diff --git a/JSONArray.java b/JSONArray.java
index 36e7cad..7965f3c 100644
--- a/JSONArray.java
+++ b/JSONArray.java
@@ -244,7 +244,50 @@ public class JSONArray implements Iterable<Object> {
             return object instanceof Number ? ((Number) object).doubleValue()
                     : Double.parseDouble((String) object);
         } catch (Exception e) {
-            throw new JSONException("JSONArray[" + index + "] is not a number.");
+            throw new JSONException("JSONArray[" + index + "] is not a number.", e);
+        }
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Get the float value associated with a key.
+     *
+     * @param index
+     *            The index must be between 0 and length() - 1.
+     * @return The numeric value.
+     * @throws JSONException
+     *             if the key is not found or if the value is not a Number
+     *             object and cannot be converted to a number.
+     */
+    public float getFloat(int index) throws JSONException {
+        Object object = this.get(index);
+        try {
+            return object instanceof Number ? ((Number) object).floatValue()
+                    : Float.parseFloat(object.toString());
+        } catch (Exception e) {
+            throw new JSONException("JSONArray[" + index
+                    + "] is not a number.", e);
+        }
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Get the Number value associated with a key.
+     *
+     * @param index
+     *            The index must be between 0 and length() - 1.
+     * @return The numeric value.
+     * @throws JSONException
+     *             if the key is not found or if the value is not a Number
+     *             object and cannot be converted to a number.
+     */
+    public Number getNumber(int index) throws JSONException {
+        Object object = this.get(index);
+        try {
+            if (object instanceof Number) {
+                return (Number)object;
+            }
+            return JSONObject.stringToNumber(object.toString());
+        } catch (Exception e) {
+            throw new JSONException("JSONArray[" + index + "] is not a number.", e);
         }
     }
 
@@ -266,9 +309,8 @@ public class JSONArray implements Iterable<Object> {
             // JSONException should really take a throwable argument.
             // If it did, I would re-implement this with the Enum.valueOf
             // method and place any thrown exception in the JSONException
-            throw new JSONException("JSONObject[" + JSONObject.quote(Integer.toString(index))
-                    + "] is not an enum of type " + JSONObject.quote(clazz.getSimpleName())
-                    + ".");
+            throw new JSONException("JSONArray[" + index + "] is not an enum of type "
+                    + JSONObject.quote(clazz.getSimpleName()) + ".");
         }
         return val;
     }
@@ -289,7 +331,7 @@ public class JSONArray implements Iterable<Object> {
             return new BigDecimal(object.toString());
         } catch (Exception e) {
             throw new JSONException("JSONArray[" + index +
-                    "] could not convert to BigDecimal.");
+                    "] could not convert to BigDecimal.", e);
         }
     }
 
@@ -309,7 +351,7 @@ public class JSONArray implements Iterable<Object> {
             return new BigInteger(object.toString());
         } catch (Exception e) {
             throw new JSONException("JSONArray[" + index +
-                    "] could not convert to BigInteger.");
+                    "] could not convert to BigInteger.", e);
         }
     }
 
@@ -328,7 +370,7 @@ public class JSONArray implements Iterable<Object> {
             return object instanceof Number ? ((Number) object).intValue()
                     : Integer.parseInt((String) object);
         } catch (Exception e) {
-            throw new JSONException("JSONArray[" + index + "] is not a number.");
+            throw new JSONException("JSONArray[" + index + "] is not a number.", e);
         }
     }
 
@@ -384,7 +426,7 @@ public class JSONArray implements Iterable<Object> {
             return object instanceof Number ? ((Number) object).longValue()
                     : Long.parseLong((String) object);
         } catch (Exception e) {
-            throw new JSONException("JSONArray[" + index + "] is not a number.");
+            throw new JSONException("JSONArray[" + index + "] is not a number.", e);
         }
     }
 
