远来看，便宜的充电器可能无法为您的智能手机充电，甚至损坏它。仔细检查其他买家留下的评论以尽量减少这种风险总是一个好主意。智能手机原始制造商生产的充电器是最安全的选择，尽管它们通常更贵。
以下是我们列表中智能手机的一些不错的电源充电器：
在我们结束这个话题之前，我们需要说几句话关于快速充电。这是制造商尚未设法收敛到统一标准的另一个领域。几年来，Qualcomm Technologies一直在推动这一领域的标准，今年(Technologies)9 月(September)发布了最新的Quick Charge 3.0。尽管我们的两款智能手机都配备了高通(Qualcomm)处理器，但它们都不符合快速充电(Quick Charge)标准。Nexus 智能手机(Nexus smartphone)确实带有快速充电声明(charge claim)，但这是基于Google专有设备，使用特殊的voltage/amperage combination。
您需要从中得到的是，快速充电是可能适用于您的智能手机的一项重要功能。高通声称(Qualcomm claims)，在使用特定电池的测试中，普通充电器在 30 分钟内达到 12%，Quick Charge 1.0设备达到 30%，Quick Charge 2.0设备达到 60%。Quick Charge 3.0应该能够在相同的时间内提供超过 80% 的电量。
查看智能手机的规格，如果您的智能手机符合要求，请选择使用相同快速充电标准的充电器。
双电池
在这里，我们不得不谴责谷歌(Google)效仿苹果的做法，让(Apple)Nexus 6P的电池不可拆卸。在我们的产品线中，Lumia 640是唯一一款可以更换电池的智能手机。带着两节充满电的电池离开家时，即使您在旅途中没有任何地方、没有足够的时间或没有可用的插座充电，您也可以放心地使用智能手机，只要您愿意一整天。关机、更换电池并再次启动智能手机只需几分钟，这可能比在整个咖啡店(coffee shop)寻找电源插座所需的时间还要短。
一个缺点是智能手机后盖的磨损速度可能比平时快得多。毕竟，盖子被设计成很少打开和关闭。将其作为日常练习可能会将其抵抗力推向极限。然而，更换外壳对于大多数智能手机来说是一笔不小的开支。
这种组合中的最后一点硬件：如果您必须使用智能手机，为额外的电池充电是一件麻烦事。半夜(night sleep)醒来取出第一个电池并放入第二个电池，并不是睡个好觉的理想场景(ideal scenario)。在这种情况下，我们建议您使用电池充电器(battery charger)。我们建议不要严格根据价格购买这些充电器。您需要一个智能充电器，它知道电池何时充满并避免过度充电，从而降低其容量和使用寿命(capacity and lifespan)。
让我们看看这些选项对于我们唯一具有可更换电池的候选人的外观：
随身携带电源插座
如果您的智能手机不允许更换电池，或者您只是不喜欢每天弯曲手指和指甲来打开智能手机，那么便携式充电器可以作为替代方案。事实上，这是一个超大电池，提供充电USB 端口(USB port)，您可以在其中连接与智能手机兼容的电缆。便携式充电器中的电源可以为您的智能手机充电多次。
照片：(Photo:) 重(Heavy)
此容量以 mAh（毫安时）为单位，与智能手机的电池相同。这是一个简单的数学练习(math exercise)，可以了解您可以为智能手机充电多少次。请记住，能量传输远非完美，您应该从该容量中取出 25-30% 以获得为智能手机充电的真实能力。(life ability)
容量也与大小严格相关。如果您想要一个可以放入口袋的小型设备，请查看 5,000 mAh 左右的容量。对于更大的容量，您正在寻找可以放在包中携带的设备。我们在下面列出了一些具有不同容量的便携式充电器选项。请记住，便携式充电器的容量可以超过 25,000 mAh，但这会带来更大的尺寸和价格。
强大的拥抱
还有另一种选择可以以不涉及额外电缆的方式为智能手机供电，打开它或跪在桌子下寻找电源插座：电池盒(battery case)。在这里，我们就智能手机的设计进行了一场大辩论。
你的iPhone 6s的电池很小的原因是智能手机的大小，尤其是它的厚度。尽管许多用户反馈他们会接受更厚的智能手机以换取更长的电池寿命(battery life)，但制造商一直在挤压智能手机的厚度，电池是第一批牺牲品。
在这里，我们有一个选项，您可以将它贴在男人身上🙂(man 🙂)并决定您可以使用更大的智能手机和更大的电池。电池盒(battery case)将便携式充电器直接嵌入智能手机的外壳中。您可以决定永久打开此保护套，或者在智能手机自己的电池即将到期时插入智能手机。
照片：技术顾问(TechAdvisor)
与便携式充电器一样，以毫安时 (mAh) 为单位的容量决定了外壳的大小。选择手机壳时请记住，这一次不是关于您口袋或包中携带的重量，而是您在使用智能手机通话时握在耳朵上的重量。
购买电池盒时，您必须确定容量以及常用的盒选项：后盖或翻盖(flip cover)、颜色、质地等。让我们看几个电池盒：
无线充电
尽管没有一家制造商在其规格中包含此功能，但我们已承诺为您提供对我们产品线中的智能手机进行无线充电的选择。(wireless charging)电池盒的解决方案很简单：无线充电(wireless charging)内置于电池盒中。(battery case)
