Database Users

GPS Today

GPS Today
I am very impressed with this program so far. Found it at
http://www.freewareppc.com/download/travel/gpstoday.shtml
Like Google Maps but with a Today Plugin.
Works easy and fast!!
Try it!
Mobo

Sounds cool, I'm trying it now. Here's a link to the full page with the description: http://classic.pocketgear.com/software_detail.asp?id=26396
Application Description
GeoTerrestrial GPSToday is a lightweight today screen plugin that will allow you to utilize the full capabilities of your device.
* It utilizes intelligent algorithms to always maintain and display a fix on your position right on your today screen, without draining the battery.
* Always see your full street address, not just geo-coordinates.
* Currently WORKS in the US only!
* Slide the red icon over to the right to start the GPS in continuous mode, or single-tap the red icon to start the GPS in quick-fix mode.
* GPSToday always shows the distance to the nearest contact from your device's address book.
* Single tap to create a new contact with your current location as the address, or save the current location as an existing contact's address. Imagine not having to type the full street address on the PPC keyboard!
* You will never need the stylus to use GPSToday!
* Speed, heading and satellite data is shown clearly on the today screen whenever the GPS is running.
* In-pocket tap protection. A single tap on the today screen only operates the GPS in quick fix mode. To fully start the GPS in continuous mode requires an iphone like sliding motion, guaranteeing no pocket accidents.
* Single tap from the today screen to access fully draggable online maps!<
* Always see all your address book contacts on the map. Just tap a contact to quickly call/email or send sms.
* Single tap from today screen to quickly do a yahoo local search around your current position and see the results on a live map. Just tap a result to call or open the website.
* High quality Yelp Reviews for local search results!
* Fetch the full street address for any point on the map.
* GPSToday automatically disables data access when your device goes into roaming mode.
* And many more features.
* Best of all, its free!
Update Description
Added Note: Currently Works in the US only!

i'm trying t too

I'm really curious how can it be "without draining the battery" when internet is active and gps is active. If those two features are active then battery must be drain more than normal usage. Hopefully, someone can measure it. If it is true, we can have GPS open all day long without worry about battery drain and in the same time no need to wait for "cold" boot and have instant gps when open tomtom or other gps application.

I had it on my device for the last few days and while it does offer direction, speed, etc it does consume battery life. It stays active and when it hits open sky, begins the search. Several trips home from work monitoring my speed yielded a very warm battery...

I'm really curious how can it be "without draining the battery" when internet is active and gps is active. If those two features are active then battery must be drain more than normal usage. Hopefully, someone can measure it. If it is true, we can have GPS open all day long without worry about battery drain and in the same time no need to wait for "cold" boot and have instant gps when open tomtom or other gps application.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There should be no extra Battery drain with GPS on because GPS doesn't require the transmitter to be turned on like the internet access does.
The receiver in the unit always stays on (so you can get calls) so receiving satellite data doesn't require any more power than normal.
The internet connection DOES drain the battery though as it needs to turn on the transmitter each time it sends data.

i used it this morning and last night.
first off, it leaves the data connection active while it updates your location/address so yeah, it drains the battery. i lost 10% or so in about an hour of constant use. but keep in mind that also had the screen on while i was watching it. next, its a little buggy because, for me, it would stop GPS'ing when the screen shut off and once the screen came back on, it would get the sats for about 20 seconds then stop. i have to go into the map, choose MORE, and chose run GPS to make it stay on. all in all, its a really neat app, i love the speed part.

I just found this the other day and tested it. One problem I had was I had to go to the map to keep my connection open. It kept turning on and off until I clicked on the map and it didn't turn off afterwards. I didn't have to keep it open. I just opened and closed it. It seems to get a pretty quick connection when outside. It seems to be a memory hog I think for what it does. I start at 11 mb with just this on the Today screen using NexVision rom, which I usually started at 15. I like the plugin. I wish it didn't use at much ram as it does.

OK.. I might just be lame but I ran the cab on this.. Did the soft reset and there is nothing installed for it.. In my programs there is no listing for it and on my storage card (where I installed it) there is only a listing for a help file that does not open...
Any ideas??

RevSand said:
OK.. I might just be lame but I ran the cab on this.. Did the soft reset and there is nothing installed for it.. In my programs there is no listing for it and on my storage card (where I installed it) there is only a listing for a help file that does not open...
Any ideas??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
NM... just installed it to the device and it works.. hmmm not a fan of it there but it will have to do...

