Database Users

A warning to all those buying a Nexus S (Screen and battery problems)

I thought I'd share some hopefully helpful information with you guys after having to have 2 swap outs of my Nexus S after getting it on launch day.
I had done an awful lot of reading prior to getting my Nexus to make sure I was pretty clued up about any potential launch bugs which seem to plague a number of handsets these days.
The first thing I noticed with my first phone was the unusually fast battery drain and long charge times, I could hardly go through daylight hours without my phone needing charge (Battery indicator showing orange or red). The following night I left the phone with 55% charge and went to sleep. When I woke up the phone was off, strange I thought; turns out it had eaten the rest of the battery over night.
The final straw came when I reset the phone to default settings (thinking it was a rogue app causing the drain) and it still ate the battery within a day. At this point I knew something was up, especially as reviewers were commenting that the battery seemed considerably better than a lot of other Android handsets.
I decided to take it back to Best Buy to get a swap out, long story short the sales rep. tested the battery and told me that it was defective. He then said he would swap out just the handset and battery with another unit, great I thought!
My relief was soon disturbed when I realised something wasn't right with the screen on my new handset. Not only was the screen a pee yellow colour (compared with the cool temperature of the original) there was also significant banding within the grey area of the the pull down notification tray. These problems had also been mentioned on the Engadget review and even if they hadn't I'm pretty sure I still would have noticed it straight away regardless.
After another trip back to Best Buy and a reluctant second swap out on their part, I have what seems like a fully working handset with a good battery and decent AMOLED panel.
I don't know what's happening with Samsung's QC or whether they have large tolerances for their panels, but I would have thought that they would have been able to iron a lot of this out having already launched the Galaxy S series.
A slightly long post but I hope this at least saves some of you the hassle I've been through to get a decent handset. This isn't the first time it's happened either, I had problems with my launch day iPhone 4 with the mic not working.
One thing's for sure, I'm going to be far more vigilant when buying my next handset.

also test ur buttons because they can be loose and the back button sometimes has problems

nothing new for samsung QA

Unfortunately, having come from the epic, this seems par for the course for sammy..I'd high hopes Google would counter this, but I guess not. My first and only ns is wonderful, though I ordered online and it seems the majority of complaints are coming from those that ordered at the store..coincidence?
Sent from my Nexus S using Tapatalk

I had to return an iPhone 4 a few months ago because the screen was literally fused on crooked to the display. They all have their negatives and bad batches.
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App

brianbrain said:
Unfortunately, having come from the epic, this seems par for the course for sammy..I'd high hopes Google would counter this, but I guess not. My first and only ns is wonderful, though I ordered online and it seems the majority of complaints are coming from those that ordered at the store..coincidence?
Sent from my Nexus S using Tapatalk
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Click to collapse
Sadly, Google != Apple, they don't produce their own hardware. Depending on Samsung, with their known ****ty QA is a risk I'm sure they weighed.

I ordered my NS online and have none off theses issues! Actually my battery life is AWESOME. 16 hours straight between charging. I love it!
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App

robstunner said:
I had to return an iPhone 4 a few months ago because the screen was literally fused on crooked to the display. They all have their negatives and bad batches.
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App
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HHmm, If a few are defective, then they ALL must be. Quick, we must warn the others!

I'm not following you? I was implying that all phones have bad batches. No need to get butt hurt if that offended you?
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App

3G supported band
Guys,
Some thing out of the topic, but i need to ask is that is there any sort of 3G band limitation in US version of NS? My friend in Canada told me that currently all devices are coming only with AWS support for 3G which is supported by limited number of Cellular Operators.
Any ideas?

fshami said:
Guys,
Some thing out of the topic, but i need to ask is that is there any sort of 3G band limitation in US version of NS? My friend in Canada told me that currently all devices are coming only with AWS support for 3G which is supported by limited number of Cellular Operators.
Any ideas?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Correct, it wont work on AT&T/Bell/Telus 3G (someone correct me if im wrong about the Canadian carriers)

Having the same battery problem, please help
I am also having the same battery problem. It seems like the battery drains 1% per minute. I need to keep it charging all the time or it will drain in about 90 minutes. And it takes 8-9 hours to charge it to 100%.
Problem is I can't just take it back to Best Buy since I live overseas and a friend brought it to me from the US. So now what do I do?
1. Is it the battery or the phone? If it is the battery then I can just replace the battery, but I can't find anywhere online to buy the same battery? Any ideas?
2. If it is the phone, is there anything I can do w/o having to send it back to the USA?
Thanks so much for your help!

