Did ZTE manufacture my phone with a lower capacity battery?

crlinder · Sep 16, 2016

I've just purchased a ZTE Warp Ellite phone and am trying to determine whether it might have been manufactured with the wrong capacity battery installed. It does not have a removable battery, so I can't open the phone and examine it directly without breaking into it.

The phone is advertised to have a 3000 mAh battery. However, the DU Battery Saver app, which I use to maximize battery life, is reporting that the battery has a maximum capacity of only 2000 mAh.

In previous phones that I've owned, I've also used the DU Battery Saver app to maximize battery life. On those other phones, the app correctly reported the batteries' maximum capacity. (Those phones had removable batteries, so I could determine directly what the manufacturer claimed the capacity was.)

Is it likely that ZTE manufactured my phone with the wrong capacity battery, or is there a reasonable technical explanation for why the DU Battery Saver app might report a maximum capacity of 2000 mAh when the battery is actually 3000 mAh?

aofjax · Sep 16, 2016

crlinder said:
I've just purchased a ZTE Warp Ellite phone and am trying to determine whether it might have been manufactured with the wrong capacity battery installed. It does not have a removable battery, so I can't open the phone and examine it directly without breaking into it.

The phone is advertised to have a 3000 mAh battery. However, the DU Battery Saver app, which I use to maximize battery life, is reporting that the battery has a maximum capacity of only 2000 mAh.

In previous phones that I've owned, I've also used the DU Battery Saver app to maximize battery life. On those other phones, the app correctly reported the batteries' maximum capacity. (Those phones had removable batteries, so I could determine directly what the manufacturer claimed the capacity was.)

Is it likely that ZTE manufactured my phone with the wrong capacity battery, or is there a reasonable technical explanation for why the DU Battery Saver app might report a maximum capacity of 2000 mAh when the battery is actually 3000 mAh?

I also just purchased a warp elite and should get it sometime tomorrow, so I will check and see if I get the same thing.

crlinder · Sep 19, 2016

aofjax said:
I also just purchased a warp elite and should get it sometime tomorrow, so I will check and see if I get the same thing.

How'd the new phone turn out? Did you buy it directly from Boost or from Amazon?

aofjax · Sep 19, 2016

crlinder said:
How'd the new phone turn out? Did you buy it directly from Boost or from Amazon?

I bought it from Amazon 75$ free shipping. Would've replied sooner, but the first phone was misplaced by the usps so I had to get another one sent. Unfortunately, I too get the same information on du battery saver app, so I downloaded other apps and they say the same thing. 2000 capacity. I could crack open the back to check the battery directly, but I don't want to risk it. I'll do some battery tests later on to see if it lasts throughout the day.

crlinder · Sep 19, 2016

aofjax said:
I bought it from Amazon 75$ free shipping. Would've replied sooner, but the first phone was misplaced by the usps so I had to get another one sent. Unfortunately, I too get the same information on du battery saver app, so I downloaded other apps and they say the same thing. 2000 capacity. I could crack open the back to check the battery directly, but I don't want to risk it. I'll do some battery tests later on to see if it lasts throughout the day.

I also purchased mine through Amazon. It seems to hold a charge for a reasonable amount of time, over a full day, but I'm concerned that we might have batteries that are only two thirds the capacity that we were told.

Given that you're getting the same reported battery capacity as I am, I'm going to return my phone to Amazon and try purchasing it from Boost. I'll post again when I get the Boost phone and let you know if it reports 3000 mAh.

Something strange is going on. Either the chips in the batteries have the wrong capacity encoded in them, or they really are only 2000 mAh.

aofjax · Sep 21, 2016

I noticed that on Amazon it doesn't mention the battery capacity. I hope the boost mobile phone has the battery capacity it states for you and I'll switch over too if it does. Ironically, I charged my phone to about 95%yesterday before work and after getting off, it was about 78% left after 7 hours. I forgot to plug both my note 4 and elite before bed and the elite was still at 74% while my note was at 12% after 33% the night before so that was nice.

crlinder · Sep 21, 2016

The Amazon information doesn't say anything about it, but the box for the phone does (3000 mAh).

My phone also holds a charge for well over a day. It may very well be that the battery has the correct maximum capacity and that a manufacturing mistake causes its chip to report the wrong capacity. Still, I'd rather have a phone with a battery that reports the correct capacity.

