The Ultimate Hero Battery Life Thread (Tips & Discussion)

[greatcasa]

My software is up to date with my awake time being at 37% of an uptime of 1:35 minutes.

 

[nick325i]

How much talk time with your 8 hours before dying is there?

 

[greatcasa]

How much talk time with your 8 hours before dying is there?

At this point I'm not even using the phone for phone calls. I added a third line to my account because the phone was $99 vs. $179 to upgrade my out of contract number. I'm just seeing if I like the phone and haven't even given out the new number yet. Besides 2 short less than 5 minute phone calls I have not even used this phone for talking. The longest thing I've done on it was about a 45 minute yahoo IM session yesterday. The other stuff has just been minor messing around with the phone.

 

[TF1984]

At this point I'm not even using the phone for phone calls. I added a third line to my account because the phone was $99 vs. $179 to upgrade my out of contract number. I'm just seeing if I like the phone and haven't even given out the new number yet. Besides 2 short less than 5 minute phone calls I have not even used this phone for talking. The longest thing I've done on it was about a 45 minute yahoo IM session yesterday. The other stuff has just been minor messing around with the phone.

This is a simple diagnoses, at least on the surface. If you're experiencing such poor life there IS a reason why.

how many charge cycles have you done?
good or bad coverage? Evdo or 1x?
screen brightness
screen timeout
update apps
memory leaks, have you updated MR

If all of these are within reasonable parameters then you need to download Spare Parts b/c something is keeping your phone from entering "sleeP" which puts the cpu into a power save mode. Get that, then open spare parts and check battery information, change drop down to "partial wake usage" and find what apps are keeping phone from sleeping. It's that simple.

If you have a brand new battery, with poor service coverage in signal and data, high screen brightness, long timeout, 4 email accounts constantly updating, problematic apps and constant usage - face the fact that you will need to adjust your "charging habits".

Someone mentioned the issue of upgrading from older devices like BBs, when you compromise battery life.

???there's no comparison. Look at the size of the screen.. the graphics... the software... the capabilities. there is absolutely no comparison.

 

[greatcasa]

This is a simple diagnoses, at least on the surface. If you're experiencing such poor life there IS a reason why.

how many charge cycles have you done?
good or bad coverage? Evdo or 1x?
screen brightness
screen timeout
update apps
memory leaks, have you updated MR

If all of these are within reasonable parameters then you need to download Spare Parts b/c something is keeping your phone from entering "sleeP" which puts the cpu into a power save mode. Get that, then open spare parts and check battery information, change drop down to "partial wake usage" and find what apps are keeping phone from sleeping. It's that simple.

If you have a brand new battery, with poor service coverage in signal and data, high screen brightness, long timeout, 4 email accounts constantly updating, problematic apps and constant usage - face the fact that you will need to adjust your "charging habits".

Someone mentioned the issue of upgrading from older devices like BBs, when you compromise battery life.

???there's no comparison. Look at the size of the screen.. the graphics... the software... the capabilities. there is absolutely no comparison.

Screen brightness is about 1/4 to 1/3. Timeout is at 30 seconds. I only have hotmail in the mail apps updating everything 30 mins and the built in gmail running. I get decent to great coverage wherever I go throughout the day and I've only used wifi on the first night I've had the phone. I've used GPS navigation once for 15 minutes and have used the browser 15-20 times, youtube once, and updated my status on facebook once. Besides installing about 20 apps, and having erased all but a few (Pandora, close everything, express news, fartdroid, android lightsaber, bic concert lighter, a flashlight, google talk, google voice, shazam, quickoffice), I've barely used the phone (only used the apps once that I've downloaded). I've fully the charged the phone 3 or 4 times now with it getting down to almost no battery or it turning itself off. The battery is currently at 80% at 2 hrs 52 mins since boot and a full charge.

What is updating MR?

I downloaded Spare parts and here are my results. Since last unplugged: Android System>Home>Mail, Since last boot: same, Total all time: Mail>Android System>Home.

