Work Around the iPod iOS 4.0 Battery Drain Issue

I recently decided to violate my “never install a dot zero release” rule and installed iOS 4.0 on my iPod touch. The features that I could use on my second generation hardware were nice, but I immediately noticed that the battery drained in a couple of days, even though the iPod was in sleep mode. Apparently there is a bug where the Wi-Fi will stay on even when the iPod is asleep. That does no good because none of the applications that could benefit, like email, stay on.

I’ve found that the workaround which does the best job of preserving the battery’s charge is to switch the iPod into Airplane Mode. The switch to turn on Airplane Mode is right at the top of the Settings screen.

In practice, I turn on Airplane mode and then hit sleep. When I unsleep, the Settings screen is still there and I just turn off Airplane mode. It is a couple of extra steps, but it is doing the job for now. I had high hopes for a fix in iOS 4.0.2, but no luck there. Hopefully iOS 4.1 will have a fix!

A Great Watch and Calculator Battery Cross Reference

Are you looking for a great watch and calculator battery cross reference on the web? The best one I have found so far is Maxell’s Micro Battery and Cross Reference Guide. I used it today to find a replacement for a LR1130 calculator battery. Neither the Energizer nor Duracell site could find a replacement, yet it is commonly sold in stores as an Energizer 189 or Duracell D189A.

Lithium Battery Travel Restrictions

If you are a road warrior carrying luggage packed with lithium batteries on flights in the United States, you will want to read about the battery restrictions taking effect on January 1, 2008. You will no longer be able to pack loose lithium batteries in your checked luggage and any batteries you carry on must be in a device or contained in a plastic bag. The press release has some of the rules and a colleague pointed me to the U.S. Department of Transportation web site with the detailed rules.