Full Overview

Unu External Battery Case for Iphone 4 4S Matte Black - Unu DX-1700B.

Technical Details

- The case offers Full body protection. The black matte anti-slippery finish will also offer a great feel while being held in hand.
- 4-LED Skyblue Remaining battery indicator.Invisible Switch Control design (Hold the Indicator button for 2 seconds to connect/disconnect your case with iphone)

If you're on the fence about this case... just buy it. I had the mophie and the mili battery case for the Iphone 4... but they both sucked compared to this case. This case wont scratch like those others due to the soft touch of the case. It lasts longer and is soooo much cheaper. It will recharge your iphone 4 about 75% of the way back. I know it says 1700mAh but the mili and mophie are like 1500mAh and will only give you about 40-60% recharger... so this case is defiantly better in terms of power. The feel is great! The only problem and it's not really a problem is the case is not really really snug... I mean you can't tell if you look at it and it doesnt slide around in the case but you could defiantly have a protective film on the iphone and still get it in the case.... I HAVE HAD NO PROBLEMS WHAT SO EVER! I would buy it again 10x over.

I was delighted to discover these little gems were still offered by Amazon, and at a slightly reduced price from the first one I purchased a year ago.

Back then, when the iPhone 4 was first released, there weren't many "power case" options available. I found this one, freshly listed by an unknown-to-me seemingly Chinese company and I hesitated. Long enough for someone else to leave a review. (Thanks Crispin38!) After all, I frequently haunt the "wholesale direct" websites and the quality often leaves much to be desired.

When that first review arrived and it was positive, that was good enough for me to take a chance and keep my fingers crossed, and am I ever glad I did.

Mechanically, the case fits rock solid. No gaps or sloppy contact points along the seams, and the snap-together closure seats firmly into place. The end result is a trim, slightly thicker than before phone which fits confidently in my grip, with no slippery or "too thin" sensation. Turned to landscape mode for two-thumbs typing, the size is just right for my large hands to reach any key present.

Electronically, the case delivers pretty much as promised, so long as you explicitly follow the manufacturer's admittedly sparse instructions. Unu presents this case as a "recharger," rather than an ongoing power supply, meaning that they recommend turning the device on only after the phones internal battery is depleted. Used in that fashion, the case consistently recharges the phone battery from 20% to 100% every time, though the "power low" warning light starts flashing at around 85% or so.

However, it occurred to me to go against the manufacturer's recommendations and use the case as an alternative power source, thereby saving the iPhone's internal battery from the inevitable charge cycle failure. After all, $50.00 is a lot less expensive than what Apple charges to replace a failed phone battery. :)

Thus, I charge the case up each night and it lasts through most of the next day, powering the phone though an "average" day of voice calls, network and cellular surfing, playing music, any number of apps being run, and perhaps a few YouTube videos. By the end of the day, the low power warning is either blinking or given up altogether, but by then I am home and the phone is more or less docked or corded for the night. Remember that this kind of usage is *opposite* the manufacturer's suggested application and your mileage may vary, not to mention probably being contrary to it's warranty. For me, I have no problem with that because a year after having purchased the iPhone 4, it's internal battery is still capable of delivering a charge time comparable to when it was brand new.

As specified, syncing and simultaneous charging work without incident or effort, and I've never had an occasion where an OS upgrade failed simply because I synced through the case, unlike the failures I am sure to get using certain third party cables.

As a bonus, and an additional reason I am so glad to see them still available is the flat top, bottom, and sides of the case's styling. This allows me to use the phone with any of the clinometer or "carpenter's level" type apps and never have to take the phone from its protective case. In fact, the "softened square" style of the case, and its ability to charge the phone when connected to a portable power source (the i.Sound Portable Power Max with 16,000 mAh for iPod, iPad, iPad2, iPhone, Droid, and Blackberry in this case) allowed me to build the old case directly into a self-powered video tripod system which allows me to literally shoot all day long without interruption.