无线充电(Wireless charging)是一项仍在寻找在智能手机世界中(smartphone universe)占有一席之地的技术。最初被吹捧为唯一的新充电方式，我们看到许多制造商暂时后退了一步。阻碍无线充电的冲突是快速充电。能够快速为您的智能手机(smartphone fast)充电也是用户社区(user community)的一大抱怨。谷歌为将无线充电排除在(Google)Nexus 6P规格之外的决定进行了辩护，称有线快速充电是更好的选择。
照片：(Photo:) 亚马逊(Amazon)
从我们的智能手机阵容中(smartphone lineup)，我们找到了一个 iPhone 示例。确保您不断检查智能手机无线充电(wireless charging)盒的市场，因为该领域(area come)的产品每天都在成千上万。
完整电池盒(battery case)的替代方案是使用无线接收器(wireless receiver)插入智能手机并像盒子一样粘(smartphone and sticks)在上面。这是适合Lumia 640的微型 USB 接收器：
太阳的力量
对于为智能手机充电的最后一个选项，我们将目光投向了我们行星系统的恒星。对于户外爱好者来说，有很多选择可以直接从天空中的大火球中将果汁注入智能手机。
照片：户外装备实验室(Outdoor Gear Lab)
太阳能充电器的大小和形式(size and form)各不相同。您将获得便携式充电器的设备，可以选择通过暴露在阳光下获取能量。它们通常需要长时间暴露在阳光下，大约需要 10 小时才能为 10,000 mAh 充电。
其他太阳能充电器是可折叠的，提供更大的阳光照射区域，并承诺(sun exposure and promise)以超过 2 安培的功率直接为您的设备充电。此类设备提供的安培数确实会根据阳光的强度而有所不同。可折叠的设计可以融入包或背包中。
阳光(Sunlight)可以穿透云层并提供比预期更多的能量。在这种情况下，重要的是您要依靠可以承受水溅的设备，以便在下雨时保持打开状态。
与便携式充电器一样，太阳能充电器通常提供USB 端口(USB port)，因此您只需要一根与智能手机兼容的USB 数据线即可。(USB cable)
我们在下面提供了一些选项。我们鼓励您多花点时间到处逛逛，因为形式、标准和功能有很多变化。
结论
我希望我能让您重新考虑您的智能手机电源(smartphone power)配件。我们挑战您重新审视您的产品阵容，并确保您拥有最适合您生活方式的配饰。此外，下次您购买新智能手机时，请务必考虑可用的电源选项，并将它们考虑到您的日常使用和预算计算中。毕竟，没电的电池只会让任何智能手机变成一块没用的哑砖。如果您有其他解决方案来为您的智能手机供电，请告诉我。
How to give more juice to your smartphone's battery
Considering how much smartphoneѕ have changed our liveѕ, іt is amazing how feeble they are when it comes to battery life. Most people are ready to accept that a smartphone is barely able to make it through one day. As we havе all experienced at one point, this is not nearly enough. As a result, the aftermarket of power alternatives is huge. We analyzed this cluttered market and we want to share some of the best ways to extend the power of your smartphone. Let's get started:
Do you need more power on your smartphone?
A few years back, phones would easily last 4-5 days between charges. Today we moved from phones to smartphones that barely get us to the evening. The all-powerful apps of the smartphone era, make us weak in the knees and they do so for a reason. The almighty smartphone is able to exchange messages in dozens of ways, manage your bank account s, serve you music on the go, connect with your social circle s, show you the latest news, access scores of addictive games and the list goes on and on. The conundrum here is that the more you can do on your smartphone, the faster it will run down.
