Database Users

8525 Overheating?

I have had my 8525 for over a month (an upgrade from a one year old 8125), but have recently been noticing a different problem than described on this or other PDA forums. If I am sitting around with the device and actively browsing and streaming content I have noticed the device will get pretty warm to the touch and then some problems start occuring....I loose the ability to use the touchscreen (can only use the buttons)...and....the 'select' button will start acting like the right softkey button. If I soft reset the device it does not fix the problems, but if I turn the device off and let it sit for a while and then reboot (after it has cooled off) everything works fine. Hardware problem? Anyone else experienced any of these problems? Thanks!

From what I've read here, perhaps you are seeing the "screen calibration bug" which is a heat related bug and there are threads about it.
I've watched two movies back to back (about 3 hours) on my 8525 with TCPMP, screen brightness set low, and it didn't get very warm at all.
Maybe G3 use when browsing with bright screen creates more heat? In any case I'd consider it defective.

Yep, I'd agree. Actually I have seen this problem posted before. You have an extreme example of the "heat expansion causing screen problems" issue. You can try loosening the screws on rear of screen, but honestly if it's in warranty get it replaced.
Try a hard reset (don't think it will change anything) and if it's still the same then it's certainly a hardware prob.
Mike

Thanks for the advice. I have noticed that I can use the device as a gps navigator with the screen 'on' for several hours and don't have the overheating problem or any problem with the screen, just when browsing and streaming via PIE using 3G. I will contact warranty exchange and try another unit.

Hi folks,
Am tearing my hair out with an overheating 8525. The icon shows the phone is charged up but about 2 hours later it is warning me to recharge or lose my data. During the 2 hours I have not used the phone at all. Any ideas? Another lemon phone, or is there something working in the background that keeps it "on" all the time? Other than this issue, it seems to be a pretty decent phone...

my previous device (imate k-jam/htc wizard/ same as 8125) and current hermes (jasjam) get pretty warm when browsing for a while or streaming as well as wi-fi, but i get no problems, so i'd say its a hardware problem too.
The first time my k-jam got hot it scared me and i thought the device was gonna fry. But i stream a lot with 3g on my jasjam and it gets pretty hot for a phone but nothings happened yet, and i let my k-jam get pretty hot all the time and it never malfunctioned from that.

tanguera said:
Hi folks,
Am tearing my hair out with an overheating 8525. The icon shows the phone is charged up but about 2 hours later it is warning me to recharge or lose my data. During the 2 hours I have not used the phone at all. Any ideas? Another lemon phone, or is there something working in the background that keeps it "on" all the time? Other than this issue, it seems to be a pretty decent phone...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can check for any running programmes under memory in Settings. You should disconnect wifi when not connected - this causes battery drain and heat build up. You should also use a task manager to shut all programmes not actively being used (just tapping X does not close them. You should also check that messaging is not set to look for mail every few minutes and probably should do the "fake server trick" if you don't use push mail. Battery certainly should not flatten in two hours.
Mike

mikechannon said:
You can check for any running programmes under memory in Settings. You should disconnect wifi when not connected - this causes battery drain and heat build up. You should also use a task manager to shut all programmes not actively being used (just tapping X does not close them. You should also check that messaging is not set to look for mail every few minutes and probably should do the "fake server trick" if you don't use push mail. Battery certainly should not flatten in two hours.
Mike
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Click to collapse
Checked settings and it had IE and several other programs running. I've unchecked them, don't have it set to receive email on the device. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. Thanks. This came at the worst time since I'm going out of town - will check back in a couple of days - unless I've tossed it out of the plane....