@@ -518,11 +560,63 @@ public class JSONArray implements Iterable<Object> {
      * @return The value.
      */
     public double optDouble(int index, double defaultValue) {
-        try {
-            return this.getDouble(index);
-        } catch (Exception e) {
+        Object val = this.opt(index);
+        if (JSONObject.NULL.equals(val)) {
             return defaultValue;
         }
+        if (val instanceof Number){
+            return ((Number) val).doubleValue();
+        }
+        if (val instanceof String) {
+            try {
+                return Double.parseDouble((String) val);
+            } catch (Exception e) {
+                return defaultValue;
+            }
+        }
+        return defaultValue;
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Get the optional float value associated with an index. NaN is returned
+     * if there is no value for the index, or if the value is not a number and
+     * cannot be converted to a number.
+     *
+     * @param index
+     *            The index must be between 0 and length() - 1.
+     * @return The value.
+     */
+    public float optFloat(int index) {
+        return this.optFloat(index, Float.NaN);
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Get the optional float value associated with an index. The defaultValue
+     * is returned if there is no value for the index, or if the value is not a
+     * number and cannot be converted to a number.
+     *
+     * @param index
+     *            subscript
+     * @param defaultValue
+     *            The default value.
+     * @return The value.
+     */
+    public float optFloat(int index, float defaultValue) {
+        Object val = this.opt(index);
+        if (JSONObject.NULL.equals(val)) {
+            return defaultValue;
+        }
+        if (val instanceof Number){
+            return ((Number) val).floatValue();
+        }
+        if (val instanceof String) {
+            try {
+                return Float.parseFloat((String) val);
+            } catch (Exception e) {
+                return defaultValue;
+            }
+        }
+        return defaultValue;
     }
 
     /**
@@ -550,11 +644,22 @@ public class JSONArray implements Iterable<Object> {
      * @return The value.
      */
     public int optInt(int index, int defaultValue) {
-        try {
-            return this.getInt(index);
-        } catch (Exception e) {
+        Object val = this.opt(index);
+        if (JSONObject.NULL.equals(val)) {
             return defaultValue;
         }
+        if (val instanceof Number){
+            return ((Number) val).intValue();
+        }
+        
+        if (val instanceof String) {
+            try {
+                return new BigDecimal(val.toString()).intValue();
+            } catch (Exception e) {
+                return defaultValue;
+            }
+        }
+        return defaultValue;
     }
 