If you're on the fence about this baby, because of the poorer reviews or just because you've never heard of Unu, jump down, read the instructions, and grab it anyway. There really IS an on/off switch and it works flawlessly. Plus, if you happen to be unlucky enough to get the inevitable "lemon" inherent with any mass produced appliance, Amazon's refund/exchange policy works, and this jewel is worth the extra effort to exchange it and get a good one. :)

Edit:- Upgraded review from 4 to 5 stars - after 2 weeks this case is performing excellently and I am very satisfied with this purchase. I would strongly recommend this case to anyone who uses their iphone 4 extensively throughout the day and needs the extra battery capacity.


Happy with this purchase so far.

I have used Mophie on my old 3GS and was underwhelmed with construction and ended up returning it due to broken toggle switch.

uNu case is nicely designed, feels solid, fits well, has pleasant soft rubber coating, two pieces snap together solidly and case has no garish logos.

Cell reception is a little attenuated by the case but that is pretty usual for battery cases, nothing too extreme though (one bar in weak reception areas).

On/off toggle switch works well with 4 LED charge indicators. All iPhone controls are accessible if a little more cramped (esp. sleep/wake switch) but nothing like Mophie that required removing case to toggle mute switch (!!).

Provides almost a full recharge for a dead phone.

Usual problem of microUSB connector instead of Apple 30-pin dock requires different cables (comes with one cable, extras can be bought cheaply online) and removing case for accessories such as iHome.

Positives:-
Well made, comfortable
Cheaper than alternatives
Fits iphone 4 well
Cable charges case & phone at once
iPhone syncs OK with PC with case on
Good capacity

Negatives:-
Adds bulk (I don't mind, actually easier to hold)
Doesn't use Apple cable
Reduces reception slightly

Just got this case the other day and am very impressed. I had the Mophie JuicePak Air on my 3GS and I must say that this case can easily rival that of Mophie. The soft touch finish is a winner in my book and the fact that it has an on/off switch incorporated into the status switch is also a plus. The 1700mah battery is larger than either the Mili or the Mophie case and the fit of the phone is snug and well done. Plus with the price being only $55 it is easily a winner over the other two cases. If you are looking for a battery pack to give your iPhone 4 a boost then this is one case you should consider.

The battery gets stronger after it is charged the first three or four times. After just five days I am now getting days per charge, then the internal battery kicks in for another two days. Great product!

I bought this case back in June 2011. It worked great for a few weeks and then I had an issue. I contacted the seller and they shipped another one out that day without waiting for the old one to come back (which they send a prepaid label for). So #1 customer service is excellent. Since then it has been trouble free. I use it when I travel for business and need the extra battery life. It works with the iPhone 4 and 4s as I recently upgraded to. In terms of battery life it will take an almost dead iPhone 4 or 4s and charge it up to 65-85%. I think this depends on what I am doing with it while it is charging.

In short just buy it and I know you will be happy. At $35 or so it is a deal and a half, will protect the phone and extend its useful battery life.

I took a leap of faith when buying this case without holding it in hand first. Now that I've had it a month or so I feel qualified to review. First, the extra battery life us terrific! Second, the look and feel of the case is better than I expected. Third, case fits the phone very well completely covering the back and side without obstructing the view of the face or camera's. Forth, you don't have to remove the case to charge or sync the phone. Even the purchasing was easy through amazon. I'm extremely happy with this purchase!

Waste of money. Cheap components stop working after a few charges. I love the feel and look of the case, too bad its junk.

Good Battery case, you get about another 60% charge for the phone. In other words 100% charge on the case will equate to a 60% charge on the phone. The case takes about 4 to 5 hours to charge completely, not like the phone which charges quickly. The case itself is very well made, sort of a hard plastic not very impact absorbing, but a nice anti skid and feel. It is also very light, doesn't not add a noticable weight. The thickness added due to the case and battery is about another 50% over the phone. Overall I would recommend this product

This product is truly wonderful. It does what it claims to do.

I only have one complaint. The charger for the case itself is not the same as the iPhone charger. So if the case has no juice and you need to charge your phone, need to take it out of the case and charge it through the ordinary iPhone charger.

Not sure if both charge simultaneously if both the case the phone need power.

Still, great product and would recommend it to everyone.