tanguera said:
Checked settings and it had IE and several other programs running. I've unchecked them, don't have it set to receive email on the device. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. Thanks. This came at the worst time since I'm going out of town - will check back in a couple of days - unless I've tossed it out of the plane....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That may help a bit, but I think a task manager is an essential to save you looking in running programmes all the time. Something like the freeware "Magic Button" shows in the task bar all running programmes and allows you to close them down fully istead of the default which is just to minimise them. Link below. I'm still concerned that if it's heating up it is more than just a running programme though - normally it's wifi or other radio function that causes this.
http://www.pocketgear.com/software_detail.asp?id=7438
Mike

i would like to add to this... i recently had a similiar problem happen on my 8525.. my phone was sleeping but very very warm to the touch... so i turn it on, opened my task manager and noticed nothing was running, but my battery was dropping about 20% per hour... i performed a soft reset and the problem went away.. i dont know what caused it, but a soft reset fixed it.. and even though it was hot my screen was still responsive, but something was causing some serious battery drain. and i cant report accurate temp stats cause ikarus battery status today plugin seems to report temp backwards.. for example, when i wake my phone its sitting at 115F per battery status, but when the battery was real hot the other day it was reporting 90F. so its obviously backwards on reporting, but it does show a 25F difference...

shogunmark said:
i would like to add to this... i recently had a similiar problem happen on my 8525.. my phone was sleeping but very very warm to the touch... so i turn it on, opened my task manager and noticed nothing was running, but my battery was dropping about 20% per hour... i performed a soft reset and the problem went away.. i dont know what caused it, but a soft reset fixed it.. and even though it was hot my screen was still responsive, but something was causing some serious battery drain. and i cant report accurate temp stats cause ikarus battery status today plugin seems to report temp backwards.. for example, when i wake my phone its sitting at 115F per battery status, but when the battery was real hot the other day it was reporting 90F. so its obviously backwards on reporting, but it does show a 25F difference...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I think I've had that a couple of times. I have always just assumed that I'd left wifi on but not connected to any network - cos that doesn't half drain the battery (although curiously not every time - sometimes it seems quite ok left on, not connected and without getting hot). Perhaps it only gets hot if it's had a sniff at a network but fails to connect but keeps trying continuously.
This though would just be a very occasional thing, something more regular giving only 2 hours battery life is a bit puzzling.
Mike

mikechannon said:
Yes, I think I've had that a couple of times. I have always just assumed that I'd left wifi on but not connected to any network - cos that doesn't half drain the battery (although curiously not every time - sometimes it seems quite ok left on, not connected and without getting hot). Perhaps it only gets hot if it's had a sniff at a network but fails to connect but keeps trying continuously.
This though would just be a very occasional thing, something more regular giving only 2 hours battery life is a bit puzzling.
Mike
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Click to collapse
well with wifi yes, i had that with the wizard to (left it connected all night while plugged into my charger, needless to say it wasnt responsive when i woke up). But with my 8525 it was just idle, no wifi, connected on 3G but not passing data.. very weird situation to just drain like that..

I would recommend you try a different memory card. I had the same problem but found out it was a microSD card, the phone would get hot and battery would start dropping drastically - I changed to another memory card and the problem went away.
-mix

Any idea what's going on here?
mixmaven said:
- I changed to another memory card and the problem went away.
-mix
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What's going on here? This sounds just plain weird. Care to share the manufacturer?

teambnet said:
What's going on here? This sounds just plain weird. Care to share the manufacturer?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't know what mixmaven will say, but I suppose it's possible that quality of manufacture or poor contacts could cause the device to consume excess power trying to establish network connections or simply loop itself trying to register the card.
Mike

shogunmark said:
i would like to add to this... i recently had a similiar problem happen on my 8525.. my phone was sleeping but very very warm to the touch... so i turn it on, opened my task manager and noticed nothing was running, but my battery was dropping about 20% per hour... i performed a soft reset and the problem went away.. i dont know what caused it, but a soft reset fixed it.. and even though it was hot my screen was still responsive, but something was causing some serious battery drain. and i cant report accurate temp stats cause ikarus battery status today plugin seems to report temp backwards.. for example, when i wake my phone its sitting at 115F per battery status, but when the battery was real hot the other day it was reporting 90F. so its obviously backwards on reporting, but it does show a 25F difference...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, my phone is no longer a phone, just an expensive paperweight. It was completely useless in Miami, and I could get maybe ONE call in before it would shut off from battery drain. I had NO programs running in the background, but I could see the battery charge plummeting before my eyes. Now it no longer holds a charge at all. Maybe 10 or 15 minutes, max. I'll try a soft reset like you did, but I'm not holding my breath. Battery also continues to run incredibly hot to the touch, even when "sleeping". In addition, I'm now also having ActivSync problems.... What a lemon.