BTW, I should have the phone from Boost by next Monday.

svim · Sep 21, 2016

I hope Amazon compensates you in some way for your troubles. Looking online at four different sites they all show your model as having a 3000 mAh battery, none indicated a 2000 mAh optional model. That isn't definitive of course but since even the box it came in showed 3000 mAh the significance between the two battery capacities is notable.
Looking forward to hearing how things turn out on Monday.

crlinder · Sep 28, 2016

There seems to be a more general problem. I received my phone from Boost on Monday and immediately installed DU Battery Saver to check the maximum battery capacity: 2000 mAh, just like the phone that I purchased from shopcelldeals on Amazon. I called Boost and initially got one of their non-native English speakers, but was able to escalate the call to a supervisor. The supervisor was very sympathetic concerning the problem and promised to escalate my issue. He seemed genuinely interested in ensuring I would get a phone with the advertised capacity, and he also seemed concerned that Boost not be put in the position of selling phones that do not meet their advertised specs.

He said that it could take up to 48 hours before he'd have an answer to my issue. We're rapidly approaching that deadline, and I haven't heard anything yet. If I don't hear anything by this afternoon, I'll give Boost a call and see what I can find out.

aofjax, I suggest you call them and file a similar report. While I did tell them that I'd been in contact with someone on the androidforums site who had the same issue, I think it will put more pressure on them if you also report your problem directly to them.

aofjax · Sep 29, 2016

crlinder said:
There seems to be a more general problem. I received my phone from Boost on Monday and immediately installed DU Battery Booster to check the maximum battery capacity: 2000 mAh, just like the phone that I purchased from shopcelldeals on Amazon. I called Boost and initially got one of their non-native English speakers, but was able to escalate the call to a supervisor. The supervisor was very sympathetic concerning the problem and promised to escalate my issue. He seemed genuinely interested in ensuring I would get a phone with the advertised capacity, and he also seemed concerned that Boost not be put in the position of selling phones that do not meet their advertised specs.

He said that it could take up to 48 hours before he'd have an answer to my issue. We're rapidly approaching that deadline, and I haven't heard anything yet. If I don't hear anything by this afternoon, I'll give Boost a call and see what I can find out.

aofjax, I suggest you call them and file a similar report. While I did tell them that I'd been in contact with someone on the androidforums site who had the same issue, I think it will put more pressure on them if you also report your problem directly to them.

I noticed over the past week that the battery tends to drain fast once you use GPS or data related things not using WiFi. I'll see what boost mobile says when I call them later. Also, for the root people are trying to work on. ZTE is a Chinese company, and as such sell their phones at a bare cheap price. In turn, the only way to upgrade the android os to marshmallow is buying their newer updated phones. That's also probably why they updated their phones to be locked from rooting, to keep you buying their newer phones. It's been over a year now and no one has still successfully rooted their warp elite. And I seriously doubt that boost mobile will ever update their older warp phones to marshmallow.

crlinder · Sep 29, 2016

I contacted Boost last night after not hearing from them and didn't get a very reassuring answer. My escalated problem was still pending, and they wouldn't extend their 7 day return period to allow time to resolve the issue. They were willing to have the phone "repaired" (i.e., replace the battery with one having the right capacity, but they would not provide me with a loaner phone during that time (up to two weeks).

They did give me a number for getting in touch with ZTE directly (877-817-1759). I called them and they have created a complaint ticket for my issue that hasn't been answered yet. I also called Boost's corporate headquarters to see if I could find someone with enough authority to extend the phone return period. I talked with a vice-president, but was unable to get a change in the return period, even after a long discussion.

I'm very disappointed at this point. While I don't think Boost is deliberately selling phones that don't meet the advertised specs, they are not taking steps to correct the issue in a timely way, nor are they willing to modify their policies for customers inconvenienced by the problem through no fault of their own. I will be filling a complaint with the FTC if I do not hear back from them by the end of the day. I also think we should find a way to get the word out to Warp Elite owners. Many of them have probably never checked the battery capacity on their phones and are simply assuming they have 3000 mAh batteries. In getting ZTE and Boost to address this issue, it would be very helpful to know the full extent of the problem.

woodgaser · Sep 29, 2016

I don't know what your problem is...My Elite has a 2000mAH battery...and lasts for at least 2 days...you have some serious drain with apps....this phone out lasts my wife's warp sync....and that has a bigger battery...make sure you have screen on 1 minute sleep...and turn off screen when not in use ..also use auto brightness..That at first was draining my battery very quickly. used to leave on 5 minute sleep. and kept screen on manual bright.......I also use wifi when ever I can hook up and it is always on...

svim · Sep 29, 2016

woodgaser said:
I don't know what your problem is...My Elite has a 2000mAH battery..

