[Sony Xperia Z Ultra] capitansid:
Brando Case

Soo Here's my thoughts on the Brando Case:

I have been waiting for a power case from Mugen or Zerolemon for a while now and since they have not been releasing their own version of this, I decided to go for the Brando Case. Guess what? By the time the Brando Case arrived, Mugen announced their own version of this case! (it is expensive though so I guess I'll stick with the Brando case for the meantime)

On the first few charge cycles of the Brando case, I noticed a weird behavior. It was fluctuating on and off.. sometimes it fluctuates so fast it makes around 5 times in 2 seconds! Sometimes it also turns ON by itself and shuts off a few seconds later. I first thought the battery might not be calibrated well and would end up destroying my internal battery. Or my phone just draws too much current and the power case shuts off due to Overcurrent protection.

So I did some tests:

1. Did some full charge cycles in hopes of recalibrating the battery - the issue still persists

2. Tried to just let the phone sit idle while being charged off the case - was able to bring my phone from 20% to 100% just fine although it fluctuated maybe twice over the whole period.

3. Played demanding games - Need for speed Most Wanted - No fluctuations whatsoever! (so my theory of overcurrent protection might be wrong)

I then remembered that the Z ultra's antenna sits on the lower edge of the phone and the Battery Case's charging circuit ends up sitting on top of the antenna.

So I tried turning airplane mode on and connected to the internet via WiFi and just sat there for hours playing Real Racing 3 until the batt case died out.. No weird behavior whatsoever! So it seems like the phone's cellular antenna is interfering with the Charging circuit of the Brando case (minus point against you Brando or whoever the manufacturer/design team is for not shielding the circuit well)

I further proved this theory since I only notice the Batt case going funky whenever I'm in an area with poor network signal. I just goes haywire.. I tried just turning off the mobile data instead of going on airplane mode and it behaves well after that. I just turn the mobile data back on whenever I'm back in a place with good coverage.

So it seems that only the mobile data signal is interfering with the case whenever the phone ramps up its antenna power in an attempt to get better signal.

Other than that small design flaw, I'm pretty happy with the case.

Pros:

1. Great MaH Capacity - Batt case was UNABLE to raise my charge % while in use.. Charge current is just enough to keep my phone at a steady %. But it was able to keep my phone alive for another 4-5hrs staying at 18% while I'm playing Clash of Clans compared to just 3-4somewhat hours on the internal battery.. So I can confirm that it is definitely more than 3000MaH. Also, the battery case was ABLE TO CHARGE my phone from 18-100% while on standby (not turned off).

2. Kickstand is very useful - Although a little bit flimsy and I fear breaking it whenever I touch the screen while on the kickstand.

3. Adds Rigidity to the phone - Yes, the Case doubles the thickness of the phone but I don't feel it that way. The edges are curved nicely that they just fit on my hand and pocket very well. I actually don't feel comfortable holding the Ultra by its own naked body anymore.. It is way too thin and light and I fear I would drop it accidentally. I now have full confidence that the phone will not bend while inside my pocket due to the extra strength this Batt case gives!

4. Automatically toggles charge priority - I first thought that I would have to manually change the charge priority of the Case from "Phone charging priority" to "Case charging priority" whenever my phone gets fully charged. I guess I was wrong! I plugged my phone to the case, then plugged the case to the charger and set it to "Phone Charging Priority" and went to sleep. I woke up 6hours later finding both the Phone and the Case Fully charged! (Great Plus on that!)

Cons:

1. Matte Finish is prone to scratches - The back cover of the case is on Matte Finish. Although it is a little bit scratch resistant and most just buffs off whenever I rub it with a handkerchief, I still managed to scratch it up slightly while just setting it on a desk. The scratch is not readily visible but you will know it is there once you notice it.

2. Passing the charger through the case does not deliver full charge current to the phone - I guess this is a limitation imposed by the designers of the charging circuit to prevent overheating on either the phone and the case...? Most likely..

On another note, I'm a little bit confused with the charging time of my phone + Case.

My phone charges to 100% in 4hrs (while on standby.. Not turned off) and the power is coming from the charger through the Brando Case.

The Brando Case takes approx 6hrs to Fully charge (close to the 5.5hrs charging time stated on the user's manual). These were the hours they took while being charged separately.

But when I charge both and the case is set on "Phone Charging Priority", the phone and the case fully charges in 6hrs and not 10hrs (6hrs + 4hrs).

Seems like it charges both units at the same time at some point..

Any thoughts from other Brando users?