Is the “non-replaceable battery design” really reliable?

I remember that when I was a student, I was a geek, tinkering with and disassembling all kinds of digital products. The most impressive thing was that I had a handheld game console called "Gameboy" at that time, and I don't know how many batteries I used. The impression that digital products gave me at that time was that digital products were all power hogs. Later, I found that more and more digital products, various MP3s, MP4s, and now mobile phones, are getting thinner and thinner, and the batteries are designed to be non-replaceable. This problem has always troubled me, especially for some friends who often run business outside. In the past, they could rely on a few batteries to last for a few days, but now... It reminds me that mobile phones still use blue screens (yellow screens), which are both power-saving and have good signals. So are "non-replaceable batteries" reliable?

Production workshop

Keyword 1: Reduce costs

The earliest mobile phone with a non-replaceable battery was the iPhone. I remember that year, when Steve Jobs presented the iPhone to the public, the "non-replaceable battery design" almost challenged the traditional usage habits of people all over the world. Countless users expressed confusion and puzzlement. When most people thought that this phone would not be a hot seller, Steve Jobs changed people's minds. Eventually, people on the earth began to gradually accept this design. Subsequently, major manufacturers followed suit, causing much discussion. People also began to pay attention to this issue.

In the view of manufacturers, there are indeed many benefits to building the battery into the body, and the biggest benefit is undoubtedly to reduce the cost of making mobile phones. Manufacturers no longer need to consider the design between the battery and the back cover, and no longer need to consider the design of the battery slot, as these spaces will be directly compressed. Therefore, ultra-thin design has become a major trend in the future of mobile phone design, and this compression undoubtedly reduces the use of materials and directly reduces costs. At the same time, it also gives manufacturers a selling point for promotion, which is killing two birds with one stone.

"The Chrysanthemum Withered Incident"

Keyword 2: Battery safety

The battery is designed to be non-replaceable, which can avoid safety issues in battery use to a certain extent. In the market, safety issues caused by various counterfeit batteries are common. Some time ago, there was a "chrysanthemum residue" incident caused by the battery exploding because it was placed in the back pocket of the pants (fortunately it was not placed in the front pocket of the pants). There were even people who lost their lives due to mobile phone explosions. These are all closely related to batteries. I don’t believe that a mobile phone without a battery will explode! In addition, many users are accustomed to choosing some so-called "universal chargers" for convenience. These "universal chargers" are prone to battery damage due to voltage instability and other problems. The most obvious phenomenon is that the entire battery is charged and becomes fat. These phenomena are very unsafe. After the manufacturer designs the battery to be built-in and non-replaceable, it guarantees the safety of the user's battery use to a certain extent. Users can no longer choose "universal chargers" to charge, and avoid users from purchasing counterfeit and shoddy batteries. The probability of "chrysanthemum residue" incidents is greatly reduced.

HTC One S Back Cover

Keyword 3: Demand for process design quality

Nowadays, mobile phones have more and more functions, which inevitably leads to more functional modules inside the mobile phone. In order to obtain more space inside the mobile phone, non-replaceable battery design has become an inevitable trend in the mobile phone industry. Perhaps a thinner design can bring better tactile experience to users, but more importantly, the safety issues mentioned above will only increase the requirements for process design, and there is a certain technical threshold. With a threshold, there are requirements. Under certain circumstances, the manufacturer's process design level is guaranteed. Therefore, mobile phones with non-replaceable batteries often perform better in process design, whether in design or in terms of mobile phone quality.