V551 Battery Life-What can I do?

I just signed up with Cingular and both me and my fiancee got a V551.
After reading the reviews it seemed like the perfect phone. Now that
I got it though it seems battery life is awful.
One thing I am discovering though is it seems not everyone has this
problem. Some people have it but yet others that don't have very good
battery life. I can't figure out if it's a problem with the phone or
the battery.
When I got it I did do a 4 hour charge until it said charge complete
but never did do any drain/recharge cycles so actually now I'm doing
it on both phones.
I noticed though the first day my fiancee's (she uses her phone far
more than mine) phone died in less than a day but she usually it
heavily that day for calls as well as bluetooth (tethering to her
Pocket PC).
Well this is when I researched the battery issue. Last night I
unplugged both phones and decided not to charge either until they ran
competely down. I have bluetooth off on my phone and hers has it
turned on. As well, I have not used my phone at all but she has made
two phone calls today, each around 10 minutes. As well, for around 10
mins. she went on the internet and used her phone tethered to her
laptop.
Well this is what I find interesting. I was actually thinking battery
time was doing well. After around 23 hours it showed 4 in the phone
status screen for battery. What is confusing is after just 30 more
mins. the low battery beep came on. How is it that after 23 hours the
battery is not even half empty but yet in another 30 minutes almost
completely empty? This to me does seem like a battery issue.
Anyway, I know a lot of people on here suggest just turning bluetooth
off. Well the problem is the reason she bought this phone is for
bluetooth use. Well it's easy for her to turn the bluetooth on and
off when using the internet with the PocketPC. The problem is as well
shortly she plans to start using a Motorola HS850 Bluetooth headset.
Well part of the good thing about that is she can keep her phone then
in her purse and when a call comes in answer it on the headset.
Having bluetooth off just takes away most of the advantages of the
headset.
I will continue doing these charge/recharge cycles and only hopes it
helps. If not though what else can I do? Is there a extended life
battery available somewhere I can order? I have even though of a
second battery but if I go that route is there a battery charger as
well that I can use to charge a 2nd battery without having it on the
phone?
I have also emailed Motorola about this issue. There only response was
that leaving the bluetooth on all the time only uses slightly more
power. I know after 24 hours of no battery use my V551 is down to 5
bars which isn't bad at all.

---

› See More: V551 Battery Life-What can I do?

In article <[email protected]>,
MarkW <markwco(removenospam)@comcast.net> wrote:

> I just signed up with Cingular and both me and my fiancee got a V551.
> After reading the reviews it seemed like the perfect phone. Now that
> I got it though it seems battery life is awful.
> One thing I am discovering though is it seems not everyone has this
> problem. Some people have it but yet others that don't have very good
> battery life. I can't figure out if it's a problem with the phone or
> the battery.
> When I got it I did do a 4 hour charge until it said charge complete
> but never did do any drain/recharge cycles so actually now I'm doing
> it on both phones.
> I noticed though the first day my fiancee's (she uses her phone far
> more than mine) phone died in less than a day but she usually it
> heavily that day for calls as well as bluetooth (tethering to her
> Pocket PC).
> Well this is when I researched the battery issue. Last night I
> unplugged both phones and decided not to charge either until they ran
> competely down. I have bluetooth off on my phone and hers has it
> turned on. As well, I have not used my phone at all but she has made
> two phone calls today, each around 10 minutes. As well, for around 10
> mins. she went on the internet and used her phone tethered to her
> laptop.
> Well this is what I find interesting. I was actually thinking battery
> time was doing well. After around 23 hours it showed 4 in the phone
> status screen for battery. What is confusing is after just 30 more
> mins. the low battery beep came on. How is it that after 23 hours the
> battery is not even half empty but yet in another 30 minutes almost
> completely empty? This to me does seem like a battery issue.

Nope, its a meter issue. Cellular manufacturers now a days have the
battery life meter and the cellular signal meter read high when they
shouldn't as a method of reducing support calls.




> Anyway, I know a lot of people on here suggest just turning bluetooth
> off. Well the problem is the reason she bought this phone is for
> bluetooth use. Well it's easy for her to turn the bluetooth on and
> off when using the internet with the PocketPC. The problem is as well
> shortly she plans to start using a Motorola HS850 Bluetooth headset.
> Well part of the good thing about that is she can keep her phone then
> in her purse and when a call comes in answer it on the headset.
> Having bluetooth off just takes away most of the advantages of the
> headset.

Some leather cases fit so tight that they will depress one or another of
the phones buttons, thereby draining the battery. Or possibly the phones
position in your fiance's purse is depressing button(s).

> I will continue doing these charge/recharge cycles and only hopes it
> helps. If not though what else can I do? Is there a extended life
> battery available somewhere I can order? I have even though of a
> second battery but if I go that route is there a battery charger as
> well that I can use to charge a 2nd battery without having it on the
> phone?