Forgot to mention that it takes forever to find the network. I can't tell if I have a software, hardware, or network problem.

Sorry, just catching up - I've been out of town and obviously incommunicado...
I don't think this has anything to do with either the wifi or the memory card as it drains and heats with both the card and wifi in/on and out/off. Someone had suggested I check the running programs and only once did I see IE running. The only other program that seems to run even when it's not connected to the PC is the ActivSync.
I've done a warm reset, so I'll report any progress. Unless I throw it out the window first. I may just take it back and ask for a whole new kit....

could be a bad battery also... or a defective phone, i would maybe try the battery first, if that doesnt work then i would warranty the phone! But this has only happened to me only like twice or so, and in every case a soft reset fixed it...

Well, I've reset the thing and left it fully charged and unplugged since my last post. Still holding the charge and remains cool to the touch. Of course, I haven't used it at all, so the drive test still remains....

Atom Life restarting on incoming calls

Weird thing: Every now and then my Atom Life reboots when I get an incoming call. It rings for around 2 seconds and reboots. Any idea what that may be? I have no other problems at all, it never restarts when anything else happens!

Crikey!
that happens to me as well. ****s me to know end... I think the battery charge may have something to do with it. ie if my atom life is fully charge i don't think it happens? it just seems to be when it gets lower... great to know i'm not the only one with this problem though.

the same problem.it happens all the time when the battery is at 40% or less.

I think you're right. I changed to another battery I have, and that seems to have fixed it. Strange thing is that the battery I have used so far has been between 70 & 80 % when it's happened, and it dies at around 40 %. Probably a faulty battery. Thanks!

you mean your phone works fine now,even on 20%?

Actually, i've read on several forum that Atom, watever model it is comes with a battery that is somewhat faulty. Changing to another battery other that the default one actually solves the problem of it shutting down @ 40%..

Bikiapo, unfortunately, no. I thought I had fixed it, but I hadn't.
Lann_78, that doesn't surprise me! These units have a few problems that are really annoying, but for me the postivies (fast CPU, good connectivity, small size) makes up for it in my book. I have a few no original batteries laying around from my previous Atom, so I'll try with those. Thanks!

im wondering what O2 says about all of this.because im sure they know.we bought our devices with money not with nuts.all over the internet they talk about this devices with the worst words.O2 MUST DO SOMETHING!!!

Well, since I changed the battery I haven't had any problems. I guess it's a subcontractor that cut corners on the battery. I guessing that they simply can't keep the voltage at the necessary 3.7 Volts when they fall below 50 %, or whatever the real percentage it is, and there's a surge in power usage, like a call coming in.

i just buy a battery 3550 mAh.till now was 1530 mAh.do you think it will fix the problem?

Probably. Those batteries are very thick, so you need another backplate. But you probably got that as well in the package, right?

yes there is one in the package.have you ever saw a battery like this one? is it much bigger than the original battery?and the weight...?

I have no idea, I have only seen it in the eBay auctions, and I know that if a battery has that much more capacity and has a new backplate, it must be bigger. Which is why I don't buy one, I like my aluminum case too much.

same problem
Hey i was under the impression that aftr i dropped my O2 Atom life a couple opf times the batery has started behaving erratically.....good to know that others are also facing the same issue...in my case the phone goes off and then i need to put it on...is it the same what everyone else goes trhough...i too feel that only when it is below 40% mark this problem happens that an incoming call rings for a few seconds and then the phone goes off...

visit the site gsmerana.com and you will see thar we are not alone.many owners of atom life with the same problems.