Asphyx said:
There should be no extra Battery drain with GPS on because GPS doesn't require the transmitter to be turned on like the internet access does.
The receiver in the unit always stays on (so you can get calls) so receiving satellite data doesn't require any more power than normal.
The internet connection DOES drain the battery though as it needs to turn on the transmitter each time it sends data.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you delve a little bit deeper into how GPS receivers work, you'd understand that it actually does draw quite a bit of power. Also, the mogul does not use aGPS, which uses the cellular tower information to help get a faster fix without as much effort on the part of the GPS chip. Your explanation of "The receiver in the unit always stays on (so you can get calls)" doesn't make any sense in this case since the technologies do not rely on each other.
To prove my point:
Turn off the cellular radio on your phone in the comm manager. Turn on Bluetooth. They both use a receiver, however bluetooth uses far less power than the cellular radio. Your battery will last longer. The GPS radio also uses power, perhaps less than cellular, but more than not using it at all.
BOTTOM LINE: Leaving GPS on will eat your battery. Period.

it's a today plug in. if it doesnt show up, reinstall it to your device

This program makes my mogul really slooooooooooow...

hmmm, I was really trying to prevent downloading on device but i'll do it and hope all works.
Update. I now see the gps but my phone is slow as dirt. Cant even click on Start or anything....whenever I receive a new message I get same issue...bout to soft reset again to see if it works a little better....

seems to be running better just needed time to boot up I guess....should we be changing anything on GPS settings? I feel like I just got a new toy man...

Seems like a cool new toy.. I cannot wait to get outta the cave I am working in right now and see how well it really works with a sat signal...

Dishe said:
If you delve a little bit deeper into how GPS receivers work, you'd understand that it actually does draw quite a bit of power. Also, the mogul does not use aGPS, which uses the cellular tower information to help get a faster fix without as much effort on the part of the GPS chip. Your explanation of "The receiver in the unit always stays on (so you can get calls)" doesn't make any sense in this case since the technologies do not rely on each other.
To prove my point:
Turn off the cellular radio on your phone in the comm manager. Turn on Bluetooth. They both use a receiver, however bluetooth uses far less power than the cellular radio. Your battery will last longer. The GPS radio also uses power, perhaps less than cellular, but more than not using it at all.
BOTTOM LINE: Leaving GPS on will eat your battery. Period.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
and besides that, even if the gps doesnt need extra power to recieve GPS data it still has to do something with the data, that means the processor is running, stuff is being written to and from RAM, then displayed on the today screen, all this takes more power that doing nothing
anyway, i ended up having to prime the GPS with google maps to get this thing going, and the today plugin flickers rather annoyingly (and its definately eating the battery, i got it charging now but its charging up a lot slower than usual)

hmm, i have google maps on my laptop for mobile. I will attempt to install later. as far as the gps working, I was driving to work and it showed me how fast I was going and how far i was from work. I didnt even put it to search for work but it must have found the address somehow in my phonebook?
I'm lookin at the program and its linking to an Autozone that is 5,397.7 miles away from me. I know which one they are referring to since i saved that name and number but i'm pretty sure its closer than 5 thousand miles from me...WTF
i'm still trying to learn how to use this...

program seemed REALLY cool.. but while it was installed and looking for a signal it seemed to REALLY lock up my phone... I could not do anything on it for a couple mins. I will keep an eye out for a newer version when it comes out since I did really like the concept of this program...