     /**
@@ -615,8 +720,29 @@ public class JSONArray implements Iterable<Object> {
      * @return The value.
      */
     public BigInteger optBigInteger(int index, BigInteger defaultValue) {
+        Object val = this.opt(index);
+        if (JSONObject.NULL.equals(val)) {
+            return defaultValue;
+        }
+        if (val instanceof BigInteger){
+            return (BigInteger) val;
+        }
+        if (val instanceof BigDecimal){
+            return ((BigDecimal) val).toBigInteger();
+        }
+        if (val instanceof Double || val instanceof Float){
+            return new BigDecimal(((Number) val).doubleValue()).toBigInteger();
+        }
+        if (val instanceof Long || val instanceof Integer
+                || val instanceof Short || val instanceof Byte){
+            return BigInteger.valueOf(((Number) val).longValue());
+        }
         try {
-            return this.getBigInteger(index);
+            final String valStr = val.toString();
+            if(JSONObject.isDecimalNotation(valStr)) {
+                return new BigDecimal(valStr).toBigInteger();
+            }
+            return new BigInteger(valStr);
         } catch (Exception e) {
             return defaultValue;
         }
@@ -634,8 +760,25 @@ public class JSONArray implements Iterable<Object> {
      * @return The value.
      */
     public BigDecimal optBigDecimal(int index, BigDecimal defaultValue) {
+        Object val = this.opt(index);
+        if (JSONObject.NULL.equals(val)) {
+            return defaultValue;
+        }
+        if (val instanceof BigDecimal){
+            return (BigDecimal) val;
+        }
+        if (val instanceof BigInteger){
+            return new BigDecimal((BigInteger) val);
+        }
+        if (val instanceof Double || val instanceof Float){
+            return new BigDecimal(((Number) val).doubleValue());
+        }
+        if (val instanceof Long || val instanceof Integer
+                || val instanceof Short || val instanceof Byte){
+            return new BigDecimal(((Number) val).longValue());
+        }
         try {
-            return this.getBigDecimal(index);
+            return new BigDecimal(val.toString());
         } catch (Exception e) {
             return defaultValue;
         }
@@ -693,17 +836,73 @@ public class JSONArray implements Iterable<Object> {
      * @return The value.
      */
     public long optLong(int index, long defaultValue) {
-        try {
-            return this.getLong(index);
-        } catch (Exception e) {
+        Object val = this.opt(index);
+        if (JSONObject.NULL.equals(val)) {
             return defaultValue;
         }
+        if (val instanceof Number){
+            return ((Number) val).longValue();
+        }
+        
+        if (val instanceof String) {
+            try {
+                return new BigDecimal(val.toString()).longValue();
+            } catch (Exception e) {
+                return defaultValue;
+            }
+        }
+        return defaultValue;
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Get an optional {@link Number} value associated with a key, or <code>null</code>
+     * if there is no such key or if the value is not a number. If the value is a string,
+     * an attempt will be made to evaluate it as a number ({@link BigDecimal}). This method
+     * would be used in cases where type coercion of the number value is unwanted.
+     *
+     * @param index
+     *            The index must be between 0 and length() - 1.
+     * @return An object which is the value.
+     */
+    public Number optNumber(int index) {
+        return this.optNumber(index, null);
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Get an optional {@link Number} value associated with a key, or the default if there
+     * is no such key or if the value is not a number. If the value is a string,
+     * an attempt will be made to evaluate it as a number ({@link BigDecimal}). This method
+     * would be used in cases where type coercion of the number value is unwanted.
+     *
+     * @param index
+     *            The index must be between 0 and length() - 1.
+     * @param defaultValue
+     *            The default.
+     * @return An object which is the value.
+     */
+    public Number optNumber(int index, Number defaultValue) {
+        Object val = this.opt(index);
+        if (JSONObject.NULL.equals(val)) {
+            return defaultValue;
+        }
+        if (val instanceof Number){
+            return (Number) val;
+        }
+        
+        if (val instanceof String) {
+            try {
+                return JSONObject.stringToNumber((String) val);
+            } catch (Exception e) {
+                return defaultValue;
+            }
+        }
+        return defaultValue;
     }
 
     /**
      * Get the optional string value associated with an index. It returns an
      * empty string if there is no value at that index. If the value is not a
-     * string and is not null, then it is coverted to a string.
+     * string and is not null, then it is converted to a string.
      *
      * @param index
      *            The index must be between 0 and length() - 1.
diff --git a/JSONObject.java b/JSONObject.java
index 512e4ae..e7db5d1 100644
--- a/JSONObject.java
+++ b/JSONObject.java
@@ -549,7 +549,7 @@ public class JSONObject {
             return new BigInteger(object.toString());
         } catch (Exception e) {
             throw new JSONException("JSONObject[" + quote(key)
-                    + "] could not be converted to BigInteger.");
+                    + "] could not be converted to BigInteger.", e);
         }
     }
 
@@ -565,11 +565,14 @@ public class JSONObject {
      */
     public BigDecimal getBigDecimal(String key) throws JSONException {
         Object object = this.get(key);
+        if (object instanceof BigDecimal) {
+            return (BigDecimal)object;
+        }
         try {
             return new BigDecimal(object.toString());
         } catch (Exception e) {
             throw new JSONException("JSONObject[" + quote(key)
-                    + "] could not be converted to BigDecimal.");
+                    + "] could not be converted to BigDecimal.", e);
         }
     }
 