SmartphonesTV said:
I am also having the same battery problem. It seems like the battery drains 1% per minute. I need to keep it charging all the time or it will drain in about 90 minutes. And it takes 8-9 hours to charge it to 100%.
Problem is I can't just take it back to Best Buy since I live overseas and a friend brought it to me from the US. So now what do I do?
1. Is it the battery or the phone? If it is the battery then I can just replace the battery, but I can't find anywhere online to buy the same battery? Any ideas?
2. If it is the phone, is there anything I can do w/o having to send it back to the USA?
Thanks so much for your help!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Standard-Battery-Moment-M900/dp/B0026LQL40/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top this battery works if you need to buy a new one

Calm down OP. You are just unlucky I suppose. Not only Samsung, I had to switch my ex droid2 three times. First, the microphone doesn't work. Second one, the power button then the third time physical keyboard was not responsive. Just my .02
Sent from my ADR6300 using XDA App

Its called mass production people each headset will have a defect!!! Live with it or dont buy simple

Yep battery life on my phone seems crap compared to my iPhone 4 but its a good phone never the less.
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App

As of now, the nexus s i definitely eating up more battery than my n1. but i usually give it a week before i can say fore sure. are there extended batteries out for the NS?

Thanks but this seller won't ship outside the USA. I found a bunch of similar ones on eBay, but they are all 1440 milliamps and not 1500 milliamps.
Not sure if the one on Amazon is 1440 or 1500.

SmartphonesTV said:
Thanks but this seller won't ship outside the USA. I found a bunch of similar ones on eBay, but they are all 1440 milliamps and not 1500 milliamps.
Not sure if the one on Amazon is 1440 or 1500.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
if you check the accessories thread someone says its a 1500

Darrien13 said:
also test ur buttons because they can be loose and the back button sometimes has problems
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Click to collapse
Thx for that - thought I was going mad! Vol+ and Back seem dodgy - don't work every time. I'll be taking it back to the shop on Tuesday...

Gold battery

I found a "2430mAh" gold battery on amazon.co.uk (also sold on ebay).
I bought one and just wanted to share that it is quite good.
If you're looking for a replacement battery, I'd suggest you buy this one. It's near 1500mAh in reality. Behaves just as when the phone (and battery) was new. I also bought a few much cheapers ones ~5-8$, but these are just a total rip-off. They're more like 500mAh.
PS: here's a review of this battery in another subforum: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1419930

Dima_2005 said:
I found a "2430mAh" gold battery on amazon.co.uk (also sold on ebay).
I bought one and just wanted to share that it is quite good.
If you're looking for a replacement battery, I'd suggest you buy this one. It's near 1500mAh in reality. Behaves just as when the phone (and battery) was new. I also bought a few much cheapers ones ~5-8$, but these are just a total rip-off. They're more like 500mAh.
PS: here's a review of this battery in another subforum: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1419930
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
im in search for a battery too. can u write the ones you tried and sucked so we can have a better understanding of situation and sellers

I bought 1 battery on DX. This one was ok, but really quite bad capacity.
The other one, bought on ebay, battery + charger. Battery leaked after 3 months! Capacity was ok though.
This gold battery, is even better than I thought, now I check out my phone. I can't really compare as my original battery currently really sucks and I think it's almost dead.

Dima_2005 said:
I bought 1 battery on DX. This one was ok, but really quite bad capacity.
The other one, bought on ebay, battery + charger. Battery leaked after 3 months! Capacity was ok though.
This gold battery, is even better than I thought, now I check out my phone. I can't really compare as my original battery currently really sucks and I think it's almost dead.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you see the temperature of the gold battery?

currently aftter beeing in my pocket for an hour in a warm room, its 31 degrees.
after using device for 10mins it's 37 degrees.

Its similar to the official battery.

Yes it is. But it's much cheaper I think. I contacted the shop, they contacted the official repair center and got a quote of 60€ for the battery. This one cost me only 15€ including shipping.
After a second day of testing, I'm very happy. After a full day of use (~18 hours), I still had 59% of battery. That including always on Sync and 3G data, using the phone, ...
Too bad I don't have an original new battery to test it. But my guess it's a ~1500-1700mAh.