So what can you do? Let's make sure you have a full list of options in front of you.
In order to make this examination of options practical, we will pick up a few popular smartphones. We decided to get one each from iOS, Android and Windows Phone. When we discuss options, we will put links to the products that work with them so that you have access to pictures and specs and make it easier to get similar options for your smartphone .
Here is the list of smartphones under consideration in this article and their power specs:
- iPhone 6s : battery 1.715 mAh, Lightning connector
- Nexus 6P : battery 3.450 mAh, USB-C connector
- Lumia 640 : battery 2.500 mAh, Micro-USB
One ability that is conspicuously missing from all the above smartphones is wireless charging. Do not lose hope yet. We will find creative way s to get this added to the mix.
Chargers, chargers everywhere!
The first thing that you may consider for prolonging the battery life of your smartphone, is getting additional chargers. The investment is rather small compared to the price you paid for your smartphone and the bonus of doubling or tripling its use is worth the money.
The key here is to carefully consider where exactly you spend your day (and night!). The usual places, for which you will need additional chargers, are the workplace and your car, assuming that you keep the original charger at home and use it mainly overnight. If you are an avid smartphone user while at home, you may even cons ider having two chargers there: one for the bedroom and another for the living room.
Another scenario is to have a charger in your bag. I have gotten numerous respites in cafes, trains or airports once I found an electrical socket.
Photo: Etsy
A notable variation are the docking chargers. These allow an upright position of your smartphone which makes it easier to check on for notifications. Your work desk or your nightstand are the favorite locations for such docks.
The alternative to a full-blown electrical charger is to get a USB cable that plugs into your smartphone and use any computer or any device, for that matter, with a USB port available as the power source.
There are lots of manufacturers that sell chargers. The risk here is that a cheap charger may not charge as fast your smartphone or even damage it in the long run. It is always a good idea to carefully check the reviews left by other buyers to minimize this risk. The chargers produced by the original manufacturers of the smartphone are the safest bet, although they are usually more expensive.
Here are some good power chargers for the smartphones in our list:
Before we close this topic, we need to say a few words about fast charging. This is another area where manufacturers do not manage to converge (yet) to unified standards. Qualcomm Technologies have been promoting standards in this area for a few years with the latest one Quick Charge 3.0 announced this September. Although two of our smartphones are equipped with Qualcomm processors, none of them comply with Quick Charge standards. The Nexus smartphone does come with a fast charge claim, but this is based on Google proprietary devices, which use a special voltage/amperage combination.
What you need to take from this is that fast charging is an important feature that may apply to your smartphone. Qualcomm claims that, in tests with a particular battery, a regular charger achieved 12% in 30 minutes, a Quick Charge 1.0 device 30% and a Quick Charge 2.0 one 60%. Quick Charge 3.0 should be able to deliver more than 80% in the same amount of time.
Check out the specs of your smartphone and, if your smartphone is compliant, pick up a charger that takes advantage of the same fast charging standard.
The twin battery
Here we have to decry Google's decision to follow Apple in making the battery of Nexus 6P non-removable. From our line-up, Lumia 640 is the only smartphone that allows replacement of the battery. Leaving your home with two fully charged batteries, gives you the confidence to use your smartphone as long as you please throughout the day, even if you don't have anywhere on your route, enough time, or an available socket to re-charge. Shutting down, replacing the battery and starting your smartphone again takes only a couple of minutes which may be even less than the time it takes to chase an electrical socket throughout the coffee shop.
One downside is that the back cover of your smartphone may be worn out much faster than usual. After all, the cover is designed to be rarely opened and closed. Making this a daily exercise may push its resistance to its limits. However, replacing the cover is a small expense for most smartphones.
One last bit of hardware in this mix: charging the extra battery is a hassle if you have to use your smartphone. Waking up in the middle of the night to get the first battery out and to put the second one in, is not the ideal scenario for a good night sleep. In this case, we recommend that you get a battery charger. We advise caution against buying these chargers based strictly on price. You need a smart charger that knows when the battery is full and avoids overcharging which decreases its capacity and lifespan.