Believe me I know this phone is not going to last as long as a new blackberry with a new battery. But if an old 2+ year old battery in a BB can still get 2+ days with full usage and talking etc. I expect any phone that I buy, not matter the technology to last at least 24 hrs with moderate usage. If a phone can't do that, it shouldn't be on the market. Plain and simple. It it can't then it's an ipod/mp3 player/game system, that can make an occasional phone call and not the other way around.

Do you think it's possible I have a dud phone and/or battery?

 

[sleepybird]

I think my battery life is also really bad that got myself a second battery.
I finished fully charging my phone around 5pm. By 9pm the battery is about 40%. The next morning I got up around 7am, battery 10%. By the time I got to my office around 9am I recharge. Takes about 3 hours to fully recharge. I take out the fully charged battery and take lunch break. When I come back I took out the battery and replace it with my second battery to recharge. Takes about another 3 hours to charge. By the time it finishes, it's about 4-5pm. The the cycle starts again. Do you think this is normal or it's just me?

I took the advice of all above suggestions.
1. I have 3 email accounts set up. All send and receive frequency set to "every 2 hours."
2. I disabled automatic update on the weather widget.
3. I already updated to latest firmware, which is said to have fixed the bug on the text message. I didn't feel improvement on battery life, so I installed chompSMS and disabled the built-in text message again.
4. I text message a lot though, but does it really drain the battery that severely?
5. I unchecked "Enabled GPS satellites" at all time.
6. I know I don't have good reception at home: only 1 bar, says EV on the top, sometimes it says 1x.
7. At work: all bars, but still says EV on the top.

 

[greatcasa]

Ok so the last two days I've gotten 15-18 hrs with moderate usage and almost no phone calls before having to charge. My awake time is staying below 35% and Spare Parts is not showing anything unusual under partial awake that's keeping the phone awake. 15-18 hrs still seems way to little, especially with barely using the phone. I'm mean this thing is sitting there, with no apps running and the screen off and is just sucking down battery life. Has anyone out there had issues like this and returned their phone/got another battery and the issues went away? I'm just wondering if I've got a bad phone/battery and if I shoul take the phone back and get a new one?

 

[greatcasa]

Totally different battery life today. I have 41% battery left after having been on for 23:40 hrs. I also now have an awake time of only 12%, down from high 30's. The only difference today (and I used the phone more heavily today) was downloading and using "Advanced Task Killer Free" which seems to find more open applications that other task killers don't, and I did not use my silicone gel cover. I don't understand this sudden difference, unless this app killer is finding and killing my running apps that weren't being seen by other app killers, or somehow the silicone gel cover was impeding the signal strength and causing the phone to be "searching" for service more often. Any thoughts?

 

[n0gik]

BTW - the widget Battery Life (CurveFish) kicks butt, IMO. If one likes things displayed like the temp or pile voltage. Could stand to shrink the size to a 1x1 rather than a 2x1.

 

[sleepybird]

What's the best battery charging habit? Is it best to recharge the battery when it is completely drained or is it best to recharge when it's 5% or 10%? Thanks for your help.

 

[The Dark Knight]

My phone was at 50% tonight, then I went out for an hour, and when I came home it beeped the 15% Alert. In that entire hour, I never used the device once. However, what I did notice is that the GPS Signal was actively transmitting, and so I knew it must be an App. I turned off my GPS location system (I switched it to Network only), and I made certain that Google Latitude was off. I also made certain to switch Twitter, email, WeatherBurg Updates, etc. all to more spread out time periods (I believe the minimum I set any App. in terms of Update frequency was every Two hours).

Alas, the GPS Transmit icon was still flashing away.

I ended up having to restart the phone (By simply turning it off, then on again), and now the GPS Transmit signal is finally dormant.