Dima_2005 said:
Yes it is. But it's much cheaper I think. I contacted the shop, they contacted the official repair center and got a quote of 60€ for the battery. This one cost me only 15€ including shipping.
After a second day of testing, I'm very happy. After a full day of use (~18 hours), I still had 59% of battery. That including always on Sync and 3G data, using the phone, ...
Too bad I don't have an original new battery to test it. But my guess it's a ~1500-1700mAh.
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Click to collapse
It is the same specs
Sent from my u8800-51 using xda premium

I gave my order just now. I also order an another one which i saw before and less pricy (around 10 $). I'll see the performances soon and will place them here.
Sent from my U8800

Just watch out, there is also a fake gold battery.
You really need the gold battery of ecell. These guys sell the real deal.

Dima_2005 said:
Just watch out, there is also a fake gold battery.
You really need the gold battery of ecell. These guys sell the real deal.
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Click to collapse
I don't know if it is really ecell or not. I have ordered it from amazon.co.uk
Sent from my U8800

Yeah, on amazon.co.uk it's sold by ecell

I can't find a Gold battery for the U8800 on Amazon UK, is there another site I can get one from or am I missing something? Wife's X5 is struggling to get through the day.

mingonn said:
I can't find a Gold battery for the U8800 on Amazon UK, is there another site I can get one from or am I missing something? Wife's X5 is struggling to get through the day.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You should search for HB4F1

Dima_2005 said:
You should search for HB4F1
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Click to collapse
Thanks Dima,
Just ordered one my my wife's X5 and another for my Galaxy Note

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/370654978688?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649
Got one from him, looks just like the original that came with the phone (not like in that pic) So could actually be genuine...

Hey what did you buy, are you glad? Can you give the link

Received my gold battery tonight. Will give a review in a few days.

Hey guys, can you give me a link from either ebay or amazon for this battery?
My current genuine battery's antutu tester score is 195 so it's pretty much dead.
Sent from my U8800 using xda app-developers app

Sanningr said:
Hey guys, can you give me a link from either ebay or amazon for this battery?
My current genuine battery's antutu tester score is 195 so it's pretty much dead.
Sent from my U8800 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Link: http://www.amazon.co.uk/2430MAH-HB4...T75A/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1354886211&sr=8-1
I guess Im gonna order one for my U8800 since my battery seems to be too old.

[Q] Verify "swollen" battery

So I have been having problems with my S4 suddenly shutting down when the battery drops to 70-80 percent. I wiped /data, reflashed stock (MH8) and even flashed the .pit file but nothing has helped. Rebooting after the phone has shut itself down, I'm lucky to get to the PIN-screen before it turns off again (sudden black screen, no regular shut down sequence). The only remedy is recharging.
I noticed that my battery appears swollen, but i figured it might be NFC-circuitry or something. Would be very grateful is someone could take a look at their battery and compare with the attached image (sorry for the iphone ruler). Would be a lot nicer to try with a new battery instead of sending it away for a motherboard replacement or something. Thanks.

That definitively doesn't look normal. :s

My battery is swollen as well. Shutting down frequently especially when using 3g and browsing.

It's not normal. My old Galaxy S 4G's battery started draining really fast and shutting down whenever I had around 50-60%. The battery was swollen. You should buy another S4 battery.

Gexxer said:
So I have been having problems with my S4 suddenly shutting down when the battery drops to 70-80 percent. I wiped /data, reflashed stock (MH8) and even flashed the .pit file but nothing has helped. Rebooting after the phone has shut itself down, I'm lucky to get to the PIN-screen before it turns off again (sudden black screen, no regular shut down sequence). The only remedy is recharging.
I noticed that my battery appears swollen, but i figured it might be NFC-circuitry or something. Would be very grateful is someone could take a look at their battery and compare with the attached image (sorry for the iphone ruler). Would be a lot nicer to try with a new battery instead of sending it away for a motherboard replacement or something. Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I wouldn't be charging that or using it either. There's a good chance it may explode if charged or used...
Unfortunately for you batteries aren't normally covered under warranty. You might need to bite the bullet and either buy another Samsung branded battery or an OEM one off ebay.

I had the same issue, changed battery and its working again.
There's also a thread in the general section. Seems to happen sometimes...
Sent from my GT-I9505 using xda app-developers app

Thanks for the help. Got a new battery today and everything seems to be back in order
Weird though, I don't usually overcharge och trickle charge my battery. My faulty one had a serial number beginning with BD, perhaps it was a bad batch.

