How to Select a Smartphone with A Decently Long Battery Life (That is not an Apple or Samsung Flagship Phone).

I would like to get your thoughts on something.

I am sure most of you use some smartphone daily. And some of you use different phones not so dedicated to an Apple iPhone or a Samsung Galaxy.

Do you notice the pattern between the batteries that last versus those that don’t?

What Does Lasting Battery Mean to Me?

In short, after a couple of years of use, the battery on the phone or tablet is still respectable.

I don’t mean the phone battery last throughout a day or last two days.

I think that is a function of:

1. How the operating system of the phone is packaged.
2. The capacity of the battery.
3. Your usage pattern.

What I mean is whether the battery degrade over time.

I have used a few Xiaomi Redmi phones. The Redmi are entry phones and so I am aware that there should be some downside to make up for the low cost.

What I am more interested is to figure out WHY some phone or tablet last a longer time while others will just start dying pretty fast.

I don’t think it is just about cost.

In November 2021 or 2 years 3 months ago, I bought this Lenovo Tab P11 for SG$257 bucks. This tablet still retails at SG$174 and sometimes, you can get it for SG$150. It is one of the little great discovery I found.

Tab P11 sports a battery that is 7700 mAh, much bigger than the smartphones.

But 2 years on, I would say the battery life is pretty respectable.

It is cheaper than most of my entry phones.

So what is happening here?

Is it Due to the Difference Between Lithium Polymer and Lithium Ion Battery?

My novice research seems to say that this is down to a difference in whether the phone manufacturer uses Li-Po or Li-on.

Li-on is heavier and more likely to become bloated. Li-ion also uses chemical electrolytes, while Li-Po batteries are not liquid.

But Li-ion has a higher power density, lack memory effect (when batteries become harder to charge over time) and the cost is lower.

New manufacturers like Li-po because it is lighter and smaller.

But is the battery life of phones with Li-ion batteries better than that of phones with LI-PO?

Why Do I Need to Get This Right

In two months time, my existing Redmi Note 10 Pro will be two years old and I will be shopping for a new phone.

This time, I would likely get a mid-range instead of an entry-level phone. I am not too fussy over many things but I am curious about the step up that I can get with the battery.

And for the folks who keep talking about Apple iPhones, no I don’t want to spend like $1,500 to $2,000 on a mobile phone.

Currently, I am leaning towards trying the Samsung A55 and A35 when they come out.

If you have used an entry or a mid-range phone with good battery life and decent performance in other areas, I am happy to hear your thoughts.

Thank you.

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