I have no idea why the GPS went buggers on me, but I have to admit that with the great power that the Hero has as a handheld CPU (Which is great), we obviously will also face issues requiring reboots and the like (Just as is the case with any CPU). With Power, comes Bugs, but I firmly believe that the Pros of this device by far outweigh any Cons whatsoever.

 

[mattcoz]

I had no idea about that dolphin browser trick, thank you so freaking much

I was actually using the stock browser again because I like the way it looks in full screen mode, dolphin has a random orange bar at the top, it must be for branding, nonetheless I'm not going back, exit and clear cache is brilliant

That's the tab bar. Notice if you have more than one tab open the orange bar is smaller, because it shows you which tab you're on. Then you can swipe left and right to switch tabs. Pretty slick.

 

[dmm5157]

So what have people found to be the biggest battery eaters out there?

I found that I removed the Facebook app from my friend's Droid and she went from her phone only lasting about 10 hours and needing to be put on the charger, to going until over a day and a half to needing to charge her phone.


For me, I've noticed that my phone doesn't use much battery (I don't have any widgets that update and use the stock Gmail app and Handcent for messaging) until I use the browser. Even simply opening the browser will drop me 1-2% and spending more than 10 minutes on it kills my battery by at least 5-10%.

I've also noticed phone calls are harsh on the phone, although it may be because I use the speaker phone most of the time when I use it. My phone calls seem to eat up about 0.5-1% per minute I talk on the phone. Luckily I don't usually talk on the phone very much.


Anyone else notice certain apps or processes that eat up the battery more than others?

 

[durandetto]

The main battery killer I've noticed other than the the browser is eBuddy. If I'm logged into eBuddy my battery drops rapidly.

 

[jhale83]

So you set the clock/weather widget that came with the phone on your home town rather than location? I can't seem to set it to a hometown. How do you do that?

Hey everyone...I'm a long time PPCGeeker (used Windows Mobile phones forever) and I got the Hero recently and LOVE IT! Anyways, I think I figured out how to get it to show whatever location you pick rather than your 'Current City.' After trying to figure it out for a few minutes I deleted the HTC Clock widget from my home screen. Then I went in and added it back and it gives me the choice between Current City and adding a location. I added my location and it says 'Topeka' instead of 'Current City' now so I'm hopeful that will stick. Hope this helps someone else.

 

[tripwire's_hero]

Hey all, first post...

Long time lurker/researcher who just picked up a HERO on friday. I was appalled by the battery life. I had to charge it after 5 hours of moderate use!

Fortunately, many of the tips in this thread have made a HUGE difference in my battery life, but I wanted to get clarification on a few items.

1. BACK BUTTON TO CLOSE APPS
This doesn't seem to work for me. I make it a point to use the back button to get out of an app and go to the home screens, but when I check the running apps everything is still open. What gives?

2. TASK MANAGERS/KILLERS
I see a lot of "DON'T USE THESE" posts. But one is mentioned by the OP (close everything). So is the message that these are NOT necessary from a processor standpoint, but helpful from a battery life standpoint? Is there a marked increase in when one is employed?

3. DEFAULT MESSAGE APP PROBLEMS
Has this been addressed? Thought I saw a post saying there was an update that negated the need for a 3rd party app as a workaround. Also, are there issues with the pop-imap email app? I would prefer to use my hotmail and only built the gmail acct to import contacts. (THAT should have been do-able without a frikken' gmail acct...)

 

[mattcoz]

Hey everyone...I'm a long time PPCGeeker (used Windows Mobile phones forever) and I got the Hero recently and LOVE IT! Anyways, I think I figured out how to get it to show whatever location you pick rather than your 'Current City.' After trying to figure it out for a few minutes I deleted the HTC Clock widget from my home screen. Then I went in and added it back and it gives me the choice between Current City and adding a location. I added my location and it says 'Topeka' instead of 'Current City' now so I'm hopeful that will stick. Hope this helps someone else.

Just make sure the city you add is first on the list for that time zone. I added Chicago and it kept picking Kansas City before I rearranged the cities.

