Phones with removable batteries australia review năm 2024

While millions work in offices and remotely within their homes, there are many jobs that require a person to work outdoors, in warehouses, and in locations that are not always friendly to expensive glass sandwiches. People are also spending a lot more time exploring the world around us and don't want to break their expensive phones or wrap them in bulky protective cases.

Also: What is a rugged phone and which are the best?

The new Kyocera DuraForce Pro 3 is built to withstand the rigors of the world to provide you with a smartphone that keeps on going long after others may have given up the ghost. I've used rugged smartphones for many years and it's great to see devices get slimmer, provide features for better usability, and improve the camera performance so that a single device can be used when operating in challenging conditions.

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A side fingerprint sensor/power button, three custom programmable buttons, four lanyard attachment points, 100dB+ stereo speakers, a removable battery, wireless charging, and enhanced rugged build features are provided with the DuraForce Pro 3. The lower right programmable button is perfect as a camera launch and then a camera capture button when holding the phone in landscape orientation. The AI-enhanced speakers are extremely loud, making it easy to hear when working outside or in areas where heavy machinery noises and other background sounds are present.

The phone is certified with an IP68 dust and water-resistant rating and has been MIL-STD-810-H tested against sand, vibration, shock, and more. I took it trail running and dropped it in the forest repeatedly, submerged it in water, and left it in the blazing sun for some similar trials, and the phone continues to work perfectly.

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A 5.38-inch OLED display that supports gloved hands and usage in wet conditions is present with the phone powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 1 processor and 6GB of ROM. Wi-Fi 6/6E is included, along with Verizon 5G, Bluetooth 5.2, and dual SIM support.

Also: Why this rugged Android 13 phone reminds me of the good old Nokia days

Three cameras are positioned at the top of the back panel behind a glass protective cover with dual LED flashlights on each side for bright night illumination. The 64 MP main camera, 16 MP wide-angle camera, and 2 MP macro camera perform very well and will help you capture great photos and 4K video. There are advanced camera modes available that include action overlay (speed and GPS information captured on the display), multi-camera (excellent for field work when you want to show yourself and the subject of the discussion), and underwater (touchscreen turned off and buttons are optimized for camera control). I enjoy taking photos and videos of the fish I catch while the fish remains in the water, so this underwater mode is much better than trying to use an iPhone with a rugged case.

The back panel is held securely in place with a screw near the bottom that also has rear contacts for connecting to accessories for scanning and other functions. Kyocera also provided a to test out with the phone.

Matthew Miller/ZDNET

I highly recommend taking the time to set up the single, double, and press/hold options of each of the three programmable buttons so that you can fully optimize using the phone with minimal interaction with the display. Having all of these button options to launch apps or perform key actions makes a huge difference when you are busy trying to get other things done with your hands.

Also: The best rugged tablets (and what 'military grade' means)

It's rare to find a phone with a removable battery, but the DuraForce Pro 3 has a 4,270 mAh battery under the rear cover. This means if you are planning to spend a significant amount of time in the field with no available charging option, you can pack extra batteries and stay connected. The removable microSD card means you can also swap in and out external storage cards, so you won't have to worry about storage limitations either.

Matthew Miller/ZDNET

In my experiences, I was able to get through a full day of work and play with the battery. I also appreciate having wireless charging available to easily keep the phone topped off as I performed desk work next to a wireless charging pad.

Android 13 is installed on the phone and it runs a fairly stock version of Android with just a couple of available settings provided for Kyocera-specific options. The review phone is running the April 1, 2023, Android security update. Looking at past Kyocera DuraForce phones, quarterly updates for security look fairly standard with a single likely firmware upgrade to Android 14 expected on the DuraForce Pro 3.

The Nokia 2660 Flip is a comparatively cheap-as-chips phone that ditches the smarts in favour of feature-phone functionality. Still, it manages to boast a dual-SIM design with a removable battery for hand-me-down upgrade potential. Better yet, that battery life is as long as the Nokia 2660 Flip is easy to use. As you might expect with the bargain price, though, performance isn’t flash, it has a cheap feel and there’s only a single low-res camera for pics and video.

