Database Users

[Discussion] Talking about battery life with Android

Hi All,
I've test all of Android builds with lastest kernels but Android on hd2 still eats battery like a T-Rex
My phone survival time not longer than 6 hours on GPRS network.
How about yours?

Come on man, I'm fairly new here but I'm comfortable enough to say... You have to have seen that there are several threads not only on this same topic, but even on how to improve your battery life with Android.

I've try all of these tips not work for me How is yours?

Make sure to turn down the brightness of your screen. There is a thread not far from this one titled "how to improve battery life on Android HD2." Read that. Also put your phone on a charger any time you're near one: desk, car, couch, etc. Disable some of the always on widgets, maybe don't sync social networks or minimize the frequency they sync... the list could go on.
The fact of the matter is these are not final builds and are running from the SD card. A super long battery life isn't to be expected. Follow some if the steps above, read the how-to thread, and give it a shot.
Don't forget to thank the devs who put this together.
Sent from my HTC Desire using XDA App

With SetCPU running and set up properly, after a day of normal use (around 16 hours) on Shub's Cyanogen's 1.1 build I have around 15% battery left. So clearly you have something setup wrong to be only getting 6 hours. My battery life is now no worse than it was on Windows Mobile.

yeah i get over 20 hours

I got 20 hours with heavyish use for 10 hours, and 10 hours no use.
Which is about the same as i'd get with just winmo.
I could easily use this build for my day to day phone

trueside said:
I've try all of these tips not work for me How is yours?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If I'm using the phone heavily, 12-15 hours. I have no idea how much idle time I would get as my phone is rarely idle as I use it for work constantly... And this is without using SetCPU or any of the battery life tips/tricks honestly. Keep in mind I use the T-Mobile "extended battery" case which recharges my battery with the flip of a switch on my case but I don't ever let it get below 20%.

Hmm I see. I'm starting to thing my battery problem doesn't about Android Builds maybe my SD cards needs a lot of power to work?? What is your android setup? Which build which zimage?

jjones1983 said:
If I'm using the phone heavily, 12-15 hours. I have no idea how much idle time I would get as my phone is rarely idle as I use it for work constantly... And this is without using SetCPU or any of the battery life tips/tricks honestly. Keep in mind I use the T-Mobile "extended battery" case which recharges my battery with the flip of a switch on my case but I don't ever let it get below 20%.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
um...that's not a really good comparison.
that's like saying "I can get 1000 miles on one fill up, but I have two tanks and just flip the switch for the second tank".
What do you get with out using the extended battery case?

HotShotAzn said:
um...that's not a really good comparison.
that's like saying "I can get 1000 miles on one fill up, but I have two tanks and just flip the switch for the second tank".
What do you get with out using the extended battery case?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry, I didn't make that clear. I get 12-15 hours without having to flip on my case. I usually switch it on at around 20%, which is why I said I never let it go below 20%...
Edit: I forgot he asked me which build and zImage as well.
MattC Froyo RC 1.4, 08/03 zImage.

battery "life" is not the main issue here.
in my opinion, the main issue is power management. that causes short battery life combined with high battery temperature.
can the devs say the reason(s) why is the power management that bad? that is the main issue with android builds right now, once it's solved, android can be a true main OS for everyday use.

trueside said:
Hmm I see. I'm starting to thing my battery problem doesn't about Android Builds maybe my SD cards needs a lot of power to work?? What is your android setup? Which build which zimage?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i zimage is out yesterday

victorbd said:
i zimage is out yesterday
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
where do you see a new zimage?
http://cotulla.pp.ru/leo/Android/
just checked and there's none for Aug5?

Other than using the latest zimage and SetCPU to force autoscaling CPU and Conservative CPU Governor, I've noticed Darkstone's vanilla froyo v1 build gives pretty good battery life (vs say, the CM RC1 build) by default.
I've also noticed that I get great standby battery consumption if I ensure that S2U2 is running in the WM background (as iLock2.exe) with the setting "Don't Suspend Power" unchecked in S2U2 options before booting into Android.
On a 3G network with a idle data connection, the (standard HTC) battery only drops 10% for a 10-11 hour standby time.

jjones1983 said:
Sorry, I didn't make that clear. I get 12-15 hours without having to flip on my case. I usually switch it on at around 20%, which is why I said I never let it go below 20%...
Edit: I forgot he asked me which build and zImage as well.
MattC Froyo RC 1.4, 08/03 zImage.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You get 12 hours with heavy use? Mind telling us what Radio/Rom you are using? What other settings?
I managed to get to 8.5% per hour drain with normal use.
Of course, I never got better than that with WM anyways...

lol i get about 31 to32 hrs (1hrs mp3 and 30min internet) with light use

I must admit my android battery issues were solved with setcpu and screen brightness tweak.
Only funny thing is that with my setcpu profiles identical between Mattc-froyo and Shub-cyanogen, there is a short delay in the latter's response to a key press once screen is off and device locked. No delay on Mattc.....

