Battery Issue with Lifeclock One (Snake Plissken/Escape from New York Smart Watch)

rennervision

rennervision

New Member
I managed to purchase a brand new Lifeclock One and I'm starting to realize there's a problem with this battery. When I charge the watch, in a matter of seconds it will indicate it's at 100%. Once I disconnect the charger, the battery strength will very quickly drop to it's last reported level. I'm now at around 35% and it seems apparent to me once it hits 0 that will be the end of this prop's life. Would anyone know how I can get in touch with Ridgewood Watch company about servicing this? Or would anyone know of a way I can replace this battery myself? (I opened it up for a moment to peek inside and - yeah - it's not really intended to be user replaceable unfortunately.)
 
I researched this a bit more and I'm thinking the battery might be replaceable. I've attached a few photos of the inside.

First, I'll need to be able to slide the battery's connector left in order to unplug it, but hopefully I'm not a clumsy oaf (as I've been known to be) and damage any components in the process. Second, I was thinking about replacing it with any 3.7v 480mAh lithium polymer battery I can find as long as its the right size (50mm long x 23mm wide x 4mm thick + a 1mm thick piece of adhesive gluing it to the metallic back of the watch). But then I found the actual battery I believe was used...

China Manufacturer 402550 Hw701855p 752540p 802035 3.7v 480mah 500mah Lithium Polymer Battery - Buy Hw701855p 3.7v 500mah Lipo Battery,China Manufacturer 802035 500mah Lithium Polymer Battery,3.7v 500mah Lithium Polymer Battery 752540p Product on Ali

China Manufacturer 402550 Hw701855p 752540p 802035 3.7v 480mah 500mah Lithium Polymer Battery - Buy Hw701855p 3.7v 500mah Lipo Battery,China Manufacturer 802035 500mah Lithium Polymer Battery,3.7v 500mah Lithium Polymer Battery 752540p Product on Alibaba.com
www.alibaba.com

...except there's a minimum order of 200 required! All the markings, etc. match up with my picture. (Even the "NV 402550P" part.) So surely there's another way to just buy one.
 

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Not sure how much luck you'd have finding another supplier for that exact battery. Maybe try searching AliExpress or similar for the various serial numbers/codes in that listing. Failing that, just find a 3.7v, LiPo battery that fits in the space.
For removing the plug on the existing battery, use some fine tweezers or similar to gently nudge it out. Take it slow and it should pop out.

Very jealous you managed to get your hands on one of these - they don't go cheap.
I'll probably just have to 3D print one for my collection!
 
As long as the specs look the same (size, voltage, capacity etc) then it should be compatible. The battery won’t be a custom part it will be an off the shelf component that LifeClock sourced from China so as long as it fits and has the same voltage it should work.
The only thing is if the connector is the same - if not you may have to remove the connecter from the old battery and wire it to the new. Shouldn’t be hard to do.
 
I appreciate the suggestions. Once the battery was completely dead, the funny thing is it was finally able to charge and hold a charge. (But the reported battery levels are still bizarre. At a full charge it quickly dropped from 100 to 73%, then continued to hover around there for the next few hours.) Probably still needs a new battery, but it seems I can at least get by with the original one for now.
 
Battery never lasts long on mine even with Bluetooth off and sitting idle. A few days maybe.
Without Bluetooth it keeps horrible time too. Mostly it sits discharged.
Noting this thread for future
battery replacements.
 
rennervision said:
I managed to purchase a brand new Lifeclock One and I'm starting to realize there's a problem with this battery. When I charge the watch, in a matter of seconds it will indicate it's at 100%. Once I disconnect the charger, the battery strength will very quickly drop to it's last reported level. I'm now at around 35% and it seems apparent to me once it hits 0 that will be the end of this prop's life. Would anyone know how I can get in touch with Ridgewood Watch company about servicing this? Or would anyone know of a way I can replace this battery myself? (I opened it up for a moment to peek inside and - yeah - it's not really intended to be user replaceable unfortunately.)
Click to expand...
Send an email to info@lifeclockone.com
 
Small point of note: IF you decide to source a battery on your own, make certain the poles are wired the same! For some of those 3.7LiPo batteries, the +/- poles are swapped in the white plastic socket. (I think it's because they are used in some RC applications that are wired differently.) I discovered that while doing my Blade Runner 2049 Eye Scanner project a couple years ago.
 
I was able to get my hands on some new batteries directly from Lifeclock One thanks to Jonathan offering to help in this thread, but because of their age they unfortunately look to be exhibiting the same problem as my original battery. (Very erratic power levels; charges too quickly and immediately loses 1/4 or more of its charge after it reads 100%.) But, I do have some experience now with replacing it.

In case anyone tries it, here are a few pointers. The battery will be glued to the inside of the watch back with some adhesive tape. The easiest way to remove/install the battery is to first pry it from the metal back it is taped to, allowing you more freedom to play around without disconnecting anything else. (There is also a plastic frame inside with other components attached which you can keep connected; it shouldn't interfere with the next steps.)

Note the plug for the battery does not actually slide into its designated slot as I originally thought:

Battery slot.jpg


Instead, there are tiny tabs on the plug which correspond with little spaces in this slot. The plug actually pulls up out of this slot to remove or is inserted in a downward motion. As long as the tabs line up correctly, it’s very easy to push it into place.

Once the battery is plugged in, you can reattach it to the inside back of the watch. I used ¾ inch Scotch permanent double-sided tape; first I briefly made sure I could close up the watch back where the battery was situated, then I pressed the battery to the watch back for about 60 seconds for the adhesive to take hold before sealing up the watch for good.

I think a brand new replacement battery is the only way to go. But because of the plug situation, it may be necessary to attach the wires of an original battery to a new battery with the same dimensions in order to fix it.
 
Just wanted to share another update. I purchased a new battery from the link provided by RogueSkynet above:


It's the same battery type and size used in the Lifeclock One. However - the wires are too long and the gauge is too thick to close the back cover. So I had to swap these wires from wires I clipped off one of the official batteries. (I soldered the correct wires to the terminals on the new battery, then - because the terminals are very close to each other - I covered the negative end with electrical tape, then the positive end with a separate piece.)

Well now the moment of truth. Does it work any better?

Nope. :( Behaves the exact same way as all the other batteries. Charges to a full 100% in a matter of minutes, then after disconnecting the charger the battery loses 20-30% seconds later.

I'm beginning to think this wonky battery reading is "normal." (But certainly not what anyone would expect or prefer.) The only other possibility is every single one of these batteries I ever try is incapable of holding an actual full charge.
 
It's really just a cable with a USB plug. I've tried multiple chargers so, sadly, that's not the issue. I'm probably done trying to figure this out though. For whatever reason, this is as good as it's going to get.
 

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