In message <487c97c4$0$20933$607ed4bc@cv.net> "Carl"
<crothman@NOSPAMoptonline.net> wrote:

>I'm not sure I get your direction here. I'm not balking at carrying an extra
>battery for the iPhone. But the suggestions don't entail carrying an extra
>battery since that's not possible with the iPhone. An extra battery for my
>BB (or for my last Motorola) is about 3 sq in and weighs a fraction of an
>ounce. It's not a box that's the same height, width, and greater in
>thickness than the phone itself. And it doesn't require an external hook up
>along with its related cable. What a cumbersome arrangement for a small,
>portable device. We used to call these types of alternatives "patchwork"
>solutions in the old days.

While I can't disagree, let me offer the flipside.

I carry an AT&T TILT, external GPS (for use with my laptop), a laptop, a
Treo 680 (well, I'm selling it), plus a couple other goodies.

For me, an external battery solution makes sense for a couple reasons:

1) I can use it with all of my devices.

2) I can charge it.

#2 is the killer, when I was carrying a spare Treo 680 battery, it
always worked great until the first time I used it, then I'd never
manage to get it recharged unless I carried a dedicated charger with me
at all times.

With the external battery, I carry one USB power source, the external
battery, and one power cable for each device along with the device. This
allows me to charge both the external battery as well as the device when
I have wall power.

The other thing to remember is that an external battery is bigger for a
reason: The little APC unit I carry has several times the battery
capacity of the iPhone's internal battery. Even if the iPhone's battery
was easily swappable in the field, I'd still have to carry several of
them to equal the power of one external unit.

Each to their own I suppose -- I don't even own an iPhone at this point,
so I have no personal bias, but I can tell you that for my own devices,
I've stopped buying spare batteries and moved to the external units.