Android on hd2 battery life

Hey guys. I'm a bit new to this, and I have a few questions. 1. Does having a faster microsdcard worsen the battery life of android running on an hd2? 2. With set CPU clocked back to 576 MHz Max 245 min, and all the settings toned back, I barely make it through a days use on my nexus one 2.2 build. Is this normal? Does battery vary greatly from build to build? Is there a build known for good battery life?
Sent from my Hd2 using XDA App

Android builds will always use much more power than WinMo, reverse engineering the drivers is not ideal nor efficient. Some builds use less power than others, best try a few with the current widget installed.
This is a thread on SD card power, I'm not sure it makes a huge difference. If you check the power usage app you will the OS is using 2 or 3 times the power that the screen is - this isn't good for battery life.

Hi lads, iam new to this myself I got my hd2 about 2 weeks ago and havnt had out of my hand since.. the only changes I have made was download hspl3 & flash radio 2.14 and I am currently running darkstones froyo 2.2 and I love it.. the only prob I had for my self was battery it was eating it.. when screen was off I was getting around 168ma and using phone was was up to about 600ma.. after about a week of searching I found out a few things and now I get a full day wit heavy usage. I downloaded setcpu,advanced task killer,green power free,changed a few settings on my phone and now I have a battery tats just as good as running WM.. ill get the exact settings up for u later if u want... hope it helps

after doing a task29, i loaded "vbn reloaded" (minimal winmo rom) ;
use EBL android loader and load mdeejay EvoSense 2.0 revolution ;
using "currentwidget" my battery usage is only 7mA idle with four email
accounts getting updated in the background.
Been using android as the (only) daily OS
z
ps just did a rm /data/system/batterystats.bin
need to see if it charges to "100%"
if only battery usage GOES DOWN WHILE ACTUALLY USING ANDROID,
that would be penultimate
(ultimate obviously is NAND boot )

skimask2006 said:
Hi lads, iam new to this myself I got my hd2 about 2 weeks ago and havnt had out of my hand since.. the only changes I have made was download hspl3 & flash radio 2.14 and I am currently running darkstones froyo 2.2 and I love it.. the only prob I had for my self was battery it was eating it.. when screen was off I was getting around 168ma and using phone was was up to about 600ma.. after about a week of searching I found out a few things and now I get a full day wit heavy usage. I downloaded setcpu,advanced task killer,green power free,changed a few settings on my phone and now I have a battery tats just as good as running WM.. ill get the exact settings up for u later if u want... hope it helps
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would love to know what your settings are, after 3 hours lite use i lost 45% battery, my gps is off and background update is also off....

2.12.50.xxxx radio.img
it has a lot to do with radi youre using, i found this one really good, have good bttery life, 3g, hdspa, wifi, gps, mms and all working really good...

Hello to all, iam using the android shubcraft version on my hd2 and i cant charge my device 100%. It stops on 85%. Did you guys have an idea??
Sent from my HTC HD2 using XDA App

I've been testing 2 different batteries fully charged with phone off. Using current widget they get the same readings about 7ma with screen off and average 200 on. One battery drains at about twice the rate of the other. Im pretty sure one is defective. I've cycled both to make sure. Also running on wm I get the same experience. If your lucky enough to catch a battery problem in the first 3 months of purchase from t-mobile they may send you another like they did for me.
Sent from my HTC HD2 using XDA App

heres a good thread on conditioning the battery
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=827355
as far as sd card speed, a faster card will use less system rescources due to faster read/write speeds, ie: the cpu is under less load for a shorter period of time.
faster io performance = better battery life.
side note, underclocking to far will hurt battery life. this is due to it takeing longer to complete tasks. so if your like me and do a lot of turn the screen on, check some thing , turn it off, then the longer the screen's on the more your draining it.