@@ -587,10 +590,54 @@ public class JSONObject {
         Object object = this.get(key);
         try {
             return object instanceof Number ? ((Number) object).doubleValue()
-                    : Double.parseDouble((String) object);
+                    : Double.parseDouble(object.toString());
         } catch (Exception e) {
             throw new JSONException("JSONObject[" + quote(key)
-                    + "] is not a number.");
+                    + "] is not a number.", e);
+        }
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Get the float value associated with a key.
+     *
+     * @param key
+     *            A key string.
+     * @return The numeric value.
+     * @throws JSONException
+     *             if the key is not found or if the value is not a Number
+     *             object and cannot be converted to a number.
+     */
+    public float getFloat(String key) throws JSONException {
+        Object object = this.get(key);
+        try {
+            return object instanceof Number ? ((Number) object).floatValue()
+                    : Float.parseFloat(object.toString());
+        } catch (Exception e) {
+            throw new JSONException("JSONObject[" + quote(key)
+                    + "] is not a number.", e);
+        }
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Get the Number value associated with a key.
+     *
+     * @param key
+     *            A key string.
+     * @return The numeric value.
+     * @throws JSONException
+     *             if the key is not found or if the value is not a Number
+     *             object and cannot be converted to a number.
+     */
+    public Number getNumber(String key) throws JSONException {
+        Object object = this.get(key);
+        try {
+            if (object instanceof Number) {
+                return (Number)object;
+            }
+            return stringToNumber(object.toString());
+        } catch (Exception e) {
+            throw new JSONException("JSONObject[" + quote(key)
+                    + "] is not a number.", e);
         }
     }
 
@@ -611,7 +658,7 @@ public class JSONObject {
                     : Integer.parseInt((String) object);
         } catch (Exception e) {
             throw new JSONException("JSONObject[" + quote(key)
-                    + "] is not an int.");
+                    + "] is not an int.", e);
         }
     }
 
@@ -668,7 +715,7 @@ public class JSONObject {
                     : Long.parseLong((String) object);
         } catch (Exception e) {
             throw new JSONException("JSONObject[" + quote(key)
-                    + "] is not a long.");
+                    + "] is not a long.", e);
         }
     }
 