Maybe the main point needs to be spelled out more clearly, the OP wasn't griping about some arbitrary battery life issue, the phone is documented and marketed as having a 3000 mAh battery but in actuality comes with a 2000 mAh battery. Whether its adequate or not is a different issue.

crlinder · Sep 29, 2016

woodgaser said:
I don't know what your problem is...My Elite has a 2000mAH battery...and lasts for at least 2 days...

So your Warp Elite also has a 2000 mAh battery? Was it advertised that way or as a 3000 mAh battery? The origin of this thread is that some of us are receiving phones with 2000 mAh batteries when they were advertised has having 3000 mAh batteries. It's great that your phone lasts so long; mine generally lasts well over a day, but even so, you may have been short changed on the size of the battery.

woodgaser · Sep 29, 2016

got my phone brand new on Ebay for 75.00.....so what about the battery

crlinder · Sep 29, 2016

woodgaser said:
got my phone brand new on Ebay for 75.00.....so what about the battery

I'm not sure what you're saying. It would be helpful, given the intent of this discussion, if you'd let us know what maximum capacity is reported by the DU Battery Saver app for the phone you have and what capacity was advertised on the phone's original packaging.

woodgaser · Sep 29, 2016

I tried different battery apps.....got 1625 on one 2000 on one and 2200 on one...so I guess...the only sure way is to pull back cover and look?

crlinder · Sep 29, 2016

woodgaser said:
I tried different battery apps.....got 1625 on one 2000 on one and 2200 on one...so I guess...the only sure way is to pull back cover and look?

Thanks! The phone is sealed so opening it up is not so simple, particularly if you don't want to void the warranty

What about what was advertised on the box? Also, I'm curious what apps you used.

woodgaser · Sep 29, 2016

3000..on box...not sure of apps...tried 10 - 12...I think I will believe my box..instead of an app...and these phones are NOT sealed...just takes a little finesse and proper tools to remove just like a tablet...and WILL NOT void your warranty...unless you break something.

woodgaser · Sep 29, 2016

crlinder said:
The phone is sealed so opening it up is not so simple, particularly if you don't want to void the warranty

broken screen is not covered under warranty....here is how to replace...shows how to take off the back..and clearly shows battery

crlinder · Sep 30, 2016

woodgaser said:
3000..on box. I think I will believe my box..instead of an app...not sure of apps...tried 10 - 12...

There are a couple of issues with the information that you're reporting.

1. The number printed on the box shouldn't be as convincing as a number reported by a direct measuring device like an app, which uses information encoded in the battery to provide the manufacturer's claimed design capacity and the battery's current voltage status to provide an estimate of the battery's current charge.

2. In your previous post, you reported three different capacities from apps. Most likely they were reporting your battery's current status rather than its manufactured capacity. Even so, all of the values you reported were well below 3000, and they averaged less than 2000 mAh. The reason I asked which apps you used was so I could try them on my phone to see if you were reporting current charge rather than manufactured capacity. It would still be helpful if you would let us know which apps you used.

cgigate · Nov 4, 2016

crlinder said:
I've just purchased a ZTE Warp Ellite phone and am trying to determine whether it might have been manufactured with the wrong capacity battery installed. It does not have a removable battery, so I can't open the phone and examine it directly without breaking into it.

The phone is advertised to have a 3000 mAh battery. However, the DU Battery Saver app, which I use to maximize battery life, is reporting that the battery has a maximum capacity of only 2000 mAh.

In previous phones that I've owned, I've also used the DU Battery Saver app to maximize battery life. On those other phones, the app correctly reported the batteries' maximum capacity. (Those phones had removable batteries, so I could determine directly what the manufacturer claimed the capacity was.)

Is it likely that ZTE manufactured my phone with the wrong capacity battery, or is there a reasonable technical explanation for why the DU Battery Saver app might report a maximum capacity of 2000 mAh when the battery is actually 3000 mAh?

My ZTE elite has great battery life. you can open the case (follow the above youtube link to see the 3000mah battery, even thought some software has incorrect report information

Did ZTE manufacture my phone with a lower capacity battery?

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