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Help no replaceable battery?

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DWFII

Well-Known Member
Newish Galaxys and Nexus do not have replaceable batteries? What is the rationale there?

Will the battery last forever? Not talking about lack of charge...but AFAIK, even the latest tech in batteries has a limited lifespan before charging starts to be ineffective. So....

Or are the companies just figuring you will replace the phone before the battery fails? (I'm looking at buying used and wondering if I have to take battery life into consideration...)
 
Some phones with non-user replaceable batteries do so to make them water resistant or waterproof (to a point). The new Galaxy S7 is rated at IP 68 which means it's water and dust resistant. My current phone, a Verizon Maxx 2 has a non-replaceable battery, but did not have an IP rating. It was a consideration for me as I prefer replaceable batteries. I've had a battery die on me and was glad I could just buy a new one and change it.

For better or for worse the industry seems to be headed this way along with larger screens.
 
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If you're shopping around for a refurbished phone than focus on models that do have user replaceable batteries. That does limit your options but yeah, batteries do have a fixed lifespan.
Or you could also invest in an external battery that you keep with your phone.
 
DWFII said:
Newish Galaxys and Nexus do not have replaceable batteries? What is the rationale there?

Will the battery last forever? Not talking about lack of charge...but AFAIK, even the latest tech in batteries has a limited lifespan before charging starts to be ineffective. So....

Or are the companies just figuring you will replace the phone before the battery fails? (I'm looking at buying used and wondering if I have to take battery life into consideration...)
Click to expand...

Actually the recent Samsung Galaxy batteries are replaceable, but they're intended to be dealer replaceable, not user replaceable. And instructions for dealers to do it are provided in the manual as well.

FYI:
http://downloadcenter.samsung.com/c...222100319008/EN/G935_HTML_MM_Eng/5b3e7b6.html

iPhones have always had sealed in batteries, but that's never stopped anyone around here getting them replaced, there's plenty of competent phone servicers
 
What phones are they? I was looking for a Galaxy S5 (preferrably).

Hey...a little OT but as long as I'm at the keyboard...what android phone has the best camera in the last several generations.
 
Define "best". For example, the S7 camera gets rave reviews, but to my eye the over-sharpening is hideous. I'd recommend choosing a few you are interested in then finding some real world examples of shots taken with them.

The S5 does have a user replacable battery, it was part of the last generation of Samsung flagships to do so - the subsequent S6, Note 5, S7, Note 7 do not. This trend started long before IP ratings (Sony were the first manufacturer to push those). The other justification is that you can pack a larger battery in if you don't have to design so the package can be removed by the user. But yes, they have a finite life, though as long as you don't abuse them they will last longer than many people keep their phones (my current phone is 3.5 years old, battery life has decreased but it's not a critical problem so far).
 
The lack of a removable battery can be a dealbreaker for some people. It is for me, I want to be able to take the battery out to inspect it and replace it when needed. These batteries begin to swell when they are going bad, if you can't take it out you can't see that. Also sometimes the phone may freeze badly enough to require a battery pull to reset it- oops can't do that.
So yeah sticking with my S5 for now (just replaced the battery for the second time the other day).
 
DWFII said:
What phones are they? I was looking for a Galaxy S5 (preferrably).

Hey...a little OT but as long as I'm at the keyboard...what android phone has the best camera in the last several generations.
Click to expand...

S6, S7, and current Notes. There's definitely instructions in the back of the user manual on how to change the battery, with an important note stating, for authorized dealers and competent service personnel only. Which basically means local service should be able to do it, for a reasonable cost and while you wait possibly. Could possibly do it yourself, but it does involved removing and replacing glued parts, so would require a spudger and probably heating pads.

I know there's many around here, can change a "sealed" iPhone battery in about 10 minutes. I've seen them do it quite a few times. :thumbsupdroid: My Oppo R7 Plus is sealed battery, but that doesn't bother me at all. Sure if that ever needs replacing, it will be no problem. Although at my current rate, I seem to keep phones for about a year to 18 months, and have always bought new.
 
I'll say it again, you fellows are great. Thank you for schooling me...I need it.

I am leaning heavily to an S5, but are there other phones in that generation--LG, Nexus, etc.?--that are close in quality (esp. camera quality) and have replaceable batteries?

tioraidh...
 
LG flagships generally have user-replaceable batteries - even the current G5 has one. There hasn't been a Nexus with a user-replacable battery for several years though (the 2011 Galaxy Nexus was the last).
 
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