[Q] Battery drain

I recently monitor my battery drain on MDJ Revolution HD 2.2 and want to check with you guys if they seems ok to you?
When phone has no applications running in background, freshly after boot it uses 3-5mA with peaks from time to time up to 150mA, this means that it consumes around 1% of battery per hour.
When phone has few applications running in background (more real scenario) it uses 5-7mA with peaks up to 250mA, this means it starts to consume around 2% of battery per hour.
I have never measured those values under WM but I can recall that phone used 5% over night (7hrs), it is less then NAND build I’m currently using.
Is this normal for Android to consume more power then WM?
Will battery format and delete of batterstat.bin help? If yes, can some help me with finding it? I am using Astro File Manager but if I go to folder /data/ it says it is empty, do I need to delete the file using terminal?
Thanks

I can agree with your findings: my drainage also seems to be like yours. But there's one strange thing I can't follow. After receiving a call or calling, my drainage increases from 3-5mA up to ~60mA in standby?! Does anyone know a solution therefor? I've already compared the processes running before and after calling and couldn't find any irregularities...

katalog said:
I can agree with your findings: my drainage also seems to be like yours. But there's one strange thing I can't follow. After receiving a call or calling, my drainage increases from 3-5mA up to ~60mA in standby?! Does anyone know a solution therefor? I've already compared the processes running before and after calling and couldn't find any irregularities...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
do you mean it rises to 60mA and stays at this level all the time?

grabson79 said:
do you mean it rises to 60mA and stays at this level all the time?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
right. after calling battery drainage rises from 3-5 mA to 60-70mA and stays at this level.

katalog said:
right. after calling battery drainage rises from 3-5 mA to 60-70mA and stays at this level.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
that is a kwon issue fixed on most new kernel....
What build are you using?

fyase said:
that is a kwon issue fixed on most new kernel....
What build are you using?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
core droid evo v0.8

i have this problem on MDJ's CyanogenMod 7 v. 1.8, too.
on older builds i had it, too.
tested a few things, but nothing worked for me.

as said above the drainage after calls is fixed in every new nand build. so end of thread i would say

I was on MDJ Revolution HD and haven’t got any issues with battery drain after calls.
Now moved to MDJ Super Light 1.0 which has lower battery drain then HD, around 3mA in standby almost all the time, regardless any applications running in background.
That is not bad but still higher than WM roms

As i said in my post. I have this problem with newest mdj build, too. So, for me this thread could be usefull
Sent from my HTC HD2 using XDA App

ive read that Android as an OS aint as power friendly as others. My friends Desire HD only just about lasts him a day on average use. My battery lasts just as long as his does and his is a native Android phone so im pretty, happy although it did last longer in Winmo.
Ricey

ricey1986 said:
ive read that Android as an OS aint as power friendly as others. My friends Desire HD only just about lasts him a day on average use. My battery lasts just as long as his does and his is a native Android phone so im pretty, happy although it did last longer in Winmo.
Ricey
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
if that is the way it is then we need to accept it Android is definately worth it

now i changed to darkstone superRAM sense v0.1 and do not have anymore problems with higher battery drainage after calling - continuos at 3-5mA. perfect! really seems to depend on kernel...

vensterbank said:
as said above the drainage after calls is fixed in every new nand build. so end of thread i would say
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, it is not. Try MarkinuX CM 6.1.. gives me that f****n drain too

JanssoN said:
No, it is not. Try MarkinuX CM 6.1.. gives me that f****n drain too
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oke, ill take it back , most new build have fixed the problem. Try the Rom I'm using, it has this problem fixed. And the Rom is 90% stock desire. I highly recommend it. Also, maybe you don't have the correct radio? But then again I'm not a pro just a guy who likes to read forums :3
Sent from my HTC HD2 using XDA App

With Clean Desire v.0.3.1 I have horrible battery life. It's like stuck at the 60mA, think it's that call bug or something similar. If you study usage history, cell standy is consuming like 33% of the battery, and phone inactive 32%, the display is at 2%
There is something rotten in the kernel. Turning of GPS, Wifi hell, what ever, does nothing to improve it.

siggehandf said:
With Clean Desire v.0.3.1 I have horrible battery life. It's like stuck at the 60mA, think it's that call bug or something similar. If you study usage history, cell standy is consuming like 33% of the battery, and phone inactive 32%, the display is at 2%
There is something rotten in the kernel. Turning of GPS, Wifi hell, what ever, does nothing to improve it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is why I stuck to the v0,2 most stable for me 3-5 ma with data on. And no problems as far worth noticing. Do make sure you have the best radio, I have 2.15.50, and seems to be best for all nands I've tried.
Sent from my HTC HD2 using XDA App

vensterbank said:
That is why I stuck to the v0,2 most stable for me 3-5 ma with data on. And no problems as far worth noticing. Do make sure you have the best radio, I have 2.15.50, and seems to be best for all nands I've tried.
Sent from my HTC HD2 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you confirm that there's no notification bug on v0.2? I switched from DFT because PRJ supposedly had it fixed but I'm using v0.3.1 and I still have the same thing, if a notification remains Unread it drains 60mA until it's Read --- is this not the case for v0.2?