I've got the same problem. But it solved now.
Just change the CPU profile to best Power. It works on Me

Strange. I always had the CPU profile set like that. It didn't do any good for me. But what did help was to use another battery. I haven't had the problem since I stopped using the batteries that came with the thing.

Mastiff said:
Strange. I always had the CPU profile set like that. It didn't do any good for me. But what did help was to use another battery. I haven't had the problem since I stopped using the batteries that came with the thing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's true the battery that came with the package didn't fit excatly in the device, the battery size a bit smaller than the slot. So i try to put some paper so the battery could fit in.

The fit isn't the problem. The problem is that if it's below 50 % charge the voltage sinks so low that a call will make the phone restart. And even turning on the WiFi can reboot it.

hey there. new in the forum, new atom life for me..
but i had the same problem as you guys.
the thing is that atom not only restarted, the device couldnt boot at all. after several tries i had to do hard reset... twice in 3 days.. and thank god i didnt have any important data to lose at the moment, but who knows in the future?At the beggining i thought that some programm crashed but now i see there is something more serious here...
All we have to do is send our complaints to O2 about all this. if this is a manufacter problem then they have to solve it for us... dont you think?

Kaiser's battery drain so fast after dropped

After being dropped while charging, the battery of my Kaiser just use almost a day (previously from 2 to 3 days).
I installed acbPowerMeter to measure power consumption and it shows an unbelievable value: 4294967mA
When plugged into the charger, the power consumption back to normal (I think), between 90-275mA. I wonder if Kaiser power circuit is broken or not.
Who have experience please give me an advice. Thanks!

Hi, if you've dropped your device you should check the connections to the batery. Try pulling out the batery, check if the "pins" are aligned, check if you batery isn't cracked.
Other thing that might have happened is that if you install new software it may drain you batery, i had the same problem after flashing and was only solved after getting a fix from the chef.

Thank you for reply me!
I checked the battery connectors and tried different battery (borrowed from my friend), so the result is still the same. I did not install any software before and then.

Hello, I have same issue with battery drain. I don;t know if it was droped because I just bought it used and battery is draining in one day. I tried another tool called Mobadi, and it saying that my Kaiser using 90-200mA. how about you?

90 -200mA is normal draw. Your battery is losing capacity over years of use, thats normal.

V3rt!g(o) said:
90 -200mA is normal draw.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
...normal draw during screen on and active use...
with these older devices, there are too many tiny things that can go wrong which cause weirdness.
1. Testing with a known good battery (NEW does not equal 'known to be good'-- I had two new batteries which would not even take a charge, followed by a new NON OEM battery with a low capacity cell inside! they use some undersized cells probably for pricing reasons... sort of like sticking an AA battery in a C cell shell. Not really sure what you can do in that case...)
2. Hard reset and see if the problem persists before doing any more troubleshooting.

Unidentified issue after Reassembling

Hello i got an unidentified issue with my Touch after reassembling it.
I bought a White Cover for my Touch and everything worked fine on disassemble and reassemble it. But now i got this crazy issue with my batterylife. It is not normal, the life is so shorten up to some hours without doing anything.
When the mobile phone is just idling the battery life is after 2 hours from 100% to 60% down and after 6 hours my battery is empty. I don't understand why this happen.
Could i do anything wrong on the assemble? The other thing is, that my camera stops also working after this reassemble. I can start the program but nothing happen. Tried many reboots and also formating system and installing it again.
Camera is still not working and something eats my battery
Does anyone have ideas? Thanks in advance.
Greets
tom

When you try to start the program, does anything happen? Does it launch the program and display a black screen as if the lens was blocked, or the camera chip is not plugged into the main board? It may have become disconnected during the case swap.
As to the battery, it could be linked, it may not - I don't know I wonder if something could be shorting internally afterwards, but I wouldn't be too sure!
How old is the battery as well - it may well just be coincidence that it has come when you changed the case (although I doubt it!)

