Brief update…

Just left the Xperia Active running with GPS on and everything else off, but with the screen on permanently, at full brightness. A lot of the time it was hunting for GPS but this generally seems to be no less power-hungry than maintaining a signal.

It started at 88% battery and powered off at 4%, and was up for 5h40m in between. That implies 6h30 of usable runtime, which – going on nominal capacities – extrapolates to around 20h with the additional battery pack (which is 22mm diameter and fits just dandy in the extender clamp). This was only the second charge of the phone battery so there may (or may not) yet be a smidge more performance to eke out of it.

Seems good so far then, pending a proper ‘in the field’ test and a test with the additional battery – which I’ll do once the mounting bracket shows up.

So here it is all mounted. Acor extension bracket with the Anker battery fitted in place of the carbon bar. That’s then shimmed using a stem split shim so that the Sportypal bracket sits on that, and then into that goes the phone.

It’s not heroically clear from that picture, but it’s a very tidy little setup. The battery is supplied with a nice short cable that is perfect for this application.

I just need to get an old handlebar grip to cut up to make a little rubber johnny for the business end of the battery to stop rain getting in, and we’re sorted.

Reporting back… Phone was on for 13 hours today, logging for about 11 of those at 20s intervals using MyTrails. Phone antenna on, screen mostly off, but on occasionally. Battery started at 100% and went to 37%. I’d say that’s surprisingly good. Very good. Extrapolates to about 48 hours with the extra battery…

Bez I like your set up and will give it a go myself but probably with a Galaxy S 2 and a waterproof case that I have my eye on. This will be for a tour I’m doing in summer and not off road. Have you tested this with a dynamo yet? What I want to do is connect the Anker battery directly to my hub dynamo via the mini usb in whilst also charging the phone via the usb out. I don’t have the Anker battery yet but it’s on order. I’m hoping this will act as a buffer to provide a consistent power output to the phone but am a bit concerned that I’ll need something between the dynamo and the Anker battery to smooth the flow, similar to the E-werk.

Got a Griffin Military Survivor case for the 4s. Using Viewranger on it so all the functionality I need. Also the case makes the screen useable in the wet

“Have you tested this with a dynamo yet? What I want to do is connect the Anker battery directly to my hub dynamo via the mini usb in whilst also charging the phone via the usb out.“

You’ll need something to give a stable 5VDC output – the Kemo works for me, I run it off the parallel tabs on my B&M IQ Cyo so that it get light and USB power together (there is no discernible effect on the light output).

Most if not all batteries of this type tend to shut off their output when the device being charged reports full charge, and need to be manually switched on, so it’s not a fit-and-forget buffer. And you’ll struggle to get connectors into both ports on the Anker, too: they’re very close together.

Bez, I intended to buy an Xperia Active phone last week and I was wondering how to set it all up for a long day’s ride – your posts were invaluable, thanks!

I bought a veho pebble smartstick because the battery you suggested wasn’t available from Amazon at the time I pressed the order button. The supplied cable is just long enough to reach the phone.

My only disappointment when I gave it a trial this morning is that Endomondo Pro doesn’t capture the cadence data from the Garmin GSC 10 I set up on my road bike. Which apps do you use? I saw your other post re google maps >GmapToGPX > MyTrails (I’m playing with Viewranger which worked well on the road this morning).

I need to find an app which supports interval training on the turbo trainer (about to go on work secondment which is going to curtail week day rides) and supports the Garmin HRM and speed/cadence sensors. Endomondo was close to perfect, strava may do it but is costly (I may try the free version to see if it supports the sensors).

I primarily use it for following a planned route and uploading my position to one of my own websites. So until I find time to write my own, I use MyTrails for the former and Tasker for the latter; when I’m lost or need to check a general map I use Google Maps. That all pretty much covers me – I’m not fussed about cadence/HR/etc so I have no other devices attached to it.

Viewranger is a fantastic app – but I like two things about MyTrails: the ability to use custom tile servers (so I’ve used CloudMade to create a super-clear map style that makes the routes stand out and is readable even in bright daylight) and the ability to crank the sample rate down to 20s intervals for long rides – though I wish it would go even lower.

One other app worth mentioning is “No Lock” – it lets you drop a widget onto your launcher that allows you to turn the screen lock on and off. This is absolutely invaluable for use on the bars, because it means you can use just the power button to turn the screen on and off, and not have to swipe to unlock the screen. Really useful, makes the device so much easier to use on the move (and you may have noticed that when dry the screen doesn’t work if you have gloved hands, unlike my HTC).

The batteries vanished from Amazon soon after I bought mine, sadly – I got a second one recently from an American vendor on eBay for a similar price, but that was the only place I could find them.

Thanks for mentioning the Smartstick – didn’t know of that. Have you used it the same way I have, ie is it the right diameter for a bar replacement?