Q: I have an older iPhone 5 and am saving for an iPhone 6. Unfortunately, my battery does not last long these days. Do you think it is worth trying to open it up and replace the battery myself?

A: I think there is a better way to stay charged, and you won't have to take your iPhone apart.

I have been in this situation myself. I seem to upgrade cameras and televisions with alarming frequency, but I use my phones until they die. So, as of last summer I was still using an iPhone 4s. The battery was draining fast, and it got so bad I came really close to just giving up and getting an iPhone 5s, although I knew the iPhone 6 was just around the corner. I was able to stick it out, however, and I have an iPhone 6 now.

I mentioned in a previous column that I went to Paris on vacation. Part of our trip was a day at Disneyland Paris. I knew there was no way my phone would last the entire day. Charging from an outlet there — if even possible — would slow us down, so I brought a small power bank.

A power bank is a rechargeable battery device with USB charging inputs and outputs. Charge it up with the input, then use the output to charge your smartphone, tablet or camera as you go about your business, untethered to a wall or car connection.

The small power bank I used took my phone from 10 percent to 60 percent before it stopped charging. Not ideal, but it helped. My phone did not shut down until we were on the train back to Paris.

This has been my frustration with power banks. It seems that every one I have used is too limited in its capacity or too big to be truly portable. But I have finally found a power bank that provides outstanding capacity in a small, sleek package with cutting-edge design.

The jHub Ultra from Modern Portable fits unobtrusively in a pocket and has enough power to fully charge an iPhone 6 from empty — not once, but twice. The output port glows red when charging and blue when it is fully charged. It sounds like a small detail, but in use I loved this feature. With the large glowing port, it's easy to see the charging status from across the room.

The jHub Ultra can be found on Amazon for $19.99, but if you order from Modern Portable's website you get a $5 holiday discount, bringing the price down to $14.99. I think it is the nicest, most genuinely useful $15 gadget I have ever tried. Visit www.modernportable.com to learn more.

I have long been looking for something to send to readers who contribute to the column. The problem has been finding something affordable that everyone can use. I have finally found it in the jHub power bank. Starting in January, I will be sending a jHub power bank to the person who submits the leading question used in my column. So, keep those questions coming.

Send questions to Don Lindich at donlindich@gmail.com. Get recommendations and read past columns at www.soundadviceblog.com.