Thank you
Hi all,
First, its wonderful to see so many positive comments about the software just days after its first release. Now we know we are on the right track!
Secondly guys, apologies for the bugs/issues you faced, or are still facing. This is still version 0.9, so its actually a beta release (not that that's an excuse!). Also please excuse us for the lack of documentation.
About the "without draining the battery" part, I agree the language is somewhat confusing. It was meant to compare with the consumption that would occur if the GPS were actually running all the time. You'll agree that if you start up the GPS at 8:00 in the morning on a typical Phone-PDA and leave it running non-stop along with an active internet connection, it will not last until noon. With GPSToday one can get the same benefit throughout the entire day. There have been some inconsistencies though, with some users reporting almost no perceptible change in battery life, and some being seriously affected.
Please note that tapping the red icon on the today screen is intentionally meant to temporarily start the gps, obtain a fix if available, and then stop. To start the GPS in continuous mode from the today screen itself, drag the red icon over and drop it onto either of the two icons on the right. Once you are done, you must remember to stop it by repeating the same gesture. Also, try this once if the automatic mode is not able to get a fix the first time you go outdoors.
Memory: our tests indicate significantly less than 1MB consumption when the map window is closed, and about 1.5 Mb overall when the map window is being actively used. We agree this is a bit high (but nowhere close to the 4mb one of you is reporting). Some of this is also an offshoot of the fact that it uses up only a tiny amount of storage memory, < 200kB. Nevertheless, expect to see ram usage being reduced significantly in later versions.
Lastly, please fetch the latest version 0.9.1 which fixes some battery life issues and other minor fixes, from Pocketgear at http://classic.pocketgear.com/software_detail.asp?id=26396. Make sure the download filename is GPSToday091.CAB. We recommend a soft reset immediately after installtion. We also promise that from v 1.0 onward soft resets will not be required!.
Thanks!
GT, Inc

turn on what you turn off!

i have noticed with 3rd party and blur widget that switch the gps on and off that (at least on mine) it does not turn on what it turns off.
if you use a widget it will turn off:
use wireless networks
use GPS satellites
enable assisted GPS
but when you turn the GPS back on it only turns on "use GPS satellites".
how do i get it to turn on aGPS as well?

I wish my DX did that, lol. As far as I can tell it still suffers from the GPS bug or whatever it is. (Where after the GPS is used, it won't let the phone sleep properly.) Sometimes I get pretty decent battery life, and other times it gets horrible battery life. I've tried using task managers and not using task managers, but still haven't quite decided what the best setup is. All I know is after going from my highly modded G1 to the stock DX (1.5 or 1.6 for the G1 vs 2.1 for the DX) I am still very much in love with the android OS, and the hardware I'm on now compared to the G1 hardware makes me breathe a sigh of relief.
As for a solution to your problem, you might be able to try the app Tasker? I am trying to hold off on getting it until 2.2 to see how much the official 2.2 release is going to help my phone, but I may just get it anyways for its other handy uses besides helping conserve battery. From what I understand, power management apps can't directly turn on and off certain functions like you are talking about. They can only bring you to the settings screen or perform similar tasks automatically. I'm wondering if 2.2 addresses things like that myself.

Reducing idle battery drain on Froyo ROMS

I've been investigating how to get rid of that pesky background idle battery drain on 2.2. The biggest improvement I've found is from disabling Google location services. With this disabled, my background drain is about 1% per hour. Enabled I see 4-8% per hour. This drain mainly seems to kick in when not connected to wifi AP.
This observation holds true for stock ED01 and sc 2.9.2. GPS still seems to work reasonably well with Google location services disabled, bit it may impact you.
Let me know if anyone else sees the same. Thanks!

Scrappy1 said:
I've been investigating how to get rid of that pesky background idle battery drain on 2.2. The biggest improvement I've found is from disabling Google location services. With this disabled, my background drain is about 1% per hour. Enabled I see 4-8% per hour. This drain mainly seems to kick in when not connected to wifi AP.
This observation holds true for stock ED01 and sc 2.9.2. GPS still seems to work reasonably well with Google location services disabled, bit it may impact you.
Let me know if anyone else sees the same. Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I always leave Google location services on and have NEVER lost 4-8% per hour
Doubtful that it would do that

I can't recall losing that much either.. *shrugs*
Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk

Wouldn't and doesn't make any diff.
Sent from my SCH-I500 using XDA App

chrisp304 said:
Wouldn't and doesn't make any diff.
Sent from my SCH-I500 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lots of people have commented on worse battery life with froyo. If you're one of those, and its idle drain, then try this out.
If not, mind your own buisness. It definately makes a difference for me. Tested / confirmed multiple times!

