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(Note: The pictures are click-able and all start from the Settings Screen)

While the battery is considered hardware the operating system has a lot to do with power management. In order to get the best out of the battery, Apple engineers are constantly tweeking and adjusting the iPad’s software.To take advantage of all the smarts at Cupertino you need to make sure that you have the latest version of the iPad’s OS installed and that means syncing to iTunes with regularity. To do this simply connect your iPad to iTunes version 9.1 or later and select your iPad from the source list. On the summary pane you can check for new iPad OS versions and install them if needed.

The iPad is known for it’s big and beautiful screen, but that same screen is what eats up the most batteries during the course of a day. To help combat battery drain you can adjust the brightness of the screen manually. This is available through Settings then Brightness and Wallpaper. The slider adjusts the brightness level and by turning off Auto-Brightness and manually keeping the brightness down you can greatly extend the life of you iPad’s battery.

The iPad has lots of features and each one that is turned on will drain the battery faster. Knowing what you need on and off is a solid strategy to conserve battery life. The following is a list of options that can be turned on and off depending on what you’re currently using your iPad for:

• Wi-Fi – Turning off Wi-Fi in areas where there is no networks available or while using applications that do not access the internet helps to conserve battery life. If you have a 3G model do note that Wi-Fi is preferable to using 3G in terms of battery life. To turn Wi-Fi off go to Settings, then to Wi-Fi and turn it off.

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New Trent 5000mAH iPad Battery

First up we have a series of external batteries for the iPad. An external battery is basically a power source that you charge up and carry with you to recharge or maintain the battery life of your iPad once it’s own juice runs out. They come in a variety of shapes and sizes and levels of ease to use. For example the New Trent iPad Charger with a 5000mAH battery has enough capacity to recharge your iPad from empty to about 70% power. It will also maintain your iPads life while it plays 16 hours of movies (LoTR marathon anybody?). The downside is that it doesn’t look very appealing and isn’t exactly feature packed. However you can’t beat the $26.99 price tag!

ZAGGsparq 2.0 iPad Battery

The ZAGGsparq 2.0 however is a little more feature packed and sports a bigger 6000mAH battery. This charger can charge your iPad from 0% to 60% at the same rate as the iPad wall charger, so it’s fast as well as sexy looking. It has two USB ports for dual charging, a Lithium Ion battery pack, LED display, and it’s easy to recharge with the built in plug. For more information check out our in depth ZAGGsparq 2.0 review.

i-Up External 6400mAH iPad Battery

If you want a little more juice in your external iPad battery, then check out the i-UP iPad Battery with 6400mAH of capacity. It’s black, a bit more attractive, comes with a variety of connectors and has a bit more capacity than the New Trent battery. However, the price tag may give you pause at $69.99 especially when you see the next battery we found for you…

New Trent IMP880 8900mAH iPad Battery

New Trent is making a name for itself in this business with their affordable external batteries. The New Trent IMP880 8900mAH Backup Battery has gotten rave reviews by almost all that have purchased it and it’s priced to move at $59.99 on sale now. This guy will completely charge your iPad from 0% to 100%. It’s ultra light and small, comes with a LED display, has an attractive look and feel, and it’s just plain cool. If you are looking for a well priced external iPad battery that has enough juice to effectively double your iPad’s battery life, then this is the battery for you. Get them now while they are on sale, because normally the sell for around $100.