Let's see how these options look like for our only candidate with a replaceable battery:
Taking the electrical socket with you
In case your smartphone does not allow the replacement of the battery or if you simply do not like bending your fingers and nails to get the smartphone opened every day, portable chargers can be an alternative. This is, in fact, an oversized battery that provides a charging USB port where you can connect a cable compatible with your smartphone. The power packed in a portable charger can recharge your smartphone several times.
Photo: Heavy
This capacity is designated in mAh (milliampere-hour) the same as the battery of your smartphone. It is a simple math exercise to understand how many times you can recharge your smartphone. Keep in mind that the transfer of energy is far from perfect and you should take away 25-30% from that capacity to get the real life ability to recharge your smartphone.
The capacity is also strictly related to the size. If you want a small device that fits in your pocket, look at something around 5,000 mAh. For bigger capacities you are looking for a device you can carry in a bag. We have listed below a few options of portable chargers with different capacities. Keep in mind that the capacity of a portable charger can extend over 25,000 mAh, but this comes with both bigger sizes and prices.
The powerful embrace
There is yet another option to power up your smartphone in a way that does not involve extra cables, opening it up or kneeling under the tables in search of electrical sockets: the battery case. Here we have a big debate about the design of the smartphone.
The reason your iPhone 6s has a small battery is the size of the smartphone, especially its thickness. Despite the fact that many users provide feedback that they would accept thicker smartphones in exchange for longer battery life, the manufacturers keep squeezing the thickness of the smartphones and the batteries are the first casualties.
Here we have an option where you can stick it to the man 🙂 and decide that a bigger smartphone with a bigger battery is all right with you. The battery case embeds a portable charger directly into the case of your smartphone. You can decide to keep this cover on permanently or just plug the smartphone in when its own battery is about to expire.
Photo: TechAdvisor
The same as with portable chargers, the capacity in milliampere-hours (mAh) dictates the size of the case. Keep in mind when choosing the case that this time this is not about the weight you carry in your pocket or your bag, but the weight you hold at your ear when talking on the smartphone.
When shopping for battery cases you have to decide the capacity as well as the usual case options: back or flip cover, color, texture, etc. Let's see a couple of battery cases:
Wireless charging
We have promised to give you an option for wireless charging the smartphones from our line-up despite the fact that none of the manufacturers included this in their specs. The solution is straightforward with the battery case: the wireless charging is built into the case.
Wireless charging is a technology that is still looking to find its place in the smartphone universe. Initially touted as the only new way to charge, we see that many manufacturers are t aking a step back for the time being. The conflict that holds back wireless charging, is with fast charging. Being able to charge your smartphone fast is also a big gripe with the user community. Google defended its decision to leave the wireless charging out of Nexus 6P specs by referring to the wired fast charging as the better way to go.
Photo: Amazon
From our smartphone lineup, we have found an iPhone example. Make sure you keep checking the market for wireless charging cases for your smartphone as the products in this area come and go by the thousands every day.
The alternative to a full battery case is to have a wireless receiver that plugs into your smartphone and sticks to it similarly to a case. Here is a micro-USB receiver that fits Lumia 640:
Power of the sun
For the last option to charge your smartphone, we look towards the star of our planetary system. For the outdoorsman, there are plenty of options to get the juice into your smartphone directly from the big ball of fire in the sky.
Photo: Outdoor Gear Lab
The solar chargers vary in size and form. You get devices that are portable chargers with the option to get energy from exposure to the sun. They will usually require long exposures to the sunlight, something like 10 hours to charge a 10,000 mAh.
Other solar chargers are foldable and provide a bigger area for sun exposure and promise to charge directly your device with more than 2 Amps of power. The amperage delivered by such devices does vary according to the strength of the sunlight. The foldable design can get incorporated in bags or backpacks.
Sunlight can penetrate the clouds and provide more energy than expected. In this case, it is important that you rely on a device that can withstand water splashing so that you can keep it open during rain.
The same as with portable chargers, the solar chargers usually provide a USB port so all you need is a USB cable compatible with your smartphone.
We have put a few options below. We encourage you to spend a bit more time shopping around as there are many variations in form, standards, and features.
Conclusion
I hope I have got you reconsidering your smartphone power accessories. We challenge you to revisit your lineup and ensure you do have the best accessories for your lifestyle. Also, the next time you pick up a new smartphone, do consider the power options available and take them into account for your everyday usage and into your budget calculations. After all, a dead battery makes any smartphone nothing more than a useless dumb brick. Let me know if you have other solutions to power up your smartphone.