Google Location Services does not do anything on its own, until an applications calls for it.
Disabling Google Location Services is like draining your gas tank because it has a hole in it.
Sure, it won't leak anymore, but not only can you not use it, you also will have the problem the next time you fill up.
Fix the problem, don't hide it, imo. You have an app thats draining you if turning off Google LBS fixes your issue.

adrynalyne said:
Google Location Services does not do anything on its own, until an applications calls for it.
Disabling Google Location Services is like draining your gas tank because it has a hole in it.
Sure, it won't leak anymore, but not only can you not use it, you also will have the problem the next time you fill up.
Fix the problem, don't hide it, imo. You have an app thats draining you if turning off Google LBS fixes your issue.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ohhhhh.. In yo face @op
Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk

I get about 4%/hr battery loss regardless *shrugs* its acceptable for me...
Tapatalked from my rooted/rom'd/themed Fascinate snacking on FROYO

adrynalyne said:
Google Location Services does not do anything on its own, until an applications calls for it.
Disabling Google Location Services is like draining your gas tank because it has a hole in it.
Sure, it won't leak anymore, but not only can you not use it, you also will have the problem the next time you fill up.
Fix the problem, don't hide it, imo. You have an app thats draining you if turning off Google LBS fixes your issue.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A constructive comment! Thank you. Before disabling Google location services on stock ED01, I killed every background service that would stay killed, and turned off all widgets and updates. I still had the high idle drain. If what you say is true, it appears there is something systemic in stock 2.2 ROMS abusing Google location services.
Watching cpu usage over time with system pannel and battery state didn't show any suspicious usage.
When using sc 2.9.2, I'm fairly certain the idle drain / location services is only an issue when Google latitude is enabled.

This certainly can't be indicative of ed01 roms or everyone would be screaming to high hell about it...I leave Google location services on all the time and am completely fine battery wise

Sounds like you have a app installed that is using the Google Location service installed, sounds like you need to a factory reset and run a day or so with no apps installed, right now I am running on stock self debloated ED01, and I always have GPS and Google location services turned on, and I have gotten the best battery life I have ever seen on this phone. Not sure if you use Google Latitude, but I have seen that cause some drain on phones.
Its one of the big double edged swords of Android, the ability to have true multitasking can really hinder your battery and this is proof, especially when it comes to a service like Google location services.

Just a thought, maybe if you quit checking your battery usage so much, it might get better.

heffzilla said:
Just a thought, maybe if you quit checking your battery usage so much, it might get better.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Come on now, dudes having a problem and trying to help. Just because he is wrong doesn't mean the thread has to go this direction. Instead perhaps it can be used top help him find the true cause, aswell as any one else with similar findings.
Oh and only quoted you cause I thought it was pretty damn funny.

After more testing, I have some interresting findings.
The idle drain I described earlier along with dependence on Google location services holds true while I'm at work. This is a location where I get 0-1 bars of cell signal, and android reports about 60% time without signal. When I'm at home and in good signal area, I can leave Google location services on all the time without high idle drain. Now I know why most people weren't agreeing with my observation.
Now then, to the root of my problem when I'm at work. I know everyone says Google location services is mostly passive and only consumes power when an app is polling for location. However, I'm starting to wonder if this is true for the cell tower portion of location services. Could android be doing some extra background tracking of towers when location services enabled? Or could the phone radio be put in a more aggressive "find a freeking tower at all costs" mode? My experiments at low signal level would seem to suggest so.
Anyone with info or similar test results please let me know. Thanks!

heffzilla said:
Just a thought, maybe if you quit checking your battery usage so much, it might get better.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
maybe if you stopped checking xda so much our threads may get better...just a thought.

Do you have a WiFi connection when at work (and it setup!), or are you using 3G only? If so, that could be your cause. Google Location Services periodically does send data to Google (read the agreement!), so if it's trying to send off data when you've got pretty much no connection, it could very well explain why it'd be causing such a huge drain on your battery (causing the radio to power up to full power, and continually fail to send your location data off, forcing retries).

KitsuneKnight said:
Do you have a WiFi connection when at work (and it setup!), or are you using 3G only? If so, that could be your cause. Google Location Services periodically does send data to Google (read the agreement!), so if it's trying to send off data when you've got pretty much no connection, it could very well explain why it'd be causing such a huge drain on your battery (causing the radio to power up to full power, and continually fail to send your location data off, forcing retries).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This.
Sent from my SCH-I500 using XDA App

KitsuneKnight said:
Do you have a WiFi connection when at work (and it setup!), or are you using 3G only? If so, that could be your cause. Google Location Services periodically does send data to Google (read the agreement!), so if it's trying to send off data when you've got pretty much no connection, it could very well explain why it'd be causing such a huge drain on your battery (causing the radio to power up to full power, and continually fail to send your location data off, forcing retries).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yea, I suppose that's possible. I don't have a wifi connection at work currently. At home I do have wifi, but my wifi sleep policy is set for screen off. To test I did disable wifi alltogether at both home and work, and it doesn't change my idle drain issue. The theory that Google location services is desperately trying to send data over a partially working cell connection does make some sense.

