What will happen when in 3 years when I need a new battery for my Band 2?

[trekster]

The battery in the Band 2 is supposed to last for 1000 charges if I remember correctly. This is about 3 years.

What happens after that? Is there a process whereby I could replace the battery?

I know that being a gear-head that I'd simply replace it with what would likely be the Band 5 at that time but the person I'd hand my Band 2 down to (or perhaps sell it to) could be interested in a new battery.

It would be a shame if the most feasible thing would be to just dispose of it. I hope the price for a battery replacement would be reasonable.

 

[Qtweeder]

its not something you will ever have to worry about, long before then, the clasp will have failed, and microsoft will not replace it, using their default get out clause of "excessive damage" as they did my band v1, which had been lightly used for 3 months before that clasp failed, thus being out of pocket by ?199

 

[xandros9]

its not something you will ever have to worry about, long before then, the clasp will have failed, and microsoft will not replace it, using their default get out clause of "excessive damage" as they did my band v1, which had been lightly used for 3 months before that clasp failed, thus being out of pocket by ?199

(Just messing with you, you have every right to whatever.)

I think you'll be talking to MS for a replacement, although I'm not sure how replaceable the battery is - haven't seen much in the way of teardowns thus far.

 

[Polychrome]

In my experience, most manufacturers will do small maintenance on your devices for a fee, regardless of misuse, damage, etc. (Because repair would be implied as part of the service.) The only one I've seen refuse in recent years was Motorola if they deemed a device too obsolete to bother with. My suggestion is you check with Microsoft and see what they have to say.

 

[DroidUser42]

You might look at the clasp area and see how much of that can be disassembled. Maybe it's the back door to the battery compartment. Band 1 had battery doors fastened with Torx screws. I'm sure I've seen screws on the clasp itself - I though it was just to bolt the metal plates on, but maybe there's more to it.

 

[Nate Silver]

I'm pretty confident you'll be ready to move on to a newer version or "the next big thing" by then.......if not sooner. I mean realistically, if you wear the Band 23/7 for three years and have any sort of an active lifestyle, its going to be pretty trashed. These things are not designed to be a family heirloom. I'd estimate the practical lifetime of any fitness devices to be one to two years. If it isn't mangled by then, the tech will have moved on.

 

[trekster]

I'm fairly gentle with my belongings. For sure I'll be on a future version of the Band. But my electronics are generally in good enough shape to hand down to a family member.

Every cell phone has been given to someone. My 80+ year-old dad is perfectly fine with an ancient flagship flip phone of mine. In fact, more than just "fine" because no other device available currently has such big buttons, big display and loud ringer. A few years ago, the battery wore out after 7 years in service. I found him a cheap clone battery and it's been as good as new.

I just took a look at my Band 2. No visible screws of any kind. Not sure how to take it apart nor where the battery is.

I'd be unhappy if I'm supposed to just toss out this $250 CAD device after a few years when the only thing wrong with it is a discrete component that is likely industry-standard and could have been replaced in minutes if it were accessible.

 

[DroidUser42]

I took a look in the store. You're right, no screws on that part of the clasp. (The battery is in the big lump by the clasp. Right by the charging port.)

But it looks like the battery cover is snapped on. I could easily get a finger nail all the way under the seam, so it's doesn't seem to be glued or ultrasonically welded. It probably takes a special tool to unclip it. Or perhaps they just break that cap and replace it.