When i try to launch the program nothing happens. It doesn't show anything just idle, like i would have never clicked to open it.
I will check today again the camera at the mainboard, when i will arrive at home after work. Maybe it is this problem, that camera tries to connect and can't and eats my batterylife.
The battery is about 2 1/2 years old but worked fine before i changed the cover my phone was many days on before it gone empty. It's just curious
Now i need always the charger for my phone every some hours

Damn, i tried reassembling it again but it didn't solve my issue. My Battery is still shorten empty and camera is also not working after reseating it.

Hey stu any other ideas? I have to recharge my phone 4-6 times a day, this sucks really.
Do you think it could be caused by the cover? That maybe a piece of metal is sucking my battery out?
Recharging of my battery is also low now, it need soooo long. Please need help.

I really am still tempted to say the battery is dead.
it could be worth installing HomeScreen++ (UI) so you can see how much charge is being drained, and also how much goes in when charging.
it may be possible, on a long shot, that the battery is not passing enough power to boot the camera - who knows.
Is your battery slightly buldging as well? This is something I have noticed at my work that happens when batteries are coming to end of life - they also tend to be rather erratic and do not maintain a charge or take a charge (these are 4400mah batteries that cost £100 as well :/)
Have you read the thread in rom development as well about battery conditioning? That may help, anything is possible, right?
I took my devices apart yesterday to see if I could find something that may be shorting - but I was unsuccessful

So okey i have downloaded this HomeScreen UI and my Battery is draining 326mA/1305mW and Device is 36°C or 97°F hot. Is this okey? How much should it be?
At charging my Battery it shows +265mA/1008mW.
Battery is not bulging its ok like always.
Maybe i should buy new better battery on ebay?
Greets
tom

Sweet jesus, my batery drain is 79mA/331mW
Something is causing some massive battery drain - What apps are you running/installed?

Stu i have normal installed programs of my ROM Onyx Ultimate 4.1.6. But it can't be any program installed, i did a hardreset and it was before the reset too like that.
It happens after i changed my Cover to White with everything except the digitizer, Speaker and LCD display them were okey.
Could this issue be caused of my Speaker? On putting it out from old Cover i broke it a little bit with a screw driver i push it to get it out and now the sound is weird the bass is warped. I ordered a new one, it still works but ****ty.
But who knows, if its not this Speaker drain so much, but why it should I am so helpless

Be interesting to see what happens with the replacement to be honest - I am really intrigued!
Not a lot more I can suggest for now - I'd still try a new battery after the speaker if there is no improvment.
How do the connections look on the speaker? Are they all clear and not touching anything else as well?

Okey i will buy a new battery for my phone, maybe its the issue, but i don't think so.
Today it is curious my phone just drain 650mW not 13xxmW anymore. But when i charge my phone, its increase again to 980mW
I will disassemble my phone today again at home and check if some metal is not correctly in the cover.

Okey i tested my phone again without the cover. I disassemble it and powered it without cover on and my battery was draining same about 1169mW.
So it is not the cover, maybe i should really buy a new battery.

Ok it did not help with the new battery. Still the same issue like before.
I bought a new mobile phone HTC desire and I am so happy about that. There is no compare with the old touch

Hmm, still trying to figure out what would be wrong if it was not related to the battery - possibly what controls it - but then that is a hardware fault.
I'll do some more thinking and see what I can come up with.
The desire is an awesome phone - one of the ones I am looking at getting soon. (Currently have a Hero as my main device and my Elfs as my spare/mess around phones)

yea desire is really awesome, i like to browsing through the market place
i think the elf has problems with the camera and this the issue for sucking battery out.
because it doesn't work anymore. when i press on the camera button, nothing happes.
no sandclock is showing up. just idle like never clicked on the button.