An ebay search for "V551 Extended Battery" found a battery and a new
back for sale cheap.


> I have also emailed Motorola about this issue. There only response was
> that leaving the bluetooth on all the time only uses slightly more
> power. I know after 24 hours of no battery use my V551 is down to 5
> bars which isn't bad at all.

Just curious. What's wrong with putting it on the charger when you go to
sleep each night. Sounds like a small price to pay to have a fully charged
battery each morning.

Battery life is complicated and affected by many, many factors.
Temperature, use of the display, volume, signal strengh all play into
battery life. Just charge/top off every night and problem solved. When you
notice battery life decreasing, do a full discharge and back to normal.

Don
"MarkW" <markwco(removenospam)@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>I just signed up with Cingular and both me and my fiancee got a V551.
> After reading the reviews it seemed like the perfect phone. Now that
> I got it though it seems battery life is awful.
> One thing I am discovering though is it seems not everyone has this
> problem. Some people have it but yet others that don't have very good
> battery life. I can't figure out if it's a problem with the phone or
> the battery.
> When I got it I did do a 4 hour charge until it said charge complete
> but never did do any drain/recharge cycles so actually now I'm doing
> it on both phones.
> I noticed though the first day my fiancee's (she uses her phone far
> more than mine) phone died in less than a day but she usually it
> heavily that day for calls as well as bluetooth (tethering to her
> Pocket PC).
> Well this is when I researched the battery issue. Last night I
> unplugged both phones and decided not to charge either until they ran
> competely down. I have bluetooth off on my phone and hers has it
> turned on. As well, I have not used my phone at all but she has made
> two phone calls today, each around 10 minutes. As well, for around 10
> mins. she went on the internet and used her phone tethered to her
> laptop.
> Well this is what I find interesting. I was actually thinking battery
> time was doing well. After around 23 hours it showed 4 in the phone
> status screen for battery. What is confusing is after just 30 more
> mins. the low battery beep came on. How is it that after 23 hours the
> battery is not even half empty but yet in another 30 minutes almost
> completely empty? This to me does seem like a battery issue.
> Anyway, I know a lot of people on here suggest just turning bluetooth
> off. Well the problem is the reason she bought this phone is for
> bluetooth use. Well it's easy for her to turn the bluetooth on and
> off when using the internet with the PocketPC. The problem is as well
> shortly she plans to start using a Motorola HS850 Bluetooth headset.
> Well part of the good thing about that is she can keep her phone then
> in her purse and when a call comes in answer it on the headset.
> Having bluetooth off just takes away most of the advantages of the
> headset.
> I will continue doing these charge/recharge cycles and only hopes it
> helps. If not though what else can I do? Is there a extended life
> battery available somewhere I can order? I have even though of a
> second battery but if I go that route is there a battery charger as
> well that I can use to charge a 2nd battery without having it on the
> phone?
> I have also emailed Motorola about this issue. There only response was
> that leaving the bluetooth on all the time only uses slightly more
> power. I know after 24 hours of no battery use my V551 is down to 5
> bars which isn't bad at all.

On Tue, 08 Mar 2005 00:22:34 -0700, MarkW
<markwco(removenospam)@comcast.net> wrote:

>I just signed up with Cingular and both me and my fiancee got a V551.
>After reading the reviews it seemed like the perfect phone. Now that
>I got it though it seems battery life is awful.

One thing I tried, as others have suggested, is to let the phone
charge overnight. Seems to add about a day to the charge. I now get
4 days instead of 3.

"Dick" <LeadWinger> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On Tue, 08 Mar 2005 00:22:34 -0700, MarkW
> <markwco(removenospam)@comcast.net> wrote:
>
>>I just signed up with Cingular and both me and my fiancee got a V551.
>>After reading the reviews it seemed like the perfect phone. Now that
>>I got it though it seems battery life is awful.
>
> One thing I tried, as others have suggested, is to let the phone
> charge overnight. Seems to add about a day to the charge. I now get
> 4 days instead of 3.

The first time a lithium-ion battery is charged the phone should be turned
off and allowed to charge for a minimum of 8 hours.

You salesman should have told you this.

--
JJ

On Tue, 08 Mar 2005 23:47:29 GMT, "Jiu Jitsuperfly"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>
>"Dick" <LeadWinger> wrote in message
>news:[email protected]...
>> On Tue, 08 Mar 2005 00:22:34 -0700, MarkW
>> <markwco(removenospam)@comcast.net> wrote:
>>
>>>I just signed up with Cingular and both me and my fiancee got a V551.
>>>After reading the reviews it seemed like the perfect phone. Now that
>>>I got it though it seems battery life is awful.
>>
>> One thing I tried, as others have suggested, is to let the phone
>> charge overnight. Seems to add about a day to the charge. I now get
>> 4 days instead of 3.
>
>The first time a lithium-ion battery is charged the phone should be turned
>off and allowed to charge for a minimum of 8 hours.
>
>You salesman should have told you this.
I will try the 8 hour charge. I have charged it overnight but it
didnt' seem to make a difference but I did drain it completely and
will try the overnight charge again and see what happens.