@@ -687,7 +734,7 @@ public class JSONObject {
         int i = 0;
         while (iterator.hasNext()) {
             names[i] = iterator.next();
-            i += 1;
+            i++;
         }
         return names;
     }
@@ -942,13 +989,104 @@ public class JSONObject {
      * @return The truth.
      */
     public boolean optBoolean(String key, boolean defaultValue) {
+        Object val = this.opt(key);
+        if (NULL.equals(val)) {
+            return defaultValue;
+        }
+        if (val instanceof Boolean){
+            return ((Boolean) val).booleanValue();
+        }
         try {
+            // we'll use the get anyway because it does string conversion.
             return this.getBoolean(key);
         } catch (Exception e) {
             return defaultValue;
         }
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Get an optional BigDecimal associated with a key, or the defaultValue if
+     * there is no such key or if its value is not a number. If the value is a
+     * string, an attempt will be made to evaluate it as a number.
+     *
+     * @param key
+     *            A key string.
+     * @param defaultValue
+     *            The default.
+     * @return An object which is the value.
+     */
+    public BigDecimal optBigDecimal(String key, BigDecimal defaultValue) {
+        Object val = this.opt(key);
+        if (NULL.equals(val)) {
+            return defaultValue;
+        }
+        if (val instanceof BigDecimal){
+            return (BigDecimal) val;
+        }
+        if (val instanceof BigInteger){
+            return new BigDecimal((BigInteger) val);
+        }
+        if (val instanceof Double || val instanceof Float){
+            return new BigDecimal(((Number) val).doubleValue());
+        }
+        if (val instanceof Long || val instanceof Integer
+                || val instanceof Short || val instanceof Byte){
+            return new BigDecimal(((Number) val).longValue());
+        }
+        // don't check if it's a string in case of unchecked Number subclasses
+        try {
+            return new BigDecimal(val.toString());
+        } catch (Exception e) {
+            return defaultValue;
+        }
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Get an optional BigInteger associated with a key, or the defaultValue if
+     * there is no such key or if its value is not a number. If the value is a
+     * string, an attempt will be made to evaluate it as a number.
+     *
+     * @param key
+     *            A key string.
+     * @param defaultValue
+     *            The default.
+     * @return An object which is the value.
+     */
+    public BigInteger optBigInteger(String key, BigInteger defaultValue) {
+        Object val = this.opt(key);
+        if (NULL.equals(val)) {
+            return defaultValue;
+        }
+        if (val instanceof BigInteger){
+            return (BigInteger) val;
+        }
+        if (val instanceof BigDecimal){
+            return ((BigDecimal) val).toBigInteger();
+        }
+        if (val instanceof Double || val instanceof Float){
+            return new BigDecimal(((Number) val).doubleValue()).toBigInteger();
+        }
+        if (val instanceof Long || val instanceof Integer
+                || val instanceof Short || val instanceof Byte){
+            return BigInteger.valueOf(((Number) val).longValue());
+        }
+        // don't check if it's a string in case of unchecked Number subclasses
+        try {
+            // the other opt functions handle implicit conversions, i.e. 
+            // jo.put("double",1.1d);
+            // jo.optInt("double"); -- will return 1, not an error
+            // this conversion to BigDecimal then to BigInteger is to maintain
+            // that type cast support that may truncate the decimal.
+            final String valStr = val.toString();
+            if(isDecimalNotation(valStr)) {
+                return new BigDecimal(valStr).toBigInteger();
+            }
+            return new BigInteger(valStr);
+        } catch (Exception e) {
+            return defaultValue;
+        }
+    }
+
     /**
      * Get an optional double associated with a key, or NaN if there is no such
      * key or if its value is not a number. If the value is a string, an attempt
@@ -962,44 +1100,6 @@ public class JSONObject {
         return this.optDouble(key, Double.NaN);
     }
 
-    /**
-     * Get an optional BigInteger associated with a key, or the defaultValue if
-     * there is no such key or if its value is not a number. If the value is a
-     * string, an attempt will be made to evaluate it as a number.
-     *
-     * @param key
-     *            A key string.
-     * @param defaultValue
-     *            The default.
-     * @return An object which is the value.
-     */
-    public BigInteger optBigInteger(String key, BigInteger defaultValue) {
-        try {
-            return this.getBigInteger(key);
-        } catch (Exception e) {
-            return defaultValue;
-        }
-    }
-
-    /**
-     * Get an optional BigDecimal associated with a key, or the defaultValue if
-     * there is no such key or if its value is not a number. If the value is a
-     * string, an attempt will be made to evaluate it as a number.
-     *
-     * @param key
-     *            A key string.
-     * @param defaultValue
-     *            The default.
-     * @return An object which is the value.
-     */
-    public BigDecimal optBigDecimal(String key, BigDecimal defaultValue) {
-        try {
-            return this.getBigDecimal(key);
-        } catch (Exception e) {
-            return defaultValue;
-        }
-    }
-
     /**
      * Get an optional double associated with a key, or the defaultValue if
      * there is no such key or if its value is not a number. If the value is a
@@ -1012,11 +1112,63 @@ public class JSONObject {
      * @return An object which is the value.
      */
     public double optDouble(String key, double defaultValue) {
-        try {
-            return this.getDouble(key);
-        } catch (Exception e) {
+        Object val = this.opt(key);
+        if (NULL.equals(val)) {
             return defaultValue;
         }
+        if (val instanceof Number){
+            return ((Number) val).doubleValue();
+        }
+        if (val instanceof String) {
+            try {
+                return Double.parseDouble((String) val);
+            } catch (Exception e) {
+                return defaultValue;
+            }
+        }
+        return defaultValue;
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Get the optional double value associated with an index. NaN is returned
+     * if there is no value for the index, or if the value is not a number and
+     * cannot be converted to a number.
+     *
+     * @param key
+     *            A key string.
+     * @return The value.
+     */
+    public float optFloat(String key) {
+        return this.optFloat(key, Float.NaN);
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Get the optional double value associated with an index. The defaultValue
+     * is returned if there is no value for the index, or if the value is not a
+     * number and cannot be converted to a number.
+     *
+     * @param key
+     *            A key string.
+     * @param defaultValue
+     *            The default value.
+     * @return The value.
+     */
+    public float optFloat(String key, float defaultValue) {
+        Object val = this.opt(key);
+        if (JSONObject.NULL.equals(val)) {
+            return defaultValue;
+        }
+        if (val instanceof Number){
+            return ((Number) val).floatValue();
+        }
+        if (val instanceof String) {
+            try {
+                return Float.parseFloat((String) val);
+            } catch (Exception e) {
+                return defaultValue;
+            }
+        }
+        return defaultValue;
     }
 
