Maps killing battery life - please help...

[martyp]

Hi all,
Sorry I'm new to the world of Android and my battery is dying within a day. When I check to see what's using battery it shows Maps using about 70% each time. I go into Advanced Task Killer and sometimes Maps isn't showing in there to kill it? When I do kill it it keeps coming back. I switched Latitude off after accidentally opening it. Is there something else I'm missing? I don't want anything tracking my whereabouts...(not really fond of all the social networking and privacy element of Android I really just want functions like internet, maps, camera etc)

many thanks

 

[blundell]

Settings > applications > running services , this will tell you whats running. You can kill them from there, or note there name and go into the app and stop it in it's own settings. Uninstalling it if you must ;-)

 

[staffsmatt]

by maps it may mean GPS, is your GPP turned off?

Menu > Settings >Location

 

[martyp]

Settings > applications > running services , this will tell you whats running. You can kill them from there, or note there name and go into the app and stop it in it's own settings. Uninstalling it if you must ;-)

Hi blundell, I'll give that ago once it's been charged up again and powers back on I only charged it last night and it's dead before the end of each working day...

 

[martyp]

by maps it may mean GPS, is your GPP turned off?

Menu > Settings >Location

Many thanks Matt
I think that's something I might be messing up on. I did enable GPS under maps to get a precise location but then I also enabled My Location in the web browser for localised information. I was thinking that the GPS would only be working when maps was open and there would be the little satellite icon at the top?

 

[Isthmus]

Turn on the Power Control widget and toggle off things that suck power such as GPS and WIFI. In this way GPS will still enable itself when you run a program that needs it, but will not stay on (and sucking power) when you turn that program off.

you can know keep the widget available for quickly toggling the features that you need on and off. Personally I leave syncing and screen brightness on all the time and I toggle everything else on and off only when I need it.

 

[blundell]

Yeah I keep Wifi and Brightness on all day get about 36hours (I have the 1600 battery), toggle sync on when I'm at my desk (usb charger) toggle bluetooth on in my car (although seen an app that turns it on when your doing over 10mph (but that needs gps...) and always have GPS off unless....unless i'm lost in the forest

 

[martyp]

Turn on the Power Control widget and toggle off things that suck power such as GPS and WIFI. In this way GPS will still enable itself when you run a program that needs it, but will not stay on (and sucking power) when you turn that program off.

you can know keep the widget available for quickly toggling the features that you need on and off. Personally I leave syncing and screen brightness on all the time and I toggle everything else on and off only when I need it.

Excellent tip, cheers. I like to have the wifi access when at home, on my N95 I had the scanning switched off and would just select it to connect when needed. I'm thinking the HTC is constantly scanning for Wifi networks as it detects my home one automatically? So in that case I could use this app to switch it off except when at home as well?

 

[Isthmus]

Excellent tip, cheers. I like to have the wifi access when at home, on my N95 I had the scanning switched off and would just select it to connect when needed. I'm thinking the HTC is constantly scanning for Wifi networks as it detects my home one automatically? So in that case I could use this app to switch it off except when at home as well?

There are some location based apps that will turn certain phone systems on and off, or modify them based on where you are. I don't think this is what you're asking. It sounds like you have WIFI turned on all the time, and that your phone is always hunting for a connection. By turning on the Power Control Widget (it's a built in widget, you don't have to download it), you are actually able to turn wifi, bluetooth, GPS, syncing & screen brightness completely off or on at will. In other words, if you turn off WIFI, it will be off and your phone will not use it at all unless you turn it on, or turn on an app that specifically uses this feature (I can't think of any). If, say, you turned off GPS, GPS would stay turned off until you turned on something like google maps. Then it would stay on until you turned google maps off.

IIRC, There is an app in the market that expands on the toggle choices in power control, and lets you toggle on and off a whole ton of things. I didn't find it particularly useful so I never downloaded it.

 

[rzunig1]

Interesting stuff. I know the maps as well as wireless eat up your battery. I use the task killer many times throughout the day, and if maps are open, it shows up in the list. When I am hiking, I put the phone in airplane mode to help save the battery as well.
How do you check to see what is using your battery, as the original poster mentioned. I would love to be able to see that information.