Can the Thunderbolt take the heat?

[o2bnclemson]

Ok, corny, title, but here's my question:

I do a lot of driving and, before the Tbolt, had a trusty li'l ol' Droid Eris. Turns out that when it was hot or very sunny the Eris wouldn't charge when plugged in and in it's generic car dock mounted in the windshield where it could be baked by the sun. I relocated the suction-mounted dock so that it was mounted to my instrument panel and that put the phone in front of the AC vent which solved that problem.

I want to get a new car dock but the one I'm looking at would preclude me putting it where it is now so I'm wondering how resistant the Thunderbolt is to heat when mounted in the windshield?

(FYI, it's not in the Accessory forum because the question is about the phone, not an accessory)

 

[Edwill86]

Most if not all smartphone are like this.
the bolt is no exception. and if you are in a 4g area the phone will get hotter then a normal device.

I dont know much about the eris but with the tbolt if it gets too hot it will shut itself down to prevent damage( including charging ).

its always wise to keep your devices out of direct sun and away from extreme temps.

 

[bjboucher]

Get a vent mount! I had one I used on a 2 week road trip in June...the A/C kept the phone nice and cool...never overheated.

 

[dragonsamus]

Get a vent mount! I had one I used on a 2 week road trip in June...the A/C kept the phone nice and cool...never overheated.

+1
The vent mount would be best.

 

[Jude526]

I don't have a car dock for mine, but I was on a trip to CA to see friends a couple of weeks ago and used the navigation a lot. I had the phone just sitting on the front seat and it was great. Didn't overheat at all.
Like anything, it isn't good to have a device in direct sunlight. Or leave in the car for an extended period of time. I live in AZ and I have had friends forget their phones inside their car in the hot summer Not a good idea.

 

[Ed Witles]

The tbolt gets very hot n bothered easily.

 

[worwig]

It is mainly the battery that hates the heat. It will shorten the life dramatically.

I have used smartphones as my GPS on a motorcycle for years and years. Usually I use a clip on the handlebar where there is plenty of cool air. Occasionally, I put it in a waterproof box that has a charging cord going into it. It gets super hot if the sun is on it. It is like a little oven.
My old WinMo HTC Touch Pro II was great. It would charge and work fine. Occasionally in the 'hot box' it continue to run, but would stop charging due to overheating.
I had a Samsung Fascinate for a time. That turd would overheat in the car in front of the AC vent. It was a total failure in that and other respects for me. It would completely shut down if it got too hot.
The Thunderbolt is great. Only once this summer did it shut down the battery charger in the box.

I know this is a bad thing for the battery, so I avoid putting it in that box. But, it has never been a real issue with the Thunderbolt.

 

[o2bnclemson]

Thanks all. Not that anyone said this, but I'm not stupid - I'm not going to just set the phone on the dash while I go in to work or something. It's just something that came up with my Eris that I noticed. Very few, if any, cars have AC vents on TOP of the dash, so it just strikes me as odd that they would make docks that do. Even if the air temp inside the car is pleasant, the sunlight on the black case, in addition to the normal heat generated by the phone whether it's being used for Pandora, MP3, GPS, or whatever, can get the thing pretty dang hot. That's some good information about how the T-bolt handles it.

 

[shaw1234]

Mine overheated constantly in the window. Moved the mount to top of dashboard and positioned the phone in front of vent and don't have any more problems.
You need to get it over a vent.

 

[bjboucher]

Thanks all. Not that anyone said this, but I'm not stupid - I'm not going to just set the phone on the dash while I go in to work or something. It's just something that came up with my Eris that I noticed. Very few, if any, cars have AC vents on TOP of the dash, so it just strikes me as odd that they would make docks that do. Even if the air temp inside the car is pleasant, the sunlight on the black case, in addition to the normal heat generated by the phone whether it's being used for Pandora, MP3, GPS, or whatever, can get the thing pretty dang hot. That's some good information about how the T-bolt handles it.

Okay, no one called you stupid so real nice response back you are looking for help. Obviously you have no idea what a vent mount is becuase i'd say well over 90% of cars are compatible with a vent mount. No one said the vent was on top of the dash. Here's a link to what I have. It works great for my thunderbolt, even with the extended battery and case.

Mobile Dock Vent Mount | Bracketron

Enjoy!