What I've found so far with ed01 froyo has been vastly improved in most regards including battery. My idle drain is almost nonexistant with the comm.rom 1.2 & nemesis' 1.3 kernel with uv/oc to 1.3ghz. It only eats battery when I'm actively using it & there it is more aggressive than eclair depending on what I'm doing. I have google services & standalone gps always on & never use wifi only 3g and easily get 16+ hrs on a charge.
Sent from my SCH-I500 using XDA App

After upgrading to Evilfascinate 3.x, I found if I left my WiFi on and my 3g my battery would barely make it through the day... Now I only turn them on when needed and I am running a couple of days before I put it back on the Charger...
I have done the same with GPS, only turn it on when I need to know where I am or where I am heading...

[Q] Android location services and GPS

Hi guys, I know that some people say to disable location services and/or GPS because they drain the battery (under Android system in battery usage). I just want to clarify. I came from an iPhone, and on the iPhone I leave location and GPS on, but as long as the app is closed, the GPS will NOT run (just that its functionality remain on) so there is no drain.
Is this the same on Android? Is it okay to leave them on but not run any location-based apps?

Bump...

It'll constantly bounce the GPS signal AFAIK, so will use it up. buuuut, on 4.4.2, you can edit your location preferences GPS accuracy etc and it tells you battery use on it. However I believe it's on perma unless you disable it totally

I wouldn't be so sure. I have GPS, WIFI, BT and all other crap 24/7 and I loose about 3% charge over about 7hrs sleep, personally I don't think it's worth bothering or lifting my finger to shut it off. Also when I drive I see my correct location on the map, after screen goes off and I need to check again few min later, the map shows my last location and it takes few seconds to update to new one. If it was working with screen off it should have been updated right away, no? At least it's working in some low power mode. I think what really kills the battery is all those push services like e-mail etc, especially when not set properly, but the best way is to test yourself.

fterh said:
Hi guys, I know that some people say to disable location services and/or GPS because they drain the battery (under Android system in battery usage). I just want to clarify. I came from an iPhone, and on the iPhone I leave location and GPS on, but as long as the app is closed, the GPS will NOT run (just that its functionality remain on) so there is no drain.
Is this the same on Android? Is it okay to leave them on but not run any location-based apps?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Technically 100% the same.
However for practical reasons things are not quite the same - as long as you have many, many apps and your data (WiFi and/or Mobile) active certain apps will try to connect from time-to-time, and some will try to get a location. Unfortunately Google Services is one of those, and an older version of that was generating a really huge amount of power consumption. The problem is reported to be a lot better now but I can not confirm since I am anyway keeping my data connections OFF for most of the time when I am not really using those.

xclub_101 said:
Technically 100% the same.
However for practical reasons things are not quite the same - as long as you have many, many apps and your data (WiFi and/or Mobile) active certain apps will try to connect from time-to-time, and some will try to get a location. Unfortunately Google Services is one of those, and an older version of that was generating a really huge amount of power consumption. The problem is reported to be a lot better now but I can not confirm since I am anyway keeping my data connections OFF for most of the time when I am not really using those.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I guess this is one of the few things that iOS is better than Android at - managing how apps run. I use Greenify to freeze inactive apps, but the limitation is that I will not receive push notifications. On iOS apps are frozen yet push notifications are functional (that's ironically the downside of iOS too - no true multitasking). I don't disable my data connections because I want my push notifications, but I do turn off GPS. :/

fterh said:
I guess this is one of the few things that iOS is better than Android at - managing how apps run.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, when coming from a situation when there was absolutely no multitasking at all (and that was successfully sold as a "feature" for quite some time) I can really see that being easier
fterh said:
I use Greenify to freeze inactive apps, but the limitation is that I will not receive push notifications.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think the latest Greenify PRO version has something to improve that too. But I will have to test a lot more to see the real limits of that.

[Solved]Samsung Galaxy S5 battery drain so instantly!