Gexxer said:
Thanks for the help. Got a new battery today and everything seems to be back in order
Weird though, I don't usually overcharge och trickle charge my battery. My faulty one had a serial number beginning with BD, perhaps it was a bad batch.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
my faulty battery has serial number starting from BD as well. so yeah..

Mine too...BD...
Sent from my GT-I9505 using xda app-developers app

The exact same problem has started for me too literally a few days ago. I reflashed and formatted everything because I presumed the reboots were a software issue. I only noticed today that my battery is a little swollen but not as much as on some of the pictures I've seen.
Has anyone taken the battery back to a shop? How was it handled? My phone is only 3 months old but I have it rooted so I need to know whether they will want the whole phone or just replace the battery in case I need to revert to full stock firmware.
Battery serial number also starts with BD

Swizzy88 said:
The exact same problem has started for me too literally a few days ago. I reflashed and formatted everything because I presumed the reboots were a software issue. I only noticed today that my battery is a little swollen but not as much as on some of the pictures I've seen.
Has anyone taken the battery back to a shop? How was it handled? My phone is only 3 months old but I have it rooted so I need to know whether they will want the whole phone or just replace the battery in case I need to revert to full stock firmware.
Battery serial number also starts with BD
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried to get a new battery from store, but they wanted whole phone, because how they said it could be the phone problem.
I ended up buying a new battery.

If it is swollen just get a new one, means that it is pretty much gone

Lol been there.. my htc battery was so swollen that the back cover would wobble. It gave me a tick to play with

Figure out Wich battery's are bad.
Hy,
i am from Belgium and have the Same problem.
We need to figure out wich battery's are bad.
My battery is made in China and has product code B600BE
Greetz
Stino

stineco said:
Hy,
i am from Belgium and have the Same problem.
We need to figure out wich battery's are bad.
My battery is made in China and has product code B600BE
Greetz
Stino
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi! I am from Pakistan and have this same battery code B600BE. It reads "Cell Made in Japan, Assembled in China". I am only posting this with an intention to help someone:
I bought my S4 (i9500) almost 4.5 months back. I am a hardcore smartphone user and do cpu intensive tasks on my phone like crazy. My battery isn't swollen at all, exactly like I got it. Sometimes, my phone heats up a lot (eg playing CoC) and I charge and play at the same time without caring about battery and cpu temp. And so far my battery life is decent. Almost exactly like when I got it new. Don't experience any reboots or shutdowns etc
So this means that not all B600BE are faulty batteries. I guess ? Will update my post if I find more information about the "faulty battery batch" manafactured (as some xda members claim).
Sent from my GT-I9500 using xda app

plasmastate said:
Hi! I am from Pakistan and have this same battery code B600BE. It reads "Cell Made in Japan, Assembled in China". I am only posting this with an intention to help someone:
I bought my S4 (i9500) almost 4.5 months back. I am a hardcore smartphone user and do cpu intensive tasks on my phone like crazy. My battery isn't swollen at all, exactly like I got it. Sometimes, my phone heats up a lot (eg playing CoC) and I charge and play at the same time without caring about battery and cpu temp. And so far my battery life is decent. Almost exactly like when I got it new.
So this means that not all B600BE are faulty batteries. I guess ? Will update my post if I find more information about the "faulty battery batch" manafactured (as some xda members claim).
Sent from my GT-I9500 using xda app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
On my battery i cannot see where the cell is made,
It just says
MADE IN CHINA / FABRIQUE EN CHINA
ENSAMBLADO EN CHINA / MONTADO NA CHINA.
Like this http://www.technobuffalo.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/Samsung-Galaxy-S4-Battery.jpg
But then China ipv Korea

Mine is made in China, product code B600BE, S/N: BD1D512BS/2-B. It got swollen after only 2 months. Luckily they replace swollen S4 batteries here in the Philippines and in severe cases where the battery got so swollen it broke the motherboard or screen they replace those parts too. It happens quite a lot here and the folks at Samsung Care admit it's a factory defect on a batch of batteries.

My battery is also swollen. The serial number starts with BD. It is not as much as the OP but still is. I will try to replace it using warranty.

When the battery is swollen lije that, you'd better stop using it.
Sent from my GT-I9500 using xda app-developers app

http://www.talkandroid.com/179713-s...s-to-galaxy-s-4-users-with-swollen-batteries/

I9500 going crazy. Battery problems. Random bootloops.