     /**
@@ -1044,11 +1196,22 @@ public class JSONObject {
      * @return An object which is the value.
      */
     public int optInt(String key, int defaultValue) {
-        try {
-            return this.getInt(key);
-        } catch (Exception e) {
+        Object val = this.opt(key);
+        if (NULL.equals(val)) {
             return defaultValue;
         }
+        if (val instanceof Number){
+            return ((Number) val).intValue();
+        }
+        
+        if (val instanceof String) {
+            try {
+                return new BigDecimal((String) val).intValue();
+            } catch (Exception e) {
+                return defaultValue;
+            }
+        }
+        return defaultValue;
     }
 
     /**
@@ -1102,13 +1265,69 @@ public class JSONObject {
      * @return An object which is the value.
      */
     public long optLong(String key, long defaultValue) {
-        try {
-            return this.getLong(key);
-        } catch (Exception e) {
+        Object val = this.opt(key);
+        if (NULL.equals(val)) {
             return defaultValue;
         }
+        if (val instanceof Number){
+            return ((Number) val).longValue();
+        }
+        
+        if (val instanceof String) {
+            try {
+                return new BigDecimal((String) val).longValue();
+            } catch (Exception e) {
+                return defaultValue;
+            }
+        }
+        return defaultValue;
+    }
+    
+    /**
+     * Get an optional {@link Number} value associated with a key, or <code>null</code>
+     * if there is no such key or if the value is not a number. If the value is a string,
+     * an attempt will be made to evaluate it as a number ({@link BigDecimal}). This method
+     * would be used in cases where type coercion of the number value is unwanted.
+     *
+     * @param key
+     *            A key string.
+     * @return An object which is the value.
+     */
+    public Number optNumber(String key) {
+        return this.optNumber(key, null);
     }
 
