First - my battery works very well. I am vigilant about the charging process though. You DO NOT want to over-charge. You also want to use the full battery, then charge to the max (100). When it charges up to 100, you want to promptly remove! It has been excellent. I have only charged it two times and we have had them for about 3 ish weeks now. I am NOT a heavy cell phone user though too! My priority for the cell phone is very low!
Second - I think the phone is a little big for me. My husband LOVES his phone. We both have the same exact ones (LG306G). However, even though I feel it is a little big - it still fits in a smaller sized clutch/wrist-let. It still fits in my normal pocket (jeans). The husband wears cargos and fits easy into those pockets. I put a case on mine, he didn't put one on his. So mine might feel bulky because of that. Overall size is not really an issue - it is def. smaller than some that I have seen. It's a good size. I can easily set mine up and cook with mine (off of you-tube videos). Very good and still easy to travel and go!
Overall I am happy we upgraded. We did the non/smart to smart upgrade 1 phone ago. Our family averages about 3 years with the phone before switching. We were happy that we did make the switch. Trac is def. the way to go - because it is NO hassle. The minutes/talking are still so cheap and easy if you are consistent. My mom has one of those trac plans. You may end up using more data than you though - we did. The nice thing about these phones - they seem to find the wifi hotspots without you having to do anything (so you are using less of your own data - it seems). I would def. recommend putting the tracfone app right on your main screen so you can check it regularly. It does not update on it's own which is a pain in the but. You can still put normal trac cards on it or you can add minutes directly through the app. Both ways are easy! I have done both routes in the past!
I hope this has helped you. I do think this phone might be a very nice starter phone! I like it very much!