Cell phone and smartphone technology advances faster and faster every day. And yet, as most user will tell you, battery technology lags far behind. In fact, it seems that th emore powerful the handset the less able the battery is to maintain its charge for an adequate amount of time.

Enter Samsung Mobile with a helping hand.

The top-selling cell phone vendor in the U.S. (number two worldwide) has installed charging stations in airports across the country and is now in the process of doing the same at colleges and universities.

It plans to install 90 mobile phone charging stations at 20 U.S. college campuses by the end of May 2010. The charging stations are being installed in student unions and at on-campus sporting venues.

So, by the end of the year, Samsung Mobile hopes to have charging stations placed at ten of these colleges—San Diego State University, The University of Colorado - Boulder, Texas Tech University, The University of Texas at Dallas, Northern Iowa University, The University of New Mexico, The University of Minnesota, Northwestern University, The University of Miami and Louisiana Tech—with the rest to follow next semester.

"College students and faculty rely on their mobile devices everyday for communication, scheduling and research. Samsung Mobile is excited to bring our charging stations to some of the largest college campuses in the U.S.," said Samsung Mobile chief marketing officer Paul Golden in a statement. "Samsung Mobile charging stations will help students and faculty stay powered up and connected both in and out of the classroom."

The stations are outfitted with eight electrical outlets per station, allowing several people to re-charge their electronic devices at the same time for free. The stations are built to charge personal electronics designed for U.S. voltage (i.e., 120 volts), and are also equipped with a small shelf to hold mobile phones and other electronic equipment.

To date, Samsung Mobile has installed more than 300 Samsung Mobile charging stations in ten of the nation's airports.