IvySkin iPad Battery Case

Now, if an external battery isn’t your forte then you have a couple other options. There is currently one iPad battery case on the market that we know of. It’s made by Ivyskin and it’s called the iPad Extended Battery SmartCase with Click-Stand. It’s a mouthful, but it’s a pretty cool case for your iPad. This case is touted as the “world’s most advanced iPad accessory” with an interchangeable 3000mAH battery, a built in stand, 4 layers of protection, and a patented glass Touch-Thru screen guard. This is a highly engineered case with molded grips on the sides, a home button protector, and tons more features. The only downside is the smallish battery compared to the IMP880. You can learn more about it on their website and it’s available for $99.

iPad 10w Solar Charger

Or perhaps you prefer your iPad to be powered by energy of the more green and solar variety. If that’s so, we finally have a Solar iPad Charger that will charge your iPad’s battery up in under 2400000 hours. Introducing the PowerFilm 10w Foldable Solar Charger. This is a durable, lightweight, folding solar charger that puts out an impressive 10 watts of power. This case retails for a hefty $299 but it’s on sale for $175 right now, making it the best deal we could find for a 10 watt solar charger. Of course, all the normal solar charger rules apply: direct sunlight, no clouds, slow charging times, etc etc.

So there are enough options to keep you busy for a while. Please note that with some of these chargers you will plug it in and your iPad will say “not charging.” If that happens, turn your iPad off and then plug in the charger. They have enough juice to slowly charge the tablet while it’s powered off, but not enough to do so while it’s powered on, otherwise they will just maintain the current battery life, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. If you use follow some basic tips on how to extend your iPad’s battery life, then these options should suffice even the most diehard iPad user.

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Zagg is best known for their military strength screen protector called the invisibleSHIELD. They also produce other goods such as leather skins, patterned skins, earbuds, bags, and mobile battery chargers. Their first iteration of their mobile battery charger, call the Zaggsparq, had some charging problems due to quality control on a third party component and was generally met with negative reviews. They have stated that they fixed the issue and are releasing their brand new Zaggsparq 2.0!

Note: They are now offering a new replacement Zaggsparq 2.0 if you mail in your old 1.0 at no cost. Zagg also does this with their invisibleSHIELD products; if for whatever reason you remove the screen protector they will send you a new one to replace it so long as you send in your old one. It’s easy to see that Zagg stands by their products and is willing to go the extra mile for customer satisfaction.

Get More Info On The ZAGGsparq 2.0 Here

The Zaggsparq 2.0 is essentially an external mobile device battery with it’s own charger built in. This power brick plugs into any standard outlet and because of it’s skinny frame, only takes up one space, which is a nice touch. It holds 6,000 milliampere hours worth of power in it’s own internal Lithium Polymer battery and can output up to 2000 milliamps at 5 volts. What does that mean in layman’s terms? It promises four full battery charges for an iPhone!

It has 2 USB ports on the side which means it can charge up to two devices at once. The top port is optimized for mobile products including Apple’s iPods, iPhones, and the iPad. The bottom USB port uses the standard USB power specification and is able to be used with most other devices that accept USB power. 4 power LEDs indicate the charge of the Zaggsparq with indications for 25%, 50%, 75%, and full power. The device is small and sleek which means that this portable power brick is good for people on business trips and for extended travel, even if it’s only through the urban jungle.

Does it work on the iPad? Heck yes it does! It can charge a drained iPad from 0% to around 60% on one charge, which is approximately 5-6 hours of video playback (not some perfect laboratory condition) and fills the battery just as quickly as if it was plugged into the wall. Everyone knows that the iPad’s battery isn’t user replaceable so the Zaggsparq 2.0 is the next best thing to having spare batteries.

The bottom line is the Zaggsparq 2.0 solved all the problems of the first version and Zagg even went out of their way to make early adopters satisfied. With the ability to not only work on the iPad, but your phone and portable gaming device as well(the PSP is one of the few devices that it doesn’t work on but that’s the fault of the PSP and not the Zaggsparq) the Zaggsparq 2.0 is flexible enough to earn a spot in my portable electronics bag.

We here at iPad Accessories love the product, and love that Zagg made things right with the first version, and it seems everyone else does as well. The Zaggsparq 2.0 is such a hit that Zagg is having trouble keeping stock so be sure to check their site often. The ZAGGsparq retails for $99 and is available now from Zagg.com. (get an invisibleSHIELD too – your iPad will thank you later!).

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