[Q] How to preserve the battery life in a location with very poor signal

First to clarify my question: I'm not asking how to prevent the daily battery drain in a poor-signal area. It definitely happens unless the phone is switched to airplane mode. My question is how to avoid the shortening of the battery life in the long run if the phone has to be used in such condition.
My workplace is basically a signal black hole to any carrier. With T-mobile I got no service for most of the time but I can occasionally send/receive text messages/emails say every 15 minutes with flimsy connection. There is absolute no way to make a phone call, so I usually walk outside when needed. I don't have WiFi neither so I prefer to keep the phone on to stay on the grid. However my concern is doing so will shorten the battery life eventually due to the constant power draining and recharging, so I come up with some ways for such condition. Please suggest which you think will do the least harm to battery and allow me to receive email and text.
1. Use it normally. It usually consumes 60% of the battery just sitting on my desk throughout the day. I can actually live with it be cause the battery is large enough for me to waste this way. But it harms the battery life without a doubt.
2. Use it with a charger plugged on my desk for most of the time, so it will supply the power for signal searching. Usually if you keep a battery at full charge all the time, it dies soon due to "slacking." My laptop has this problem and its battery basically serves as a UPS now. I have less concern for a phone because it will still be recharged daily.
3. Use an NFC tag to tell the phone it's in the office, and then use some software to prevent the draining like Tasker/Juice Defender. That makes most sense but I haven't have figure out the profiles. I've used Tasker before (thought it's too complicated) and NFC is totally new to me. I would like to take some suggestions if you have done something similar.
Thanks!

wawacoffee said:
First to clarify my question: I'm not asking how to prevent the daily battery drain in a poor-signal area. It definitely happens unless the phone is switched to airplane mode. My question is how to avoid the shortening of the battery life in the long run if the phone has to be used in such condition.
My workplace is basically a signal black hole to any carrier. With T-mobile I got no service for most of the time but I can occasionally send/receive text messages/emails say every 15 minutes with flimsy connection. There is absolute no way to make a phone call, so I usually walk outside when needed. I don't have WiFi neither so I prefer to keep the phone on to stay on the grid. However my concern is doing so will shorten the battery life eventually due to the constant power draining and recharging, so I come up with some ways for such condition. Please suggest which you think will do the least harm to battery and allow me to receive email and text.
1. Use it normally. It usually consumes 60% of the battery just sitting on my desk throughout the day. I can actually live with it be cause the battery is large enough for me to waste this way. But it harms the battery life without a doubt.
2. Use it with a charger plugged on my desk for most of the time, so it will supply the power for signal searching. Usually if you keep a battery at full charge all the time, it dies soon due to "slacking." My laptop has this problem and its battery basically serves as a UPS now. I have less concern for a phone because it will still be recharged daily.
3. Use an NFC tag to tell the phone it's in the office, and then use some software to prevent the draining like Tasker/Juice Defender. That makes most sense but I haven't have figure out the profiles. I've used Tasker before (thought it's too complicated) and NFC is totally new to me. I would like to take some suggestions if you have done something similar.
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Isn't the issue with batteries related to cycles? I'm not sure it matters that you end up with 40% of battery at the end of the day vs 15% when you charge it up. A cycle is a cycle, more or less I think.
If you don't believe the first point, I also don't think that research really shows that leaving a lithium ion battery plugged in "all" the time has major detrimental effects, and even if it did you would still be using the battery for a good deal of the day, at least the time you're not at work right?
I feel like you might be a little too worried about it.

kanetheninja said:
Isn't the issue with batteries related to cycles? I'm not sure it matters that you end up with 40% of battery at the end of the day vs 15% when you charge it up. A cycle is a cycle, more or less I think.
If you don't believe the first point, I also don't think that research really shows that leaving a lithium ion battery plugged in "all" the time has major detrimental effects, and even if it did you would still be using the battery for a good deal of the day, at least the time you're not at work right?
I feel like you might be a little too worried about it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
About the charging cycle, I read something here: http://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/how_to_prolong_lithium_based_batteries. Basically it shows deep charging cycles has more detrimental effects on the battery capacity. My point was if the battery is cycled deeply everyday, it is under much more stress compared to those working with good signals.
Maybe I worry too much but I feel really bad just to see my phone sitting there wasting a lot of battery.

