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- The myth of the “high capacity” batteries
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Introduction
What you need
Step 1
The myth of the "high capacity" batteries
- Here is the side-by-side of a Gold High Capacity and a standard run-of-the-mill iPhone 5 battery
- Checking the weight for the Gold battery it was at 0.830oz
- The standard battery weight 0.848oz.
Here is the side-by-side of a Gold High Capacity and a standard run-of-the-mill iPhone 5 battery
Checking the weight for the Gold battery it was at 0.830oz
The standard battery weight 0.848oz.
1024
Step 2
- Width of the Gold Battery is 32.01 mm vs. 31.5 mm for the standard battery
- Length of the Gold Battery is 91.72 mm vs. 90.30 mm for the standard battery
- Thickness of the Gold Battery is 3.86 mm vs. 4.04 mm for the standard battery.
- Expectation was that the Gold Battery would show difference in physical attributes that would be significant to its claimed increased capacity, which it did not
Width of the Gold Battery is 32.01 mm vs. 31.5 mm for the standard battery
Length of the Gold Battery is 91.72 mm vs. 90.30 mm for the standard battery
Thickness of the Gold Battery is 3.86 mm vs. 4.04 mm for the standard battery.
Expectation was that the Gold Battery would show difference in physical attributes that would be significant to its claimed increased capacity, which it did not
Step 3
- Gold Battery is fully charged at 4.85 V on an K9201 Fast Battery Charger Activation Circuit Tester
- Standard battery is fully charged at 4.85 V on an K9201 Fast Battery Charger Activation Circuit Tester
- For this test a battery connector was simply soldered to a prototype board and wires were soldered to the positive and negative connectors on the board.
Gold Battery is fully charged at 4.85 V on an K9201 Fast Battery Charger Activation Circuit Tester
Standard battery is fully charged at 4.85 V on an K9201 Fast Battery Charger Activation Circuit Tester
For this test a battery connector was simply soldered to a prototype board and wires were soldered to the positive and negative connectors on the board.
Step 4
- The prototype board was then connected to the EBD Constant Current Electronic Load capacity tester. Shown here with the standard battery connected
- Same connection is made with the Gold Battery (test in progress)
- Here is the result for the standard battery
The prototype board was then connected to the EBD Constant Current Electronic Load capacity tester. Shown here with the standard battery connected
Same connection is made with the Gold Battery (test in progress)
Here is the result for the standard battery
Step 5
- Here is the result for the Gold Battery.
- Here is the synapse of the test results Standard Battery Title:EB Tester Software Mode:D-CC (Constant Current Discharging) 0.50A 2.90V Begin Volt:4.189V Cutoff Volt:2.904V Capacity:1353mAh Energy:4987mWh Avg Volt:3.69V Total time to reach the cutoff voltage of 2.9V was 2:42:44hours
- Gold battery. Title:EB Tester Software Mode:D-CC (Constant Current Discharging) 0.50A 2.90V Begin Volt:4.182V Cutoff Volt:2.904V Capacity:1376mAh Energy:4969mWh Avg Volt:3.61V Total time to reach the cutoff voltage of 2.9V was 2:45:33hours
Here is the result for the Gold Battery.
Here is the synapse of the test results Standard Battery Title:EB Tester Software Mode:D-CC (Constant Current Discharging) 0.50A 2.90V Begin Volt:4.189V Cutoff Volt:2.904V Capacity:1353mAh Energy:4987mWh Avg Volt:3.69V Total time to reach the cutoff voltage of 2.9V was 2:42:44hours
Gold battery. Title:EB Tester Software Mode:D-CC (Constant Current Discharging) 0.50A 2.90V Begin Volt:4.182V Cutoff Volt:2.904V Capacity:1376mAh Energy:4969mWh Avg Volt:3.61V Total time to reach the cutoff voltage of 2.9V was 2:45:33hours
Looking at the results from this test it clearly shows the Gold battery has a capacity of only 1376mAH. This is 49% less than advertised on the battery as well as the websites where these batteries are sold.
This test showed that while the Gold High Capacity Battery did not have a higher capacity, it is not any worth than the standard battery. So it would be okay to purchase these batteries if the buyer would want a standard capacity replacement battery for a higher price.
‘Buyers Beware!’
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Bonnie Baxter - Feb 5, 2019
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I would add a second warning, from my experience/forced education with iPhone batteries about five years ago. The situation may have changed. But at the time, I was seeking affordable batteries for refurbished phones. So I tried eBay. And tried, and tried. Exactly one supplier (iFixit moderators, am I permitted to name the supplier?) provided full capacity (that is, full standard capacity) batteries that were accurately described. Every other supplier I tried was selling batteries that were far below standard capacity—some of these were “gold” batteries and some were standard.
So at least at that time, it was far from safe to buy gold batteries even if all one wanted was a standard capacity battery. The reality seems to be (or seemed to be) that these are batteries taken from used phones and sold as new regardless of their age, storage conditions, or existing capacity. That was the norm, not the exception.
If you’re going to be buying a lot of batteries, find a supplier you trust. I hear iFixit is good….
By the way, thank you for publishing this, and for doing such a thorough and careful job. I learned this the hard way.
It’s perhaps worth pointing out that maximum capacity of a battery of a given chemistry (e.g. lithium ion) is limited by size—hence your careful measurements in step 2. A battery with 50% more maximum capacity (i.e. capacity before degradation by aging and use) is going to be 50% bigger. You obviously know this, but it’s worth pointing out to people like me whose high school physics teachers are rolling over in their graves (or just rolling their eyes, depending on your age) when their former students are taken in by these things.
There are some new chemistries for lithium batteries, I understand, and I understand that they do have somewhat higher capacities. But that’s not what these gold batteries are. I even took the gold labels off some of the ones I bought and found the original labels beneath…
Chris Edwards - Jul 31, 2020
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Yamaruan - Feb 3, 2022
Reply
Very well executed test here, but it would be nice if we can have different brand of these ‘high capacity’ batteries get tested against each other as well.
Lotus99 - Feb 11, 2022
Reply
I don’t know the date this article was written, but there’s a fairly recent one done by a reputable website, the Cult of Mac, in Feb. 2020, where they did the same test with two high capacity batteries, and one of them lasted 26% longer. But they also found the other one barely lasted longer.
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So it’s definitely NOT a myth, but it depends a lot on the manufacturer it seems… Which is pretty hard to know up front, unless you are pretty confident what you’re buying.
Here’s their article: https://www.cultofmac.com/686299/replace…
