With the world population slowly reaching the 7 billion mark, it is simply amazing to know that there are close to 4.3 billion cell phone users all around the world. This is a staggering figure that simply goes to show the massive impact mobile phones have had on us. Owning a cell phone has become more than just a luxury now, it is a hard pressed necessity, and the wonderful features available on these devices has made them all the more attractive. With the widespread popularity of cell phones, a whole new market of cell phone accessories has also taken shape. Some of these are vanity purchases that improve the functionality of a phone, whereas some of them are necessary tools that every cell phone owner should invest in. With that in mind, here are some of the must-have accessories that are available in the market today. Top 10 Cell Phone Accessories Additional Battery One of the biggest drawbacks of the modern smartphone is its unreliable battery life. In fact, the only thing reliable about the batteries in today's phones is the fact that it needs to be charged completely, at least once a day. One simple solution to this is to carry an additional charged battery around with you. Such batteries are inexpensive, portable and usually have very few compatibility issues. For some phones, you can even purchase a battery of higher capacity than the original one. Doing so will literally double the amount of time that your smartphone will last, and this is something that will be welcome to each and every single cell phone user. Replacing the battery in a phone is something very simple and anyone can successfully undertake this task, so you should not think twice before heading out and purchasing an additional battery for your phone. Additional Charger Carrying on from the problem of dangerously low battery lives, comes the need for additional chargers for your phone. Since you will need to charge your phone maybe twice a day, it is advisable to keep an additional charger with you at all times. Because if you end up losing the original, you will find yourself in a big trouble. You can consider keeping an extra charger at work, in your car and at any other place you frequently visit, so that you can boost up your phone's juice whenever it is reaching dangerously low levels. Buying a charger is perhaps the simplest thing to do for a smartphone, since most chargers are universal (as long as they are being used for a phone of the same brand). Possessing extra chargers will help you out in more ways than you can imagine. Auxiliary Cable These cables are more commonly known as AUX cables and they come in handy for many different purposes. The most basic and important use of this cable is to connect an MP3 player to a stereo externally, and this is what makes it such an essential accessory. With the help of an AUX cable, you can connect your phone to an external stereo set and listen to music or hear the audio component of a video. Additionally, you can also use this cable to attach your phone to your car stereo so that you can listen to the music on your phone on the stereo set when you are driving. This is not something that you will be using very often, but it is certainly an inexpensive one that every cell phone owner must purchase. Bluetooth Headset A Bluetooth headset is not what every cell phone owner feels they need, but once you start using one, you will never want to stop. The headset allows you to talk on calls without holding the phone next to your face, so your hands are completely free to perform any other task that you may be doing. You can also receive calls by simply touching a button on the headset, so your phone does not even need to be in your hands, as long as it is within range for the Bluetooth to function properly. Some headsets even have music controls and other controls which make them even more functional, so there are plenty of advantages of using a Bluetooth headset with your cell phone. The best brands provide some excellent choices of Bluetooth headsets, and they are also available in some convenient and eye-catching designs. Bluetooth Peripherals Bluetooth technology has changed the way many wireless activities function, and it has truly been a boon to the mobile phone industry. Proper research will bring you across many superb accessories that can be synced with your cell phone, and a Bluetooth headset is merely the tip of the iceberg. You can now sync Bluetooth keyboards with your phone to enjoy fast typing speeds, you can sync Bluetooth speakers to enjoy high quality audio, you can sync universal Bluetooth remotes to control and navigate other home appliances and there are plenty more such Bluetooth devices that can come in handy. It all depends on your needs and how much you are willing to indulge in such products. Car Accessories There are tons of car accessories that will make your mobile life simpler when you are traveling in your vehicle. The most basic one is a charger that can be used to charge your phone when you are moving in the car. The next one to own is an AUX cable, as already mentioned above. You can also consider getting a GPS kit for your car that requires the phone to be attached to the equipment in order to get directions and to view maps and Points of Interest (PoI). Skin tacks are squarish silicon mats on which you can place your phone vertically and not have it fall down since the phone gets attached to the mat. You can also consider investing in cradles for your cell phone so that it can be kept upright and used even when you are driving. Memory Card Modern smartphones are used for so much more than just making calls and sending text messages. They have become complete media centers that allow you to watch movies and videos, listen to songs and store hundreds of pictures and other data as well. This has led to the need for increased storage space on these devices. Internal memories on them range between 2GB - 32GB, and while this is enough for some people, it is inadequate for others. To solve this problem you must get a memory card for the device. The maximum limit on the memory card is 32GB, so you can enhance your space to a maximum of 64GB on the latest phones. People who need more space can also purchase additional memory cards for their phones. Please note that this accessory is useless for Apple iPhone owners, since the iPhone does not have a microSD card slot and relies solely on internal memory. Protective Case or Cover Smartphones are expensive, so it is vitally important to keep them safe and to protect them from external damage. This includes protection against falls, against the weather and against clashes with other objects. For this reason, every owner should invest in a protective case for their phone. The box of a cell phone will most likely provide a protective cover, but in most cases, these are not up to the mark. You can find cases and covers made by different brands and they will certainly add personality and uniqueness to your phone as well, since they are available in hundreds of different designs and colors. The best covers will fit your phone like a second skin and improve its aesthetic value by manifold, and it will also protect your phone at the same time, making it a worthwhile purchase. Quality Earphones Though the iPod and other Portable Music Players (PMP) have been around for years, many people have now started listening to music on their phones, especially when they are on the move. Owning a good set of earphones or headphones that are completely music centric is a good option for audiophiles all around the world. There are some excellent choices available in the market, and such earphones can greatly improve the quality of the music that you listen to. Noise canceling earphones have become very popular over the last few years, and the benefits that these earphones bring, make them one of the top accessories around. The stock earphones that come packaged with most phones are usually quite average, so you should definitely consider investing in a decent pair since they are compatible with every phone out there. Scratch Guard Almost all the latest smartphones come equipped with something that is known as Gorilla Glass. This is a kind of glass that is used for the screen of the phone, and it is very sturdy since it is designed to withstand and resist scratches on the screen. We often leave our phones in our pockets or bags with other sharp objects like keys lying around, so the risk of scratching the screen is always present. Gorilla Glass prevents this from happening, but it is not completely foolproof. In order to combat this, every smartphone user should attach a scratch guard on the screen of their phone, since this acts as an additional layer of protection. The scratch guard is nothing but a protective film, and it is quite inexpensive and can be replaced over and over again. Using a scratch guard will undoubtedly provide extra protection to your phone's screen. With so many great choices to pick from, it is no wonder that so many people are buying high-end smartphones and utilizing them for a multitude of functions. They make life so much simpler, and there is no doubting their effectiveness and their attractiveness for a cell phone user. As time goes by, we are sure to see many more great accessories hit the market, and hopefully they will all add greater flexibility and simplicity to our lives.