five lovely juice pack that adds more usage time for iPhone 4

(credit: Mophie/MiPow/PowerSkin/PowerPlus/PhoneSuit)

iPhone battery performance has never been good, even for the much touted iPhone 4. thankfully, we have portable batteries and chargers to fill the gap, albeit being a little troublesome. to that end, it is fair to say that the market is not lacking of such accessories. in fact, beside iPhone cases, portable batteries are among the best seller for iPhone accessories which pretty much tells Apple that their smartphone is in dire need for a better battery. juice pack case is perhaps one less obtrusive way to extend your iPhone battery life, plus it protects your phone at the same time. so what’s not to like? today, we look at five recent releases among the slew of juice pack cases flooding the market. also check out a summary table for a ‘side-by-side’ comparison at the end of this post .

Andino PowerPlus II Lite

(credit: Andino) Andino PowerPlus II Lite | S$69.00 | myandino.com

the PowerPlus II Lite is not the first juice pack from the Singapore-based firm. in fact, it is the third and latest which sports a slimmer form factor at just 16.5mm thick and packed with a 1500mAh Lithium-ion Polymer under the hood. the PowerPlus II Lite claims a standby time of up to 350 hours, up to 6 hours of talk time, and audio and video playback time of up to 20 hours and 6.0 hours, respectively. other features include built-in overcharging protection, short-circuit and overheating protection, rubberized black finish for slip-free grip and LED battery status indicator. it has a price tag of S$69 (about US$56), which is the most affordable among the five featured here.

PhoneSuit Elite Battery Case for iPhone 4

(credit: PhoneSuit) PhoneSuit Elite Battery Case for iPhone 4 | US$79.95 | www.phonesuit.com

the PhoneSuit Elite Battery Case is a slim battery-case for iPhone 4, bulking up your iPhone to just 17mm thick. slim considering the fact that it has a 2100 mAh Lithium-ion Polymer battery packed into it – the biggest capacity battery among the five featured here. PhoneSuit did not give exact figures on its battery-case performance but it is touted as the fastest charging and thinnest external battery pack available for iPhone 4. i should emphasize that it is not the thinnest of all but the thinnest in its class of battery. with an output of 1A / 5 watts, it claims that it can fully charge an iPhone in around two hours. other features include smart power technology that prioritizes the power consumption and five-point LED battery status indicator. the PhoneSuit Elite Battery Case for iPhone 4 has a price tag of $79.95.

PowerSkin for Apple iPhone 4

(credit: PowerSkin) PowerSkin for Apple iPhone 4 | US$79.99 | www.power-skin.com

the PowerSkin for Apple iPhone 4 is kind of unique as it is constructed of soft silicone rubber instead of the usual hard plastic. like all good juice pack, it offers smart battery technology to prioritize charging, enables charging and syncing without the removable of the case, LED battery status lights and an on/off power button. under the hood is a 2000 mAh battery packed into a slightly bulked up package of 19.6mm, though no mention of what type of battery but i suppose it is using Lithium-Polymer like everyone else does. the PowerSkin claims a talk time of 480 mins, and up to 350 hours of standby time. it has a retail price of $79.99.

Mophie Juice Pack Air for iPhone 4

(credit: Mophie) Mophie Juice Pack Air for iPhone 4 | US$79.95 | www.mophie.com

Mophie is the pioneer for external battery pack for iPhone and so you will expect the very best from its experience in seven generations of product development and design. the Juice Pack Air case features a 1500 mAh Lithium Polymer battery that promised to offer up to 6 hours of talk time, 270 hours of standby time, and audio and video playback of up to 36 hours and 9 hours respectively. along with the standard features such as no signal interference design, smart battery technology, quick charging and four LED battery status indicator, the Juice Pack Air for iPhone 4 also features an unique acoustic sound enhancement. the case is designed to act as a virtual speaker box by redirecting the sound from the bottom of the iPhone 4 to front which explains the slight bulk as compare a typical juice pack. the Juice Pack Air for iPhone 4 measures 128.8-mm x 63.8-mm x 17.3mm. this juice pack has a sleek design with a soft touch, rubberized finish and a silver band completes the aesthetic package. the Juice Pack Air for iPhone 4 costs $79.95 a pop and is available via Mophie’s web store.

MiPow Maca Air Power Case for iPhone 4

(credit: MiPow) MiPow Maca Air Power Case for iPhone 4 | US$69.00 | www.mipow.com

MiPow is also no stranger to external power pack for our lovely iGadgets and the Maca Air Power Case is the latest to join its suite of smart power for your iOS devices. apart from its tribal-inspired name, you will immediately notice it is different from the slew of juice pack in the market. first off, it sport the slimmest profile among the five juice pack featured here, measuring just 13.3-mm thin. despite its slim profile, it managed to packed in a modest 1200 mAh Lithium Polymer battery under the hood that’s good for 180 hours of standby time, 3 hours of talk time, and 20 hours and 5 hours of audio and video playback, respectively. its aluminum backplate with the Mac-inspired power on/off button (which also doubles as a battery status indicator), and the transparent plastic frame makes this juice pack stands out from the rest of the pack. the Maca Air Power for iPhone 4 has a retail price of $69.

Summary Comparison Table