A colleague of mine was sporting a Richard Solo backup battery for his iPhone yesterday. After listening to him rave about it, I was set to buy one.
Then this morning, before I headed to the Solo website, an article from Cult of Mac popped up in my RSS feeds featuring a new backup battery that is set to be released from Phonesuit.
The Richard Solo battery, shown below, attaches to the connector at the bottom of the iPhone. It adds a bit of length to the phone, which admittedly is not ideal. And, as one poster on Cult of Mac pointed out, it can add a bit of strain to the connector. You can charge both the phone and the battery simultaneously with the provided cable. The Richard Solo sells for $49.95. (There is a second version for $54.95 that has a light and laser pointer.)
The Mili Power Pack, shown below, from Phonesuit fits the iPhone like a case or a glove. While fitted into the Mili Power Pack, you can charge your iPhone and the back-up battery via a USB port. You can even charge a Bluetooth headset from the Mili via the USB port. The Mili will sell for $79.95.
For me, I’m still leaning toward the Richard Solo. First, it’s a good bit cheaper. Secondly, I use a Griffin Clarifi case with my iPhone, so the Mili would require switching out cases when I needed the extra battery. That’s a non-starter in my book.