Battery Saving Tips
1. Keeping mobile data (i.e., 4G or 3G) or wifi on all of the time uses battery. Ask yourself if you really need to be notified in real time about every new email, Facebook post, or tweet. If it isn't that important, then keep mobile data and wifi off until you really need it. Although most devices make it easy to toggle wifi off and on, it's a little more inconvenient to toggle mobile data with the stock controls. I like Power Toggles, which is very customizable and easy to use; another popular choice is Widgetsoid.
2. The biggest power drain is usually from the screen. The longer it's on and the brighter it is, the faster your battery drains. Adjust your screen timeout so that it turns off after 30-60 seconds of idle. Turn the brightness down to 50% or less, which is usually more than enough for indoor lighting. Automatic brightness may or may not help save battery--some think that constant sensing and screen adjustment may actually contribute to battery use.
3. Many apps (e.g., Facebook) by default will try to refresh their data on the web at certain intervals. In order to do so, they have to partially wake the device up from sleep, then try to access the web, and then refresh data, all of which uses battery. If you don't need realtime updates, you can typically change to manual refresh in the app's Settings, which prevents the app from waking up the device. For Facebook, all you need to do when you open the app is just swipe down, and your newsfeed will manually refresh to what's current.
4. Google Currents is notorious for being a memory and battery hog. Many people have reported that battery life improved significantly after changing its refresh setting to manual and/or disabling Google Currents completely. (Update 7/2014: Google Currents has since been replaced by Google Play Newsstand, which manages memory much more efficiently, without the same battery drain.)
5. Along the same lines, consider turning off the device's Background Sync. You can find the switch to turn it on or off under Settings/Accounts/Google, but it's easier to use the stock Power Control toggle or the better Power Toggles or Widgetsoid apps. Turning off Background Sync means the device is spending less time and energy syncing your Google account. If Background Sync is off, you can always manually refresh any of the Google apps within their respective menus.
6. Some apps partially wake a device up from sleep (called a "wake lock") numerous times a day to do things like trying to check the web for data updates as well as reporting location data. Install an app to detect wake locks like Wake Lock Detector. Let it run for the better part of a day, then open it and find out what apps are responsible for the most wake locks. (Update 7/2014: KitKat no longer allows apps like this to report wakelocks unless your rooted.)
7. #6 is how I discovered that Google Maps was burning up a fair amount of battery due to its Location Reporting (previously for Latitude, now used for Google+). If Location Reporting is turned on, then Maps causes very frequent wake locks to check location and report it. I don't think Latitude was that popular--I certainly didn't use it, because I don't really want other people to know exactly where I am, so I turn off Location Reporting by opening Maps, tapping Settings/Google Location Settings, and turning off Location Reporting. Note that this does not affect the ability of your apps to use your location to refine searches, for example.
8. Widgets are definitely a cool feature that makes Android unique, but some of them also contribute to battery drain--specifically the ones that need to access the web to update their information (think weather widgets). Review your widget use and remove the ones you really don't use.
9. Live wallpapers, another feature that distinguishes Android, can also use up power like crazy--typically the ones that are very graphics/animation intensive, or the ones that also access the web for information like weather. Use static wallpapers instead, but if they're too boring.
10. Vibrate uses a lot of power. Do you really need your phone to ring and vibrate at the same time? Do you really need the haptic feedback when you're typing (especially if you're using Swype-style gesture typing)? Turn off vibrate.
11. GPS is another big power-sucker. For most location-based apps, using Google Location Services (based on the wifi hotspot's MAC address or by triangulating your nearest cell towers) is enough, since it generally locates you accurately within about 100 meters. Use GPS only if you need a more precise location, like if you're driving and using Navigation. Otherwise, turn off GPS by changing the setting to "Battery Saving."
12. You never know what kinds of processes the bloatware on your device might be responsible for, but they might be contributing to battery use as well. Go to Settings/Apps/All Apps, go through the list, and disable any bloatware apps that you don't need. Be cautious that you don't disable an important system app--if you aren't sure, just post a question in one of the AC Forums, and someone is bound to know.
13. Understand how Android utilizes RAM, and resist the urge to use task killers. To understand how things work, read this article by the esteemed Jerry Hildenbrand here, as well as this guide by Ambassador extraordinaire Golfdriver97. Apps that you kill manually will often restart on their own, which in itself takes a little bit of CPU and battery power--so if it's happening hundreds of times a day, it can become significant. The main reason to use a task killer is if there is some runaway process that you know is bogging the system down and won't shut down on its own. It might still restart on its own--if the cycle keeps happening, it's probably a problem with the app, which should be uninstalled or disabled.
14. Poor cell reception kills battery, because the radio is working overtime to try to establish the connection. If you know you're going to be in an area of poor reception for a while, consider turning on Airplane Mode to temporarily shut off your cell radio. You can get some idea of how much time you're spending in an area of poor signal by going to Settings/Battery, tapping Cell Standby (if it's there), and seeing if it says how much time without signal there was.
15. If none of the above tips are helping, then try wiping the cache partition, which is the portion of memory where Android stores a lot of temporary data. It's a little different from clearing the cache of individual apps, because the cache partition also stores a lot of temporary data used by the system. You need to access your device's recovery menu in order to wipe the cache partition, and this process varies with the device, so the best way to learn how to do it is to do a web search for "wipe cache partition [your device name]."

