This is post number 2 in my "things I should of blogged about ages ago" series. Post number one in the series was my review of the Motion LS800 Mobile Dock.
I purchased the extended battery for the LS800 shortly before Tech-Ed New Zealand this year. I was going to be at a conference, wandering around all day and I wanted to have a ready supply of power for my LS800 because that is the best device ever for carrying around all day without a laptop bag and taking notes in sessions.
Pictured below is the LS800 with the extended battery fitted. The standard battery is alongside for size comparison.
Like the standard battery the extended battery has a push button charge level indicator. I love this feature, but my only gripe is that the button and the indicator LEDs are on the part of the battery that gets inserted into the tablet and is hence covered up when it is in the tablet. I wish the indicator was accessible when the battery is in the tablet. It is nice to be able pull a device out of your bag and check the charge without removing the battery.
The on the standard battery I get about 2:45 – 3:00 hours depending on what I am doing, but in addition to that I can get 5:30-6:00 hours from the extended battery – a bit more if I get brutal with the power settings.
However that is not what has impressed me about the LS800 extended battery. Frankly I would expect an extended battery to extend your battery life – hence the name. I have used extended batteries with a number of devices and most (not all) are clunky, unwieldy things that seem to have been tacked on as an aftermarket afterthought. The frequently make the device not only heavy but awkward to use. This is particularly true on convertible tablets with a "Wedge" style extended battery such as the Toshiba M400.
The LS800 with the extended battery fitted is – by contrast – still very well balanced and easy to use. In some cases the extra width between the edge of the screen and the edge of the battery is a bit of a boon.
If there is one thing Motion do really well it is practical product design. This battery is another example of that.