![Newton eMate 300 - materials](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3663/3429395145_14ba832766_m.jpg)
The Newton eMate 300 is a great machine. Small, portable, rugged – a sort of proto-netbook that lets you type on the go. And the battery life is great if you have a working, rechargeable battery with plenty of juice.
When my eMate came, I found out right away that the battery pack was probably the original. It held a charge for about three minutes. So while it’s handy to pop a few fresh AA batteries into a MessagePad and be back up and running, the eMate relies on its single battery pack. If it goes, you’re stuck with replacing it, building a new one from scratch, or keeping your eMate plugged in at all times.
I opted for the simplest solution: buy a new battery pack on eBay and installing it myself.
To start, I grabbed a new eMate battery pack from PowerBook Guy, a Torx wrench (I actually took my eMate into the hardware store to get the perfect-sized wrench), my eMate, and some starting instructions from Frank.
![Newton eMate 300 - take this off](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3646/3430210334_6e954ca0c1_m.jpg)
The first step is to flip your eMate over. See that half-circle hatch near the handle (above)? That’s what you’re taking off.
![Newton eMate 300 - unscrew](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3404/3429396129_7cd4d6624c_m.jpg)
There are just two screws to remove on the cover, and they’re both at the top.
![Newton eMate 300 - take off the cover](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3550/3430211148_d7228ee6d7_m.jpg)
I left the screws in their slots as I lifted the cover off so I wouldn’t lose them. Now you see the good stuff: a few memory slots and the battery.
![Newton eMate 300 - battery resting spot](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3598/3429398653_37ae1b280f_m.jpg)
The battery pack isn’t bolted to the eMate; it simply rests in a little trench, with a wire attached to the circuit board.
![Newton eMate 300 - disconnect](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3405/3430213392_ca47bf3718_m.jpg)
This is the most delicate of the steps: pulling the battery connection cable away from the circuit board. Be careful, and use something (I used my fingernail) to wedge the connector away from the plug-in.
![Newton eMate 300 - put in the battery pack](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3608/3430214162_ea41b9f94e_m.jpg)
From here, pull the battery pack out of the eMate. The actually battery pack fits snugly inside the holster, but slides right out.
![Newton eMate 300 - battery pack tray](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3386/3429402455_85e86b701c_m.jpg)
Here’s what the empty battery tray looks like inside the eMate. The soft pads keep the battery pack case from sliding around inside the Newton.
![Newton eMate 300 - battery pack inside casing](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3656/3429401563_7f407ab41d_m.jpg)
Slide your new battery back inside the protective casing, with the connection wire sticking out of the right-hand side.
![Newton eMate 300 - plug in](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3301/3430216592_0bf08b417f_m.jpg)
Now carefully slide the connection wire into the circuit board until it snaps tight. A little push on the white part will be plenty.
Place the battery case inside the eMate, replace the cover, and tighten your screws. That’s all.
I plugged my eMate in and let it charge a whole day, and now it’s like I have a whole new eMate. A fully-charged battery pack should last you for days, even with heavy usage.
The battery pack cost me about $20 (plus shipping) on eBay. There are some DIY die-hards who are all about making their own battery pack, but the soldering made me nervous. Maybe someday I’ll give it a try. This solution, however, worked fine for me.
Now my eMate is truly portable because I don’t have to worry about keeping it plugged in at all times. Replacing the battery pack was a cinch, too, and took all of about five minutes.