Database Users

proximity sensor increased battery usage

Hello, got new Nexus 4.
I installed tap tap app. witch uses proximity sensor to unlock the phone. The battery usage increases ~17 percent. I think it's quite big.
My friend have older Nexus (samasung galaxy) with that app, and his battery usage of this app is very low..

kajukas said:
Hello, got new Nexus 4.
I installed tap tap app. witch uses proximity sensor to unlock the phone. The battery usage increases ~17 percent. I think it's quite big.
My friend have older Nexus (samasung galaxy) with that app, and his battery usage of this app is very low..
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Click to collapse
Battery usage doesn't really tell much. If you run a mp3 all day and don't use your phone it'll show say 95%. It's not an apples to apples comparison given that if he had his screen on for an hour more than you at the same point, his usage would show lower.
Best bet is to just keep a rough track of battery life with and without the app.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2

Hi
kajukas said:
Hello, got new Nexus 4.
I installed tap tap app. witch uses proximity sensor to unlock the phone. The battery usage increases ~17 percent. I think it's quite big.
My friend have older Nexus (samasung galaxy) with that app, and his battery usage of this app is very low..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It depends on how the hardware is implement, but I suspect in order to constantly read the proximity sensor the application has to keep the phone awake, this means the phone can't "suspend to RAM" and deep sleep in between you using it.
If you check the permissions of "taptap" it has the permission "prevent phone from sleeping", so the above is most likely the reason for battery drain.
Regards
Phil

Battery temperature too low

Just get my new Note 3 around one month and got battery temperature too low message start one week ago. When this happen you can't charge battery if temperature under -4.5c, camera flash can't use under -5c. I think is Thermistor problem, anyone know what happen?
Sent from my SM-N9005 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

Download Androsensor from Google and see which one is failing (There should be 2: battery temp and phone temp and probably third for CPU but that one doesn't show here). If it is battery sensor, I'm not 100% sure but I think it should be inside battery, so I would try if new battery would work, after cleaning all the contacts. Thermistor is a fancy name for calibrated resistor that changes resistance according to temp, if I remember correctly lower resistance = lower temp, looks like a short maybe.
While you at it why not check all sensors, dial *#0*# and look, no temp here, but make sure other things work right.

pete4k said:
Download Androsensor from Google and see which one is failing (There should be 2: battery temp and phone temp and probably third for CPU but that one doesn't show here). If it is battery sensor, I'm not 100% sure but I think it should be inside battery, so I would try if new battery would work, after cleaning all the contacts. Thermistor is a fancy name for calibrated resistor that changes resistance according to temp, if I remember correctly lower resistance = lower temp, looks like a short maybe.
While you at it why not check all sensors, dial *#0*# and look, no temp here, but make sure other things work right.
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The problem should come from device not battery. I try my battery in other Note 3 temperature is normal, replace new battery on my phone still negative temperature. What is Batt 2 in Thermistor means?
Sent from my SM-N9005 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

dlinktm said:
The problem should come from device not battery. I try my battery in other Note 3 temperature is normal, replace new battery on my phone still negative temperature. What is Batt 2 in Thermistor means?
Sent from my SM-N9005 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
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Click to collapse
Most probably a broken sensor, these issues are fixed for free by warranty.

Skander1998 said:
Most probably a broken sensor, these issues are fixed for free by warranty.
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Click to collapse
Thanks for info. I think only way to fix it free is send it back. ?
Sent from my SM-N9005 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

Temperature/Humity sensor refresh rate

Hi guys,
Not sure if this is normal or not, seeing as I've not had an S4 in while, but when I use something like Weather Station to view information from the Temperature and Humidity sensors, they update really slowly. Same in Elixir 2 Sensor Check, the updates are rather slow. I remember on the Note 3, the sensors update rather quickly, but I can't remember how my old S4 was.
Is there any way to speed up the refresh rates of the Temp and Humidity sensors? The barometer is pretty much constantly updating.
Anyone else have this problem? I'm running Djembys pre-rooted 4.4.2 NC9 rom with Adam Kernel.

Heart Rate Monitor

Anyone else having trouble with the S Health heart rate monitor?
I just can't get it to give me a reading no matter where I put my finger on the sensor.
it works fine using the SpO2 function and reports my pulse rate as somewhere in the low 30's
I'm wondering if the heart rate app rejects my pulse rate because it is too low?
I managed to get it to work when i first unboxed the phone as as I was exited it gave me a reading in the 50's but since then it just will not work

I doubt your heart rate is in the low 30s unless you are an elite athlete. Make sure you only press your finger lightly. And if you are using a case, try removing it.
Sent from my SM-N910C using XDA Free mobile app

My pulse is in the low 30's, I have a medical every two years and it has always been like that since I was in my twenties.
I can assure you that I have tried every possible technique I can think of for holding a finger over the sensor and none of them work when using heart rate monitor. As I said previously it works fine every time when using SpO2 so I'm confident that I am using it correctly.

