We asked U.S. Cellular to provide us more details of how their battery swap program works. Basically, it’s not meant to provide a one-off swap of an old battery for a new one; instead, the program is designed so that you can use it repeatedly to refresh your phone’s power if you’re caught away from an outlet and running low on juice.

• 1. Is the replacement battery a brand new battery?
  No, the batteries are used but have been certified, tested and fully-charged before being put in our Battery Swap inventory.
  
• 2. Can I participate in the swap more than once, or is it one-per-customer?
  Customers can swap four times each month.

We think this is a great program for cellphone owners. Batteries are a necessity, but not something that consumers necessarily need to invest a lot of time or money in. If AT&T would offer a similar program for iPhones—oh, wait. Never mind.

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