Pros

Dual SIM

Long (removable) battery life

Easy to use

Cons

Sluggish performance

Terrible camera

Plasticky feel

The last time I carried around a flip phone was the iconic Motorola Razr. No, not the 2022 Motorola Razr: the original one. This was back in the day when it was viable to hang onto a phone for years and then pay it forward to a family member after a cheap internal battery upgrade (which I did).

Fast-forward to more recent times, and the world has gone smartphone mad. But deathly rumours of the unflatteringly named “dumb phone” are greatly exaggerated. In fact, one of the big names in mainstream old-school mobile phones is still pumping out new models today, including the Nokia 2660 Flip.

I honestly thought I wouldn’t get much joy out of the Nokia 2660 Flip, outside of the requisite nostalgia hit of a flip phone in my pocket, but I was pleasantly surprised.

Nokia 2660 Flip value for money

The price is right for a bare-bolts handset ($149 RRP).

There are phone cases, mounts and charging devices that cost almost as much as the Nokia 2660 Flip. Basically, if you want a cheaper feature phone, you’re looking at non-flip options like the Nokia 8210 4G or Opel Mobile BigButton M.

With a $149 RRP, the only real competition is the Opel Mobile TouchFlip if you’re after a flip feature phone. Otherwise, you’re upping the budget to closer to $200 when you start to access cheap Android phones.

Nokia 2660 Flip design and display

Practical screen on top and a decent one after the flip.

Unless you’re using a very, very expensive smartphone with a flip or fold screen, most phones these days have a single screen. The Nokia 2660 Flip has a 1.77-inch secondary screen when the clamshell is closed for tracking time and notifications. Otherwise, most of your time is spent with the 2.8-inch main screen when the phone’s flipped open.

The main display is sharper and clearer than I was expecting, though some of the font sizes are too small. Keep your grubby digits off the screen because the Nokia 2660 Flip has old-school navigation: namely, a keypad that occupies the bottom half of the clamshell design. Still, I did notice the screen started to smudge with the outline of the keypad after a few weeks.

The main 12 digits on the keypad are generously sized with an equally large main interaction button that’s flanked by a four-way navigation touch rim. Admittedly, the navigation buttons beside that main button aren’t the biggest but you can mostly get away with not using those.

On the right side of the numbers are easy-to-use volume buttons. Despite its small size, the Nokia 2660 Flip puts out loud volume. Below the volume buttons is a single contextual button, which either turns the secondary screen on and off when the phone is closed or acts as a long-press SOS button with the phone flipped open.

It wouldn’t be an old-school phone if it didn’t have a 3.55mm audio jack (and included earphones), which is on the left at the opposite end of the MicroSD charging port. I did have some trouble cracking open the Nokia 2660 Flip for initial use, but it’s impressive to see dual-SIM slots that sit beneath the removable battery.

Nokia is a Finnish telecommunications company that’s been around since 1865. Today, Nokia makes phones (smartphones and feature phones), laptops, TV, audio and WiFi devices for consumers.

Nokia 2660 Flip camera

Dust off the digital compact camera instead.

The Nokia 2660 Flip has a very minimalist approach to its camera. It’s there. But it’s not something you should be using. As you might guess from its incredibly low 0.3MP specs, the solitary camera on the back of the Flip doesn’t produce the best results.

For starters, the camera is slow to load. Once it’s loaded, there’s a very narrow frame for your photos. Everything looks darker than it should, low-res and lacking in detail. Then you actually have to take the pic, ideally with a very steady grip as you firmly press the main menu navigation button and hope you don’t mess up your framing.

There’s no shutter noise to let you know you’ve captured the pic, but it’ll be there in all of its low-res glory in your gallery. Because the Nokia 2660 Flip doesn’t have WiFi, you’ll need a MicroUSB cable to transfer data from phone to computer (this cable isn’t included). Alternatively, use Bluetooth or MMS to transfer pics. The low-res camera looks even worse for capturing videos, and there’s not a whole lot of internal storage to work with. Admittedly, the Nokia 2660 Flip does allow for a 32GB MicroSD card.

Check out the side-by-side comparison. The first is taken from the Nokia 2660 Flip in the evening using two hands to keep things as steady as possible. The second is a shot from the Google Pixel Pro 7. Yes, it’s a very unfair comparison, but given these shots were taken seconds apart, you can see why the Nokia 2660 Flip isn’t really a viable photography option.

