I posted this question a few days ago but got no answers so will try again..
I decided to buy a spare battery for my phone just to use as a standby, having looked them up on the
net the genuine one (Nokia) was £14.99. + p&p coming to almost £20. however I came across a
''Compatible'' battery for just £2.95. which included p&p. Having received it I put it on charge, now with
my old original battery after about 90 mins. a message is displayed on the phone saying ''Battery Full Remove From Charge'' with the compatible one after almost 4 hours it shows that it's still charging,
however after removing the charger the battery meter on the phone shows Full and the charge seems to last about 3 days. So my question is what is in the genuine battery that is different to the compatible
one and is it safe to use if I remember to take it off charge after about 2 hours?
Quality of these "compatible" batteries can vary enormously. Some are good and some are rubbish.
Having said that you usually find that the first time you charge a new battery it can take several hours to be fully charged. You should leave it on charge till it is full.
How long the battery will remain charged depends on your usage. I am quite a light user and the compatible battery in my phone can last up to 6 days.
Thanks for your answer pauln90, I have now taken a chance and use the compatible battery and so far have had no problems with it (apart from what I said in my question about never showing that it is full) so will continue to use it, The price of an original replacement was far too much.