Anyone else having trouble with the S Health heart rate monitor?
I just can't get it to give me a reading no matter where I put my finger on the sensor.
it works fine using the SpO2 function and reports my pulse rate as somewhere in the low 30's
I'm wondering if the heart rate app rejects my pulse rate because it is too low?
I managed to get it to work when i first unboxed the phone as as I was exited it gave me a reading in the 50's but since then it just will not work
hi,
My suggestion is to install a standalone 3rd party H/rate monitor from Google play. I have 2 other 3rd party H/rate monitors on my Note 4. It works 100% Same as Samsung. I did this as i like to compare my S HEALTH hart rate.. working 100%, to my 3rd party apps. in comparison to my Polar Bluetooth hart rate, i use for my running That way if i wantto quickly use app i know which one is reliable. I have compared my S HEALTH to Polar and found to be acceptable. Good luck

same issue here. My heart rate is ~50 now and it fails to detect in in 9 cases out of 10. The times when I was successful I pressed the button to measure it again without moving my hand or my finger from the sensor and it failed no idea what's wrong.
---------- Post added at 11:35 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:28 AM ----------
nightrave said:
same issue here. My heart rate is ~50 now and it fails to detect in in 9 cases out of 10. The times when I was successful I pressed the button to measure it again without moving my hand or my finger from the sensor and it failed no idea what's wrong.
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Just made an obvious discovery. All this time I was measuring it while I was comfortably sitting. I've realised that there was not enough blood flow in my fingers. As soon as I started to measure the heart rate while standing it was working all the time. Hope this is the same problem in your case

I'm having the same issue, except both the SPO2 and the heart rate sensor wont work. When I stand up and take the test, it also fails.

same issue here. both HRM app and SPO2 doesn't work properly as well (standing up or sitting down). it keeps on giving me extreme BPMs like 90+ or 100 while resting.

Yep heart rate sensor not working for me at all. Have had no reading in over 50+ tries. Sp02 works.

Really strange - do you guys have cases or anything?
My model only has heart rate and stress but they work every time.
Heart rate is incredibly accurate - I've compared it to hospital equipment as well as my Garmin chest strap - it's always spot on, regardless of sitting, standing, exercising, etc.
Sent from my SM-N9100

Same problem here too. Have tried at least 30 times
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using XDA Free mobile app

Don't push your finger on the sensor. Just press very very lightly. It works perfectly for me. My heart rate is usually 70-90 resting and thats what my other heart rate monitor also shows. I am not sure what SPO2 actually measures, but I usually get 99%-100%.

I've noticed that the heart rate monitor won't work when my heart rate drops below 50 bpm. When I'm relaxed my garmin reads 46 to 48 and the note 4 won't register a reading. If I get up and run around for a bit it works fine. With a bit of experimenting 50bpm seems to be the cut off. limitation of the sensor maybe?

Same here below 50 bpm it does nothing.

Pretty lame, it kept failing since I was lying down so I stood up and tried again, still no luck. Had to do a few jumping Jacks and it finally worked 51 bpm. Do the 3rd party apps work lower than 50 bpm?

It doesn't work under 50bpm for me too. I was thinking my sensor was bad but this thread but this thread reassures me.
The SpO2 sensor seems to be more sensible and moreover it also gives the heart rate. With it I can measure up to 42rpm.
Inviato dal mio iPad utilizzando Tapatalk

I got it working!
I couldn't for the life of me get the heartrate monitor to work. For 2 days it told me hold still keep finger on blah blah blah. I kept trying to keep my finger 'centered' like it said but as soon as I moved my finger to the left side bam! Works like a charm every time now. Very lightly towards the left (if screen facing you). Try that.

I have the same problem. and exactly what you guys are saying. if it is under 50 then it doesn't work.
This is so stupid from Samsung because I'm afraid to show it off to Apple fan boys lol. Also the finger scanner is not reliable as my iPhone 5s

ozaghloul said:
Don't push your finger on the sensor. Just press very very lightly. It works perfectly for me. My heart rate is usually 70-90 resting and thats what my other heart rate monitor also shows. I am not sure what SPO2 actually measures, but I usually get 99%-100%.
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Measures O2(oxygen saturation) level in blood. Best to test it after waking up as it can show if you have sleep apnea.

aartvv said:
Same here below 50 bpm it does nothing.
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Click to collapse
this is exactly the issue. It's not designed to give readings less than 50 bpm as it views those readings as an error. Where as while using the SPO2 sensor it will give any heart rate recorded as long as the SPO2 gets a "proper" reading. Basically if you're in excellent physical condition or have a very low resting heart this version of the heart rate monitor might not be for you. Unfortunate though as I like the function of S Health

My story with HRM
It is old thread, but I become owner of Note 4 just few weeks ago. And my situation was that everyone in the house get measured heart rate, only me not?! This is why I found this thread and tried squats, standing, sitting, laying, but couldn't achieve to turn red light on. My family just put e finger, in a second equipment starts measuring?! Even my colleagues in office get measured, me.. no!
Finally, I found a way, and wanted to share this experience in case of someone else gives up from this sensor because of similar problems.
Just try other fingers!!!
For me it worked with ring finger and pinky only. No other finger activates HRM for me (I didn't try foot ) !
So funny, that I had to reply.