Nokia 2660 Flip features and performance

Fast enough for the basics but not much else.

The thing about feature phones is they’re, ironically, light on features, meaning they’re best used for calls and SMS. If you’re using the Nokia 2660 Flip for those basic functions, it’s a great phone. When it tries to get a bit smarter, though, things start to slow down.

There isn’t any WiFi, but you can use phone data for very basic internet browsing. I used a Vodafone long-expiry Prepaid SIM card, and it worked for calls, SMS and data without any additional configuration on the Nokia 2660 Flip. Internet browsing is frustrating because of the slow keypad input and the reality its auto-predict functionality is very limited.

For instance, it doesn’t recommend ‘Google’ when you start typing the first few letters, whereas modern phones would. When you do make it to a website, they look like a stripped-back version with not a whole lot of space on the screen to clearly display its contents. That’s if they work at all: Reviews.org, for instance, wouldn’t even load.

It is admirable that the Nokia 2660 Flip has Bluetooth for pairing audio output devices, but that’s about as far as expanded connectivity goes. There’s a torch and some basic games to play, but the games can be sluggish and even the Facebook button is just a web browser shortcut.

Thankfully, the Nokia 2660 Flip has great battery life. Even if you’re using it on and off during the day, you can easily get four or more days of life. In terms of standby mode, I had it powered on with minimal use and it didn’t die until 11 days after a full charge.

Is the Nokia 2660 Flip worth buying?

A cheap phone for kids or older adults.

While the camera ain’t flash and the basic web functionality leaves a lot to be desired, the Nokia 2660 Flip is still a steal at $149 RRP. It works well as a pared-back mobile phone, great for kids, seniors and people looking to be less connected. If you're after a cheap handset with plenty of battery life and some surprising inclusions, the Nokia 2660 Flip is worth a look.

How we review feature phones

Feature phones are a lot easier to test than smartphones. Why? Because they don’t have as many features as a smartphone. Our analysis starts with price, determining whether a feature-restricted phone is worth spending money on when cheap smartphones start at under $200.

We pay attention to what’s included in the box: a charger is expected (including a power adaptor, unlike modern smartphones) but we appreciate extras like headphones, a removable battery and a data-transfer cable for getting files to/from the phone. Next up is a look inside the phone, which is hopefully easy to do, to see whether there’s any value-add inclusions like dual-SIM and/or a MicroSD port.

Now it’s time to test the feature phone. Ideally, a feature phone is easy to turn on and off with big buttons and a decent screen, given these phones tend to be popular with kids and older adults. We test the battery life in terms of basic use and standby, then poke around in any apps and settings to see what’s on offer beyond basic functionality.

No, the Nokia 2660 Flip is a feature phone, so the best way to message is from the SMS/MMS messaging app.

No, the Nokia 2660 Flip doesn’t have WiFi but it does have Bluetooth.

No, the Nokia 2660 Flip is a feature phone (aka a dumb phone or brick phone), which only has limited smart functionality (effectively limited to a web browser).

Written by

Nathan Lawrence

Nathan Lawrence has been banging out passionate tech and gaming words for more than 11 years. These days, you can find his work on outlets like IGN, STACK, Fandom, Red Bull and AusGamers. Nathan adores PC gaming and the proof of his first-person-shooter prowess is at the top of a Battlefield V scoreboard.

Do they still make phones with removable battery?

If you want a new phone with a removable battery from a top-tier brand, then there's exactly one option available as of this writing: Samsung's Galaxy XCover 6 Pro, which retails for $599.99 on Amazon and was released in July 2022.

What are the disadvantages of removable battery in smartphones?

While removable batteries offer advantages such as flexibility, extended device lifespan, cost-effectiveness, and reduced downtime, they also present drawbacks related to design constraints, compromised durability, reduced battery capacity, and potential damage or loss.

Which smartphone has a removable battery?

The Samsung Galaxy XCover6 Pro is a 5G phone powered by the Snapdragon 778G 5G processor. You get Android 12 out of the box which is upgradable to Androiod 13 right away. It has a 4,050mAh removable battery paired with 25W wired charging.

Why did Samsung stop removable battery?

However, at some point, manufacturers (and, perhaps, most consumers) decided that they wanted their smartphones as light and slim as possible — so slim that there was no room for a battery that wasn't glued into place.