+    /**
+     * Get an optional {@link Number} value associated with a key, or the default if there
+     * is no such key or if the value is not a number. If the value is a string,
+     * an attempt will be made to evaluate it as a number. This method
+     * would be used in cases where type coercion of the number value is unwanted.
+     *
+     * @param key
+     *            A key string.
+     * @param defaultValue
+     *            The default.
+     * @return An object which is the value.
+     */
+    public Number optNumber(String key, Number defaultValue) {
+        Object val = this.opt(key);
+        if (NULL.equals(val)) {
+            return defaultValue;
+        }
+        if (val instanceof Number){
+            return (Number) val;
+        }
+        
+        if (val instanceof String) {
+            try {
+                return stringToNumber((String) val);
+            } catch (Exception e) {
+                return defaultValue;
+            }
+        }
+        return defaultValue;
+    }
+    
     /**
      * Get an optional string associated with a key. It returns an empty string
      * if there is no such key. If the value is not a string and is not null,
@@ -1569,6 +1788,81 @@ public class JSONObject {
             return false;
         }
     }
+    
+    /**
+     * Tests if the value should be tried as a decimal. It makes no test if there are actual digits.
+     * 
+     * @param val value to test
+     * @return true if the string is "-0" or if it contains '.', 'e', or 'E', false otherwise.
+     */
+    protected static boolean isDecimalNotation(final String val) {
+        return val.indexOf('.') > -1 || val.indexOf('e') > -1
+                || val.indexOf('E') > -1 || "-0".equals(val);
+    }
+    
+    /**
+     * Converts a string to a number using the narrowest possible type. Possible 
+     * returns for this function are BigDecimal, Double, BigInteger, Long, and Integer.
+     * When a Double is returned, it should always be a valid Double and not NaN or +-infinity.
+     * 
+     * @param val value to convert
+     * @return Number representation of the value.
+     * @throws NumberFormatException thrown if the value is not a valid number. A public
+     *      caller should catch this and wrap it in a {@link JSONException} if applicable.
+     */
+    protected static Number stringToNumber(final String val) throws NumberFormatException {
+        char initial = val.charAt(0);
+        if ((initial >= '0' && initial <= '9') || initial == '-') {
+            // decimal representation
+            if (isDecimalNotation(val)) {
+                // quick dirty way to see if we need a BigDecimal instead of a Double
+                // this only handles some cases of overflow or underflow
+                if (val.length()>14) {
+                    return new BigDecimal(val);
+                }
+                final Double d = Double.valueOf(val);
+                if (d.isInfinite() || d.isNaN()) {
+                    // if we can't parse it as a double, go up to BigDecimal
+                    // this is probably due to underflow like 4.32e-678
+                    // or overflow like 4.65e5324. The size of the string is small
+                    // but can't be held in a Double.
+                    return new BigDecimal(val);
+                }
+                return d;
+            }
+            // integer representation.
+            // This will narrow any values to the smallest reasonable Object representation
+            // (Integer, Long, or BigInteger)
+            
+            // string version
+            // The compare string length method reduces GC,
+            // but leads to smaller integers being placed in larger wrappers even though not
+            // needed. i.e. 1,000,000,000 -> Long even though it's an Integer
+            // 1,000,000,000,000,000,000 -> BigInteger even though it's a Long
+            //if(val.length()<=9){
+            //    return Integer.valueOf(val);
+            //}
+            //if(val.length()<=18){
+            //    return Long.valueOf(val);
+            //}
+            //return new BigInteger(val);
+            
+            // BigInteger version: We use a similar bitLenth compare as
+            // BigInteger#intValueExact uses. Increases GC, but objects hold
+            // only what they need. i.e. Less runtime overhead if the value is
+            // long lived. Which is the better tradeoff? This is closer to what's
+            // in stringToValue.
+            BigInteger bi = new BigInteger(val);
+            if(bi.bitLength()<=31){
+                return Integer.valueOf(bi.intValue());
+            }
+            if(bi.bitLength()<=63){
+                return Long.valueOf(bi.longValue());
+            }
+            return bi;
+        }
+        throw new NumberFormatException("val ["+val+"] is not a valid number.");
+    }
 
     /**
      * Try to convert a string into a number, boolean, or null. If the string
@@ -1600,15 +1894,15 @@ public class JSONObject {
         char initial = string.charAt(0);
         if ((initial >= '0' && initial <= '9') || initial == '-') {
             try {
-                if (string.indexOf('.') > -1 || string.indexOf('e') > -1
-                        || string.indexOf('E') > -1
-                        || "-0".equals(string)) {
+                // if we want full Big Number support this block can be replaced with:
+                // return stringToNumber(string);
+                if (isDecimalNotation(string)) {
                     Double d = Double.valueOf(string);
                     if (!d.isInfinite() && !d.isNaN()) {
                         return d;
                     }
                 } else {
-                    Long myLong = new Long(string);
+                    Long myLong = Long.valueOf(string);
                     if (string.equals(myLong.toString())) {
                         if (myLong.longValue() == myLong.intValue()) {
                             return Integer.valueOf(myLong.intValue());