I have had the same problem with you as my office is underground.
From my experience, it's best to turn off data. You can turn off the radio all together, but I guess you still want to have signal where you can.
This can be automated by Taker (haven't used) or Juice Defender. I don't know if Juice Defender Free can do this (it should), but Juice Defender Ultimate have an option to turn off wifi and data when the screen is off.
Having the charger next to your desk is also a viable option. But rather than plugging it all the time, you should charge when it is needed.
Edit: as discussed elsewhere, you should not try to do full charges (0-100%) as this would not work out well for you at office as well as it it will shorten battery life.
Edit 2: Juice Defender Ultimate
=> Enable Advance profile (Status Tab)
=> Go to Control Tab
=> Enable Mobile Data and Wifi control (first and third option)

wawacoffee said:
About the charging cycle, I read something here: http://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/how_to_prolong_lithium_based_batteries. Basically it shows deep charging cycles has more detrimental effects on the battery capacity. Mypoint was if the battery is cycled deeply everyday. it is under much more stress compared to those working with good signals.
Maybe I worry too much but I feel really bad just to see my phone sitting there wasting a lot of battery.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you try only charging your phone at work? From the options you've listed,leaving it plugged in seems like the best option at work seems like the best option. Assuming you currently only charge your phone once a day, it shouldn't make much difference to switch the charging time to during the work day.This way your peak energy usage will fall on a time when you have unlimited power available and you should have enough battery to go home and come back.

build.prop tweak
There is a build.prop tweak but I can't guarantee that it works.
You can try it out and tell us about it :fingers-crossed:
http://www.s3forums.com/forum/galaxy-s3-hacking-mods/474-list-some-build-prop-tweaks.html
#improve battery under no signal
ro.mot.eri.losalert.delay=1000
The number value is how often to re-connect to the tower. A phone in a poor connection area will
attempt to reconnect all the time, draining the battery. It's in milliseconds so 1000 = 1sec. I wouldn't
exceed 2sec but you already knew you are on your own with this one.

I have the exact problem at work.
My question is if I connect the phone to the charger at work, will the phone runs on the juice from the charger or from the battery? If it runs on the juice from the charger (like laptops), that should have minimum effect to the battery. If it uses the battery and the charger just charges the battery then the battery life will be cut in half (2 charge per day instead of 1 charge per day).

I have terrible signal at work and my Inspire has a small battery. My phone is in power save by lunch. I charge mine during lunch every day and leave it on the charger at night. I generally will not plug it in if I can't charge it all the way up. My original battery is now 18 months old and works as well as it did new. Other Inspire/DHD users have had to replace batteries in less than 12 months, so I don't think my charging cycle variations have harmed it too much.
It only has to last until after the holidays when I can order my N4. Even if I had to try to push it to 2 years, I think I wouldn't worry too much.
Also, by the time it is not under warranty, the batteries will be cheap and will always be easier to change than an iPhone.
Sent using the power of the dark side.

Thanks everyone. Based on the discussion I think I will just use it normally and charge whenever needed. The phone should be my slave not the other way around. I'm not planning to root it, at least not now, so I won't change the build.prop.
I did tried Juice Defender yesterday. It slowed down the battery drain but not very impressively, because it only turns off the data not the entire cellular radio. I installed the app during lunch so you can see the difference from the middle of the day. Google+ was a real ***** because it tried to upload my camera photos with such connection... I turned it off too so it also helped.

"Android OS" should not be this active.
It's possible that you have some background process draining the battery. Try disabling as many services as you can.
If you have Wifi at work try turning it ON. If not then turn your Mobile Data OFF like KyraOfFire suggested.

I get weak signal at my work as well. Thankfully, we have WiFi, so I usually force my phone to use 2g then connect to WiFi. :good:

-Mindroid- said:
"Android OS" should not be this active.
It's possible that you have some background process draining the battery. Try disabling as many services as you can.
If you have Wifi at work try turning it ON. If not then turn your Mobile Data OFF like KyraOfFire suggested.
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I don't have Wifi unfortunately. I will look into Android OS later on.