Monday, May 9, 2011

iPhone 3GS Battery Life Expectancy

Is your iPhone battery schizophrenic?

Mine is.  I purchased a iPhone 3GS on release day back in June of 2009.  It was the latest and greatest iPhone from Apple.  Today my iPhone is on life support!  I took it to the doctor (Apple Store) yesterday and they said that it couldn't be operated on.  I could get a "new" i.e. refurbished iPhone 3GS for $49.00 along with another 2 year contract from AT&T. Wow,  pay another $49.00 for a phone that is already outdated and about to be updated with the release of the iPhone 5 later this year.  Sure there are 3rd party vendors that replace batteries or you can do it yourself for about $30.00.  Problem is I'm not that handy taking apart electronic stuff and I will most likely break whatever I'm trying to fix.  What is one to do?  Upgrade to an iPhone 4 now for another $199 and not be eligible for another upgrade for 24 months.  I'm really not thrilled about spending any money on a outdated piece of equipment but the purchase of a new unsubsidized phone starting at $650 is somewhat unrealistic for most people.  My solution although temporary was to purchase an external battery case for my iPhone 3GS for $38.99 at Best Buy.  Hopefully this will be good enough until the iPhone 5 comes out later this year.