Could this be the source of poor SOT?

I came across some strange CPU behavior on my Exynos Note 4, and I wanted to see if there's a pattern between the SD805 and Exynos versions.
First, I used this app A1 cpu tool to get a real-time measure of cpu clocks. I installed it on both my Note 2 and Note 4.
Now, when I hover my s-pen over the screen (enough for the cursor to show) OR touch the screen, the CPU jumps up to 1300mhz (max power). On my Note 2, it will only get up to 800mhz (half of it's max CPU speed), which leads me to believe that the Note 4 is being too aggressive with CPU scaling, and it's resulting in poor screen on times.
I'd like to hear from both SD805 and Exynos users to see if they exhibit the same behavior. There should be no reason why Sammy is cranking the CPU up full tilt just to keep the s-pen cursor on the screen - or to handle touch events without anything major happening on the screen itself.

Hmm.. good observation and findings chap.. lets see what samsung has to say er... or any devs

Interesting, but if you have poor SoT, this is not the cause.

pedmond said:
Interesting, but if you have poor SoT, this is not the cause.
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Click to collapse
It certainly could be if my device use involves a lot of screen touch events (i.e. not watching movies). I type a lot on my phone, and if the CPU is running a full power for each key press, it can certainly cause more drain than it needs to.
EDIT : I will add that bench marking for battery life WITHOUT touching the screen gives me very respectable times. SEE SCREENSHOT

EP2008 said:
It certainly could be if my device use involves a lot of screen touch events (i.e. not watching movies). I type a lot on my phone, and if the CPU is running a full power for each key press, it can certainly cause more drain than it needs to.
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Click to collapse
There have been more people complaining about poor SoT - the probability that all of them are using the stylus in such an intensive way seems small.
I can testify that I also use the stylus taking notes during meetings, sometimes as long as 2 hours. I never noticed a SoT reduction because of this.
However, it may be useful for you to post your battery usage stats. We could get a better understanding of the root cause. BTW, are you rooted?

pedmond said:
There have been more people complaining about poor SoT - the probability that all of them are using the stylus in such an intensive way seems small.
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Click to collapse
Interestingly, simply hovering the s-pen over the screen will ramp up the CPU too... I have a hard time believing that it wouldn't impact battery life.
pedmond said:
I can testify that I also use the stylus taking notes during meetings, sometimes as long as 2 hours. I never noticed a SoT reduction because of this.
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Click to collapse
Are you measuring the consumption, like in drain per hour or something like that? I notice drain between 12% - 20% per hour simply depending on very minor differences in usage (i.e web browsing vs. tweeting). I tend to use the stylus a lot.
pedmond said:
However, it may be useful for you to post your battery usage stats. We could get a better understanding of the root cause. BTW, are you rooted?
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Click to collapse
I am rooted and get good standby time and expected battery life (i.e with gaming). But regular SOT sucks and I barely pull 4h most days.
I'm hoping that Snapdragon users can confirm whether their device ramps up the CPU on touches too, or if it's just Exynos models (that could explain why people are experiencing such a variation in SOT between the two chips).

I wonder what happens if you still type a lot, but without using the stylus. That would measure if it's the touch events themselves or the stylus hovering.
When I said before that I don't see a SoT reduction while using the stylus it was just a subjective impression. I didn't actually measure it simply because I didn't feel it's worth measuring.
If you're right about this, I really hope Samsung comes out with a solution.

pedmond said:
I wonder what happens if you still type a lot, but without using the stylus. That would measure if it's the touch events themselves or the stylus hovering.
When I said before that I don't see a SoT reduction while using the stylus it was just a subjective impression. I didn't actually measure it simply because I didn't feel it's worth measuring.
If you're right about this, I really hope Samsung comes out with a solution.
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Click to collapse
Benchmarking with actual touch events would be very time consuming, but if I could disable CPU throttling for touch events, I could test with general use.
I read somewhere that this could be done, but I haven't seen any cpu control apps that do it on my stock Note 4 kernel. Perhaps it needs to be custom (or changed by Samsung)?
Sent from my SM-N910U

So, this is what I was talking about: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2532422
"input_boost_freq = Boost CPU speed to this frequency on touch screen events. Measured in MHz."
I would LOVE to be able to adjust that on the Note 4! I believe there's either a bug or an over-aggressive use of this function.