Not really a fan of threads like this, basically they say turn the cool features of your phone off to save it's battery? Yes I still read them in case someone comes up with something interesting or innovative but generally all the same don't use some of the best features of your phone.
We're not iPhone users buy spare battery.
Sent from my SM-G900F using XDA Free mobile app

Try a custom kernel

So is there a fix for battery drain? i keep reading all these threads about basically turning off everything no your phone. my problem is i used to have everything on my phone on and still was a good 50% battery life left at the end of the day. this was with heavy use as well. a lot internet surfing, youtube, gaming, location was turned on. I was loving my battery life. Now, seemingly over night my battery is horrible. i cannot make it to the end of the day with almost no use, i now have to charge it half way through the day to get it to last me until 9 oclock or so. my battery is now at 70-80% after a couple hours with absolutely no use. any idea or fix for what has caused this sudden drain of my battery?

Personally I use apps that close apps that automatically (autorun pro is my favourite) start block ad's etc I get a good days usage from mine.
It's a compromise but I carry a spare battery as well
Sent from my SM-G900F using XDA Free mobile app

So I found out my issue was my email app. I cleared the data on it and now I'm back to having a 50% battery left at the end of a day with heavy use.
---------- Post added at 08:36 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:28 PM ----------
So I found out my issue was my email app. I cleared the data on it and now I'm back to having a 50% battery left at the end of a day with heavy use.

Turning off all features that make a phone "smart" is like buying a luxury Mercedes and ignore all those functions and use it as if it's a cheap Chinese car! If I want to use my phone just for SMS and Call why not buy a Nokia 1100 and buy a tablet to check my emails, viber and all other apps!
I bought a Galaxy S5 to utilize those functions. Anyway, previously my phone used to drain its battery in 6 hours! by adjusting my setting to the following I could increase the battery life to 14 hours! (I know it is still low but way better than 6 hours!)
1. Decrease the BRIGHTNESS as low as possible. For casual use we do not need a bright screen! whenever you wanna check an important photo you may increase the brightness temporary. (only by this you can have extra 2 hours or more)
2. Turn off unnecessary syncs, I do not need to have my contacts synced with 10 servers! Allow your phone to sync them with only one account ( I did it for Google only and turned off Samsung acc. dropbox, ChatOn and ...)
3. Do not add so many email accounts to your phone! Just add those you use frequently ( I have 5 emails and only 2 of them are vital for me!)
4. Set your location to use wifi only, and turn your GPS on only when you want to have a turn-by-turn navigation ( built in GPS can drain you battery in less than 1 hour!)
5. Turn off Push notifications for Games. ( you do not miss anything if you attend to your games 1 hour late!)
6. Uninstall those communication apps that are not necessary, you do not need to have BBM, Viber, Line, Whatsapp, Telegram, Hulu, Wechat and ... Keep those that you use frequently (In my case I kept Viber and Whatsapp only)
7. Uninstall any Anti-virus app! The likelihood of getting malware or virus if you install apps from Google Store is almost zero, so you only allocate some RAM to an useless app for doing nothing! If you wanna have any I recommend "360 Security" as I learned it uses only 6 mb of RAM and you can turn off real time protection.
By doing the above things I could get 8 hours extra from my phone!

It also a good idea to check which apps 'Autorun' when your phone restarts. SD Maid (maybe PRO version) has an AppControl option that lets you toggle autorun on or off.