Question about ebay'd battery pack for HTC EVO 4G

[Tzzird]

I bought a pair of batteries rated at 2000 mAH with a charger last week.

The one that came with my phone is 1500mAH. Anyone know if there are any safety issues with using a third party battery from China? I have one charged up, but doing a little bit of research first before I try it out.

 

[entropism]

Most people would say it's fine, I've worked on phones who had cheap chinese batteries leak inside them almost immediately after they were purchased. Are they extended batteries or are they the standard size? Because I can tell you for a fact that you can't pack much more into that standard size, so the ebay battery's rating will be a lie.

 

[Ashton]

Ice nev had a problem with a china battery (outside of the fact their lifespan tends to be shorter ---you will end up with less than the advertised mah after a few charges, how much less varies per battery) safety though, no problems from me and I've been using china batteries for about 8-10 years...

 

[Tzzird]

Most people would say it's fine, I've worked on phones who had cheap chinese batteries leak inside them almost immediately after they were purchased. Are they extended batteries or are they the standard size? Because I can tell you for a fact that you can't pack much more into that standard size, so the ebay battery's rating will be a lie.

Ice nev had a problem with a china battery (outside of the fact their lifespan tends to be shorter ---you will end up with less than the advertised mah after a few charges, how much less varies per battery) safety though, no problems from me and I've been using china batteries for about 8-10 years...

Thanks for the responses guys. This I will probably stick to my multitude of chargers for my normal workdays and go with the extra batteries the next time I travel and am desperate for extra juice.

The batteries are normal size. So the 2000 mah rating may not be much better than the 1500 stock battery rating.

 

[asyork]

I'd stay away from sbc kernels with a cheap battery. I use them with my stock battery without issue, but my research (forum reading) on the subject revealed that what makes it safe to use is a protection chip built inside the battery. There is a chance a cheap battery doesn't have one.

 

[Menelmarar]

You might be fine, and get a good battery, you might not.

I personally wouldn't.

http://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/lithium_ion_safety_concerns
http://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/aftermarket_batteries_and_what_everyone_should_know

"Because of the inherent instability of lithium metal, research shifted to a non-metallic lithium battery using lithium ions. Although slightly lower in energy density, the lithium-ion system is safe, providing certain precautions are met when charging and discharging."

"Let me assure the reader that lithium-ion batteries are safe and heat related failures are rare. The battery manufacturers achieve this high reliability by adding three layers of protection. They are: [1] limiting the amount of active material to achieve a workable equilibrium of energy density and safety; [2] inclusion of various safety mechanisms within the cell; and [3] the addition of an electronic protection circuit in the battery pack."

"If, for example, the maker of the counterfeit battery relies on the charger to terminate the charge, and the manufacturer of the charger depends fully on the battery’s protection circuit, a combination exists that can have serious consequences."

 

[entropism]

I would stay away from SBC kernels altogether.

 

[Ashton]

I would stay away from SBC kernels altogether.

Most of us on the Cyanogen Mod forums swear by them.

And the solution is simply not to use a $1 charger from china. I use the OEM chargers and have never had a problem, they all have a control chip. OEM chargers are still cheaper than OEM double-capacity batteries.

 

[SamuraiInBlack]

Can't say much about batteries as I tend to stick to stock myself.

However, chargers? Yeah. Cheapass chinese car charger blew out my dad's cigarette lighter port. Thankfully it was just a fuse and an easy fix. Still, annoying to know that the money you save on a charger gets to be spent in replacing fuses if you really want to keep it. That's why I stick to OEM.

 

[entropism]

I spent a few years repairing cell phones, and I've seen the ill effects of cheap chargers AND cheap batteries. I read up on the SBC "controversy" and heard from the EEs that threw out stats and numbers saying not to use them. Honestly? It just didn't make a huge difference to me, and the risk wasn't worth the reward.

 

[Ashton]

I spent a few years repairing cell phones, and I've seen the ill effects of cheap chargers AND cheap batteries. I read up on the SBC "controversy" and heard from the EEs that threw out stats and numbers saying not to use them. Honestly? It just didn't make a huge difference to me, and the risk wasn't worth the reward.

Since the latest CM7 and ULV kernel gives me ample battery life, I'm using the OEM battery and OEM charger again instead of my double-capacity China battery. So I feel I'm pretty save with 3 safeguards (OS, Battery, and Charger) against overcharging.