MarkW wrote:

> I just signed up with Cingular and both me and my fiancee got a V551.
> After reading the reviews it seemed like the perfect phone. Now that
> I got it though it seems battery life is awful.
> One thing I am discovering though is it seems not everyone has this
> problem. Some people have it but yet others that don't have very good
> battery life. I can't figure out if it's a problem with the phone or
> the battery.
> When I got it I did do a 4 hour charge until it said charge complete
> but never did do any drain/recharge cycles so actually now I'm doing
> it on both phones.
> I noticed though the first day my fiancee's (she uses her phone far
> more than mine) phone died in less than a day but she usually it
> heavily that day for calls as well as bluetooth (tethering to her
> Pocket PC).
> Well this is when I researched the battery issue. Last night I
> unplugged both phones and decided not to charge either until they ran
> competely down. I have bluetooth off on my phone and hers has it
> turned on. As well, I have not used my phone at all but she has made
> two phone calls today, each around 10 minutes. As well, for around 10
> mins. she went on the internet and used her phone tethered to her
> laptop.
> Well this is what I find interesting. I was actually thinking battery
> time was doing well. After around 23 hours it showed 4 in the phone
> status screen for battery. What is confusing is after just 30 more
> mins. the low battery beep came on. How is it that after 23 hours the
> battery is not even half empty but yet in another 30 minutes almost
> completely empty? This to me does seem like a battery issue.
> Anyway, I know a lot of people on here suggest just turning bluetooth
> off. Well the problem is the reason she bought this phone is for
> bluetooth use. Well it's easy for her to turn the bluetooth on and
> off when using the internet with the PocketPC. The problem is as well
> shortly she plans to start using a Motorola HS850 Bluetooth headset.
> Well part of the good thing about that is she can keep her phone then
> in her purse and when a call comes in answer it on the headset.
> Having bluetooth off just takes away most of the advantages of the
> headset.
> I will continue doing these charge/recharge cycles and only hopes it
> helps. If not though what else can I do? Is there a extended life
> battery available somewhere I can order? I have even though of a
> second battery but if I go that route is there a battery charger as
> well that I can use to charge a 2nd battery without having it on the
> phone?
> I have also emailed Motorola about this issue. There only response was
> that leaving the bluetooth on all the time only uses slightly more
> power. I know after 24 hours of no battery use my V551 is down to 5
> bars which isn't bad at all.


From your post it isn't clear to me that you've considered trading
batteries with her. One may consider this a viable option only when
she's in the shower, but why let that stand in the way of an educational
hi-tech experience.

--
jer
email reply - I am not a 'ten'

Jack Zwick wrote:


> Or possibly the phones
> position in your fiance's purse is depressing button(s).
>

Not likely Jack, it's a Moto V551 - a clamshell design - but your other
ideas could be considered.

--
jer
email reply - I am not a 'ten'

>
> From your post it isn't clear to me that you've considered trading
>batteries with her. One may consider this a viable option only when
>she's in the shower, but why let that stand in the way of an educational
>hi-tech experience.
I never thought of that I'll have to give that a try since mine
does seem to be working much better.

MarkW wrote:
>
>
> I will try the 8 hour charge. I have charged it overnight but it
> didnt' seem to make a difference but I did drain it completely and
> will try the overnight charge again and see what happens.

I didn't keep track, but I did several (3-4) full discharge/recharge
cycles and I seem to get much better battery life now.

In article <[email protected]>,
Jer <[email protected]> wrote:

> Jack Zwick wrote:
>
>
> > Or possibly the phones
> > position in your fiance's purse is depressing button(s).
> >
>
> Not likely Jack, it's a Moto V551 - a clamshell design - but your other
> ideas could be considered.

Quite likely, I had that happen with a case (buttons wrongly depressed)
I bought and used for 5 minutes before returning to Office Depot.

Ditto. I have been thru 3 full discharge cycles and my battery life is MUCH
improved. I plan to do at least one more full discharge/charge cycle.

"Bob Horvath" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> MarkW wrote:
> >
> >
> > I will try the 8 hour charge. I have charged it overnight but it
> > didnt' seem to make a difference but I did drain it completely and
> > will try the overnight charge again and see what happens.
>
> I didn't keep track, but I did several (3-4) full discharge/recharge
> cycles and I seem to get much better battery life now.

I love these folks who say they give it an overnight charge EVERY night
and then it will last 3 days. Anyone notice a contradiction there?

> An ebay search for "V551 Extended Battery" found a battery and a new
> back for sale cheap.
>
>
I'd be afraid of getting a countfeit battery that explodes! I checked
dBay and all of the batteries offered are non-OEM, meaning they are not
Motorola batteries.