 

[nick325i]

Hey all, first post...

Long time lurker/researcher who just picked up a HERO on friday. I was appalled by the battery life. I had to charge it after 5 hours of moderate use!

Fortunately, many of the tips in this thread have made a HUGE difference in my battery life, but I wanted to get clarification on a few items.

1. BACK BUTTON TO CLOSE APPS
This doesn't seem to work for me. I make it a point to use the back button to get out of an app and go to the home screens, but when I check the running apps everything is still open. What gives?

2. TASK MANAGERS/KILLERS
I see a lot of "DON'T USE THESE" posts. But one is mentioned by the OP (close everything). So is the message that these are NOT necessary from a processor standpoint, but helpful from a battery life standpoint? Is there a marked increase in when one is employed?

3. DEFAULT MESSAGE APP PROBLEMS
Has this been addressed? Thought I saw a post saying there was an update that negated the need for a 3rd party app as a workaround. Also, are there issues with the pop-imap email app? I would prefer to use my hotmail and only built the gmail acct to import contacts. (THAT should have been do-able without a frikken' gmail acct...)

1. Which applications specifically? I have several programs/games that when I use the back button all the way to the home screen then I click the icon again it takes me through the startup procedure of that game/program and not back to where I was in the app like I had pressed the home button to exit out.

2. The don't use these crowd understands linux/android has great memory management. I use close everything in the case of a program that should have closed/crashed that didn't. It keeps my phone snappy and their might be some battery gain. I've been using it less lately but my phone has also seemed more stable after Fresh Rom 1.0+ thus not really needing to use it.

3. The default message app problem was fixed with an update that Sprint released otehrwise known as the MR. I have done some research and it seems that 95% of the phones being bought now have the MR pre-loaded and should not have to worry about this old bug.

 

[tripwire's_hero]

1. Which applications specifically? I have several programs/games that when I use the back button all the way to the home screen then I click the icon again it takes me through the startup procedure of that game/program and not back to where I was in the app like I had pressed the home button to exit out.

I'm speaking specifically about things like phone, browser, settings, voicemail, etc. I use the back button to get home from these applications, and they still appear as running when I check the current apps by holding down the home key. Should I be able to end these by backing out? is it a battery drain to have them running in the background when I'm not actually using them?

thanks for the answers to my other questions. much appreciated.

 

[nick325i]

I'm speaking specifically about things like phone, browser, settings, voicemail, etc. I use the back button to get home from these applications, and they still appear as running when I check the current apps by holding down the home key. Should I be able to end these by backing out? is it a battery drain to have them running in the background when I'm not actually using them?

thanks for the answers to my other questions. much appreciated.

Certain processes are never going to close. If know you about computers or OS's specifically. Windows and linux both have services that never shutdown. If your com.android.phone service were to be stopped on your phone, could you recieve a phone call? Now the other part of it is the screen you backed out of might specifically be called com.android.dialer (i don't think it is but) that service closes when you hit the back button from that screen. Many functions are taking place behind the scenes in your phone. Certain ones are using processor/battery power because they have to for things to function on your phone. Others if you leave the application it enters a pause state which isn't eating any processor or battery.
In short, any program that can quit, will when you use the back button to the home screen. The only exception I know of on this is the dolphin browser where you have to hold the back button.

Hope this helps!

Wait,
Holding down the home key just shows you the last 6 apps that you opened, not whats currently running. LOL

 

[tripwire's_hero]

Wait, Holding down the home key just shows you the last 6 apps that you opened, not whats currently running. LOL

well, THAT would explain why I couldn't get them to "close" * ahem *

could I be a bigger noob?

