Ask Slashdot: Where Can I Find Good Replacement Batteries? 131
An anonymous reader writes: I have an old phone with a battery that barely works anymore. My current phone's battery is mediocre — I can put up with it, but I've been thinking about getting a new one. My four-year-old ThinkPad holds less of a charge than I'd like, and less than it did when I bought it. In all these cases, the only thing holding me back from buying a new battery is that I'm not sure where to find a good one. Searching for my phone's battery on Amazon (or any major online retailer) yields a dozen results, all fairly cheap. But which are reliable? They all seem to have varying reviews, ranging from "Perfect official factory replacement!" to "Garbage knock-off, worse than the battery I replaced." Part numbers don't seem to help, as the knock-offs replicate those pretty well. I ask you, Slashdot: where can I find a good replacement battery?
Variation in online reviews (Score:5, Insightful)
> They all seem to have varying reviews, ranging from "Perfect official factory replacement!" to "Garbage knock-off, worse than the battery I replaced."
This is because amazon lumps reviews from different sellers together. Once you've identified a potential seller/product you want, go into the list of sellers, and make sure to pick one with good reviews. It's going to be more expensive than from a place with 2 stars, but at least it'll work.
Use Reputable Dealers (Score:4, Insightful)
B&H Video
Amazon when Amazon is the source
Pretty much don't look for price, look for details in the Specifications and Reputable Reviewers.. its finding these temporary sign posts that mark a good source.
More and more its random process
Re:More details, please (Score:5, Insightful)
I think the question is really intended to elicit general comments on good places to buy batteries, as much as one particular battery type.
That makes it of much more general interest to slashdot readers.
Re:Not that hard (Score:4, Insightful)
Actually, it is that hard. I needed some CR32032 batteries, and looked on Amazon. Guess what? There's a ton of sellers, claiming to sell from a ton of vendors. I'll guess that many of them will sell me a battery with the right physical and electrical form factor, but....
Which brands last longer?
Which sellers are selling official brands, and which are selling indistinguishable knockoffs?
Are the knockoffs actually worse?
Is something that looks more official and appears more reputable actually selling something better? Or am I paying for reputation and not actual quality?
How valid are the reviews? Are they astroturf? Does it matter? How can someone tell a good battery from a bad one, anyway, right after getting it. Are the just giving 5 stars because the batteries came quickly in nice packaging?
I think these are all reasonable questions, but I don't have an answer to any of them. I'm hoping that someone has done a real comparison, and can provide some kind of solid data.
Re:For 3rd party batteries, I've had good luck wit (Score:4, Insightful)
The nice thing about Anker is that they're honest about being a third party. Entirely too many companies do their best to visually imitate OEM equipment.
Cell phones with non-replaceable batteries? (Score:5, Insightful)
It shocks me that companies can be so hostile to their customers as to force them to buy new cell phones after the inevitable degradation of the batteries.