hd2k10 said:
Can you confirm that there's no notification bug on v0.2? I switched from DFT because PRJ supposedly had it fixed but I'm using v0.3.1 and I still have the same thing, if a notification remains Unread it drains 60mA until it's Read --- is this not the case for v0.2?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i only know that the spike of 60ma after calls had been fixed. i didnt noticed the unread notification spike (cauze I have my phone on me 24/7) so i will read the notification within 3mins orso. so i have no issue with that.
but the battery drain is really good it this build. for me personal, no errors at all. only the unlockscreen sometimes freezes but then u wait 3 secs and its good again. but every hd2 is slightly different from eachother so you might have an other experience.
:3 but ill still recommend the prj clean rom

vensterbank said:
i only know that the spike of 60ma after calls had been fixed. i didnt noticed the unread notification spike (cauze I have my phone on me 24/7) so i will read the notification within 3mins orso. so i have no issue with that.
but the battery drain is really good it this build. for me personal, no errors at all. only the unlockscreen sometimes freezes but then u wait 3 secs and its good again. but every hd2 is slightly different from eachother so you might have an other experience.
:3 but ill still recommend the prj clean rom
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's a great rom, it's DFT without the bloatware and I think purely Stock Roms are the best, unfortunately...I get the 60mA bug and it drives me crazy lol. I'm a extremely heavy user and the extended battery drain makes my days that much shorter =P

Best rom for battery life?

I have been bouncing around from rom to rom trying to figure out which has the best battery life, its too hard to tell. I know that htc sense roms killed my battery off faster, but no matter what it tends to die off much quicker than it did before I put android on it in the first place. Anybody have any suggestions? Thanks

Iamgpc gingerbread is great as long as Bt is turned off when not in use.
Sent from my Nexus One using XDA App

I agree with audioslim. Stable, clean, everything works.
Here's the thread:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=909096

I did the same as you, rom hopping...
But everytime i came back to where i am now:
AF403 Desire HD
This is a great rom for your battery.
But as in any rom you should think about what you wanna sync and when.
I use LauncherPro instead of Sense, and I think it better then Sense.

Thanks, so basically 2.2 rom's without sense? And does apps2sd or ext4 have any effect on battery life?
Sent from my HTC HD2 using XDA App

One suggestion for people that are concerned with battery life...
I recently did an experiment of sorts and turned off 3G on my phone. I found that I went from 1 day per full charge to 3 days per charge. I obviously didn't have updates from the email app, twitter, facebook etc., but I just turned 3G on every now and then and updated everything manually. I've since started leaving 3G off whenever I don't need it and generally get 2 days use out of a full charge.
Obviously this won't suit everyone, but if turning off 3G when you don't need it is an option for you then you will definitely experience a much better battery life!

rrodxbox360repair said:
Thanks, so basically 2.2 rom's without sense? And does apps2sd or ext4 have any effect on battery life?
Sent from my HTC HD2 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For best battery, don't use Sense.
For best internal memory use ext4, this is better then apps2sd.
This does not realy effect your battey

johncmolyneux said:
One suggestion for people that are concerned with battery life...
I recently did an experiment of sorts and turned off 3G on my phone. I found that I went from 1 day per full charge to 3 days per charge. I obviously didn't have updates from the email app, twitter, facebook etc., but I just turned 3G on every now and then and updated everything manually. I've since started leaving 3G off whenever I don't need it and generally get 2 days use out of a full charge.
Obviously this won't suit everyone, but if turning off 3G when you don't need it is an option for you then you will definitely experience a much better battery life!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's what i mentiont in my first post here.
Forgot about GPS, I never have this on, only when nessesary.
My facebook, email and Google sync every hour, the rest once a day.
When i go to bed, I have about 25% left

rrodxbox360repair said:
I have been bouncing around from rom to rom trying to figure out which has the best battery life, its too hard to tell. I know that htc sense roms killed my battery off faster, but no matter what it tends to die off much quicker than it did before I put android on it in the first place. Anybody have any suggestions? Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I really love this build "DL DesireZ v3.3 final][DL Data2SD/Ext4 v2.3][Nand/SD/MAGLAR]"
can be found here http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=913597
It's a NAND version but there is SD version as well.. (nand v. download link can be found on page 192 because the author didn't update the post yet)
For me it's perfect. The battery life lasts for a complete day. I listen to music about 2-2.5 hours, use internet for about 20-30 min a day and make a few calls. But I always turn internet off when I don't use it it really saves battery (i think it works for any build). Also 1 day I listened to music for 6 hours, used internet for +-30 mins and there was still 37%. I was really impressed!

