For the first few months I owned the Samsung Galaxy SIII, I noticed few issues related to battery life. With a powerful processor and an LTE radio, I did fear that the battery wouldn’t be sufficient for many of my needs — including hour-long train rides into New York City. With those fears allayed I got a bit comfortable. That is, until last week, when my battery was halfway drained after just the train ride into Manhattan.
The MLB At Bat widget is to blame, apparently. After changing the refresh rate I was able to conserve battery throughout my trip, but the damage was done. Keeping widgets like this running can cause significant battery drain, to the point where I now need to charge the device every 20 or so hours (i.e., not quite a full day’s usage). At home that’s no big deal. On the road, it becomes a bigger issue.
While there are many solutions, there is one that I’ve found satisfactory in more than one way. The Xpal Powerskin case has proven an excellent form of protection, both against dings and battery drain. It’s a very thin silicone case that, with a little added thickness, provides more protection than your average silicone case. The charging feature means I won’t have to worry if my battery usage gets out of hand at some point.
I will admit, the case is a bit thicker than the one I’d been using, so it does feel a little awkward in my pocket. The charge feature also doesn’t quite provide a full charge. That’s fine, since it’s mostly a break glass in case of emergency tool. But it would be nice to essentially get a mulligan when abusing my battery. I’ve used various iPhone charging cases, and they all provided a full charge.
As with all battery backup cases, you’ll only get a certain number of charges. There are plenty of complaints that the Xpal works for only a few months. If you chew up battery life quickly, this probably isn’t the solution for you. You probably need a more full-powered extended battery (which means a much larger case) or a spare battery. For those who need the occasional boost, the Xpal will work well.
If you have a Galaxy S3 and want to get that little bit of insurance, you can get the Xpal Powerskin case for $37.95 from Amazon. Don’t have the S3 but still want a case like this? Check out Xpal’s entire line of smartphone cases.
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