Had my S4 since the end of July. Everything has been perfect up toll now
I am on Wanamlite 2.0 since that day it has came out and recently I have had issues where the phone would just switch off and when I the battery level would drop between 50%-100% upon restart. Then it would go into a bootloop that would only stop if I put on charge.
This has been getting worse by the day and I did a factory reset and everything is still the same. Will try a new rom today but I don't think it will help because Wanamlite has been fine up till now.
Generally battery is draining really fast. Lost 7% just typing this message.
The battery also looks slightly deformed but my S2 battery looked exactly like that and it was fine.
Please help and give suggestions and tell me if you know anything about the warranty situation on the battery because it has only been slightly used for couple of months
Sent from my GT-I9500 using Tapatalk now Free

milan188 said:
Had my S4 since the end of July. Everything has been perfect up toll now
I am on Wanamlite 2.0 since that day it has came out and recently I have had issues where the phone would just switch off and when I the battery level would drop between 50%-100% upon restart. Then it would go into a bootloop that would only stop if I put on charge.
This has been getting worse by the day and I did a factory reset and everything is still the same. Will try a new rom today but I don't think it will help because Wanamlite has been fine up till now.
Generally battery is draining really fast. Lost 7% just typing this message.
The battery also looks slightly deformed but my S2 battery looked exactly like that and it was fine.
Please help and give suggestions and tell me if you know anything about the warranty situation on the battery because it has only been slightly used for couple of months
Sent from my GT-I9500 using Tapatalk now Free
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
first thing to do is change battery

Yes. It was the battery. I wonder what caused it to deform. Maybe I just got a bad batch. I can't let that happen again.
Sent from my GT-I9500 using Tapatalk now Free

Apparently I'm not the only one who had this problem
Sent from a Galaxy S4 now Free

check that the battery has not swollen

Hi do you remember your old battery code by any chance? Also, what is your new battery code. We are actually trying to figure out which battery "batch" is/was faulty.
Thanks
Sent from my GT-I9500

Yes it was swollen
My new one starts YS will find out the old code on Monday will let you guys know
Sent from a Galaxy S4 now Free

milan188 said:
Yes it was swollen
My new one starts YS will find out the old code on Monday will let you guys know
Sent from a Galaxy S4 now Free
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
many people have had this problem to someone is also broken out the battery

My old battery also started with BD so that's definitely the defective batch
Sent from a Galaxy S4 now Free

Which battery to buy for the Galaxy S5?

Few months ago i brought a samsung battery for my S5 from a local tech shop.
I've got a feeling it wasn't a Genuine one or could be a bad one. But i've been having issues with it.
So i wanted to buy another battery but not sure which one to get. Also on a tight budget right now.
I was looking at the RavPower S5 battery. Is that good? I know it doesn't have nfc, but i hardly use that feature.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Battery-RA...515020637&sr=8-1&keywords=ravpower+s5+battery
Please help me out, thanks. :good:

FfsWally said:
Few months ago i brought a samsung battery for my S5 from a local tech shop.
I've got a feeling it wasn't a Genuine one or could be a bad one. But i've been having issues with it.
So i wanted to buy another battery but not sure which one to get. Also on a tight budget right now.
I was looking at the RavPower S5 battery. Is that good? I know it doesn't have nfc, but i hardly use that feature.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Battery-RA...515020637&sr=8-1&keywords=ravpower+s5+battery
Please help me out, thanks. :good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I bought two of these for my parents identical phones https://www.amazon.com/Battery-Capable-YONTEX-Replacement-Protector/dp/B074PQL78T/ref=sr_1_12?s=wireless&ie=UTF8&qid=1515042133&sr=1-12&keywords=s5+battery
Brand is "Yontex" and came with extremely tight tolerance screen protectors (I think I went through all of them but one until I got one to fit).
They claim to have NFC like the stock batteries. I let them charge, then drained them to 0 a few times like they state to do in the instructions.
1-On my dads phone who just has basic stuff installed, the battery life increased back to how it was when new...It can sit for almost 2 days on one charge.
2-On my moms phone who has an insane amount of crap running 24/7, the battery life did not really increase that much until I started running a wake-lock app to figure out what was still draining the battery.
(snapchat, gasbuddy, weather channel & facebook were the major offenders).
I have not actually tested the NFC function since they never use it. On another note, I don't think Samsung makes S5 batteries anymore, so any stock you find is old stock from when they were being produced years ago. Lithium batteries die whether being used or sitting on a shelf, so a fresh production date helps.