 

[ccapasso]

Hi all, first post here and let me start by saying thank you all for the great information. I recently purchased my Hero and only installed a few apps. After thinking more and researching more, I removed several of them as I know I won't be using them. One thing I do have installed though is the Advanced Task Killer. I am using the "free" version, so there is nothing be auto closed. At first, I was closing everything all of the time, multiple times throughout the day. Again, after reading and learning, I have tried to keep from doing this. Anyways, as far as the battery is concerned, at first my battery was draining like crazy. I took the steps listed here and tweaked my Hero according to the OP.

After doing this, I was still getting terrible battery life, to the point of it being down to nothing before the end of the day, with me really doing nothing on the phone. I installed Spare Parts and found that it was my Mail that was keeping the phone awake. I checked all of my mail settings and found one that was set to update every 5 minutes. I changed that one to manual and now have seen an improvement. Currently, I have 3 e-mail accounts configured, all using the default mail app, 2 of them are set to manual, the other is an exchange account that I have set to update every 30 minutes.

Today, I did notice an improvement today, however when I checked the awake time I noticed that it has been awake all day. I went into Spare Parts and I found that Android System is on top followed by Mail. Today, I did not use my phone at all for anything, it has been awake for over 9hrs now (46%) and the battery is currently at 62%.

I started this morning with a fresh boot after a full charge over night. Again, I did not use the phone at all today other than to check what mail my Exchange account had, which I only did twice. I do know it was searching for a signal several times today, but I also don't understand why it has been awake all day long. I have the End button set to go to home screen then sleep when pressed. I make a habit of pressing the end button before I put my phone back in the holster.

While I am happy that I have more battery life today then days passed, I still do not understand why the battery is draining, and why the phone is constantly awake. I did not kill a single app today and am hoping that has nothing to do with it. I think tomorrow I will repeat today by doing a full charge tonight, fresh boot in the morning, and kill all apps running to see how it lasts.

Any advice/feedback is greatly appreciated.

Thanks

 

[RobAGD]

Welp did a little looking and digging on mine.

As of right now this phone is looking to be a charge everyday deal for me. Not a HUGE deal but it is a new habit to get into considering my old Katana was a charge every 4-5 days kinda deal.

So far nothing special installed ( did install a battery widget mippin.com ) but out side of that nothing else, All stock apps and roms etc. I do have the Gel body slipper thingie.

Killed a bunch of stuff off teh get go ( GPS, Bluetooth etc ) the first night, right now I have 6 things showing up as running : Phone, Settings, Settings (Battery widget), Weather, Clock, Browser

Pulled off the charger this morning, moderate texting ( maybe 20 25 ) 3 photos uploaded to face book, 15-20 minutes of talk time and I am now at 64% which shocked me given how I killed it yesterday editing all my contacts.

Uptime : 67:10:00

Awake : 27:27:00 41%

I would be looking into the Hi-Cap Battery in the future.

I know that 40% is high but I seriously was editing my contact list for the better part of 3 hours.

-Robert

 

[JB in AZ]

I charge my phone nightly, and I have been turning it off before plugging in the charger. (I don't want to hear the notification sound for emails during the night) I now turn it on before unplugging the charger in the morning...why use battery power to boot it? To paraphrase a famous astronaut..."One small step for this Hero user, one giant leap for the Hero battery". I hope this helps someone!

 

[sarspants]

I charge my phone nightly, and I have been turning it off before plugging in the charger. (I don't want to hear the notification sound for emails during the night) I now turn it on before unplugging the charger in the morning...why use battery power to boot it? To paraphrase a famous astronaut..."One small step for this Hero user, one giant leap for the Hero battery". I hope this helps someone!

Two things:
1. Look into an app called timerific. I have mine set to be silenced at 11:45pm, ringer at 45% volume at 5:20am which leaves notifications at 0% volume on weekdays and 7:30am on weekends, and then at 80% volume for both at 8:30am. It's a great app that doesn't seem to affect battery life like Locale may or may not have for some users (me!)

2. The hero requires the battery to boot, if you let the battery die, you have to leave it plugged in long enough for the battery to have enough charge to boot the phone. You may also notice the charge light goes off when you turn it on.