Decent battery life
Currently I'm using- MDJ's CyanogenMod 7 v. 2.6 and my way is to switch off data. I'm switching on whenever I need. With regular use of data( switch on/off) my battery last for almost three days.

controlpete said:
Currently I'm using- MDJ's CyanogenMod 7 v. 2.6 and my way is to switch off data. I'm switching on whenever I need. With regular use of data( switch on/off) my battery last for almost three days.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you serious? I mean I haven't tried CyanogenMod 7 ROM but what I remember back to stock WM6.5 it was easily last for 1 day for me with normal use.. And now I have the same results on Android (desirez v3.3 rom), I'm very satisfied with that. However 3 days it's kind of hard to believe or I'm wrong? Anyway, how much do you use your phone during the day?

timoshina said:
I really love this build "DL DesireZ v3.3 final][DL Data2SD/Ext4 v2.3][Nand/SD/MAGLAR]"
can be found here http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=913597
It's a NAND version but there is SD version as well.. (nand v. download link can be found on page 192 because the author didn't update the post yet)
For me it's perfect. The battery life lasts for a complete day. I listen to music about 2-2.5 hours, use internet for about 20-30 min a day and make a few calls. But I always turn internet off when I don't use it it really saves battery (i think it works for any build). Also 1 day I listened to music for 6 hours, used internet for +-30 mins and there was still 37%. I was really impressed!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, DL DESIREZ 3.3 is the best. 2 days for me

[q] help!!!! How do increase my battery life while running android?

hello,
i have an hd2 and i like running android from my SD card on it but i cant get a full days use out of it without it dying.can someone please help im running android 2.2.
and yes i use task killers doesn't help much. thanks

There are several guides out there detailing how to increase your battery life. Many of them tell you not to use a task killer as they actually increase battery usage as it unnecessarily kills tasks that aren't draining power at the time. The most obvious ways are to shut off WiFi, GPS, and Data when they're not being used. After that, conditioning your battery would be the next thing to try.
Please use the search function next time

plenty of info on this subject, no need for new topic.

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=11420332&postcount=4
Try that and see if it helps

Calibrate your battery. I'm easily getting a day and a half out of my phone with heavy usage.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=918989&highlight=battery+calibration

lukey-windy said:
Calibrate your battery. I'm easily getting a day and a half out of my phone with heavy usage.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=918989&highlight=battery+calibration
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
?????????????? explain heavy usage pls
Sent from my HD2 using XDA App

chrisgto4 said:
?????????????? explain heavy usage pls
Sent from my HD2 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This info is everywhere guys. Try looking at my post here -
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=10846804&postcount=5
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App

If you want to get the longest amount of time you can with your battery on android, leave it on standby. Easy as that. You'll get like a week or more, brilliant aint it? :3

Kailkti said:
If you want to get the longest amount of time you can with your battery on android, leave it on standby. Easy as that. You'll get like a week or more, brilliant aint it? :3
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you're willing to do that then why not just turn the device off completely?
Sent from my HTC Inspire

Hey he wanted to know how to get the longest amount of time while running android. Just answering for him. :3

Scabes24 said:
If you're willing to do that then why not just turn the device off completely?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Cause in standby you can still receive calls ?
You can be waked-up by the alarm ?
Your phone can be very useful and much needed even if you leave it on standby almost all the time
The one obvious and often overlooked battery consumer is simply the screen.
It drains much more than the Wifi, 3G, GPS etc. Thus set the brightness as low as possible, and let it timeout quickly.

wifi
where you can, use wifi as much as possible as this apparently slows down the drain compared to using your data

alaindev said:
Cause in standby you can still receive calls ?
You can be waked-up by the alarm ?
Your phone can be very useful and much needed even if you leave it on standby almost all the time
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Then why own an hd2? You would have those abilities with a flip phone
Ok this is really goin off topic now so lets just leave it to the info provided elready.
Sent from my HTC Inspire

Ever tought about going NAND instead of a SD version?
If u want best battery life and good speed/everything NAND is the way to go.
I can imagen u want to stay with WinMO, but if u dont .. GoGoGo!
When NAND or even RAM wasnt released i also used SD, but this gives a big battery drain, cause your phone has to keep loading files of the SD all the time (to keep android running).
I use my phone every 10minutes of the day, and i never got half a day on SD, now with NAND like 24hours extreme use.