What exactly is Juice Defender supposed to do?

[MRW1215]

I got one of the paid versions on Amazon a while back, but I ended up uninstalling it, because I was using Google Voice to send and receive texts for free, and with Juice Defender turning off mobile data while the screen was off, I wouldn't know if I got texts until I actually woke my phone up.

But I decided to add Verizon's texting plan to my current one, so I ditched Voice, and downloaded Juice Defender again. Thing is, I'm not really noticing a difference in battery life, with it running, which is odd, because it does appear to turn off mobile data when the phone is locked, which is what I assumed was the biggest battery hog.

So, why does my battery life seem the same regardless of whether I'm using JD or not? Does it just not work as advertised? Is there some special setting I'm missing within the app, or something? I don't get it.

 

[aysiu]

Is it possible that you're using your phone so much that your screen isn't off for very long (meaning that Juice Defender isn't turning your data off for very long)?

I know I'm only one person, but Juice Defender works fine for me. Usually get about double the battery life.

 

[davidchsw]

It didn't do anything for my phone.

 

[left4dead]

It didn't do anything for my phone.

Same here! I purchased JD Ultimate and tried it out for 2 weeks and then uninstalled it and ran my phone w/o it for two weeks and guess what?

My battery draining level was nearly IDENTICAL with JD installed and without JD.

Also not to mention that my phone is running much smoother since I uninstalled it.

 

[jerofld]

I manually switch the radios I intend to use on and off. Works just as good as JD Ultimate.

 

[MRW1215]

Is it possible that you're using your phone so much that your screen isn't off for very long (meaning that Juice Defender isn't turning your data off for very long)?

I know I'm only one person, but Juice Defender works fine for me. Usually get about double the battery life.

Not really, no. In general, I only wake the phone every 1.5-2 hours. Sometimes a few more times if I'm texting someone. My usage with JD is basically the same as it was without JD, and my battery life is pretty much identical either way.

 

[klipsch]

I was skeptical about JD when I first installed it. I had tried the free version of another battery saver and that's when I was made aware of these apps that apparently really seemed to work. I went ahead and purchased the Ultimate version pretty much out of the gate based solely on the reviews. I didn't think that the app was doing anything and uninstalled and reinstalled several times before I decided to sit down and take the time to configure it "properly(?)". After that I decided to wait and see. I was typically ALWAYS plugging in my EVO 4G anytime I was near an outlet because it ate up battery life like nothing I'd seen before. But leaving the phone alone, and just letting JD do it's thing and manage what was happening based on nothing but some blind faith in the reviews I read, really did show that it works as promised. The indicated current x1.96 battery life that I just looked at...is real.
I installed and got JD configured just before tropical storm Irene came through RI and killed our power for 4 days. It really helped...because the only way to charge my phone was to take a ride in my car. The biggest adjustment for me was not freaking out thinking that the phone was gonna die soon when I saw the battery indicator drop below the halfway point.

 

[aysiu]

It sounds as if your mileage may vary.

 

[klipsch]

It sounds as if your mileage may vary.

And there will be some settling during shipment...

 

[Shocky]

Just manages stuff like wifi, bluetooth and GPS for you, I quite happy doing it myself so I don't see the point.

 

[sohguanh]

Actually the more recent Android models by the manufacturers already come with some of those features you all want. For Motorola, they actually have an option called Motorola Widgets on top of Android Widgets. I believe for HTC, Samsung etc are also coming up with those more generic features users want.

So I believe in future, such app popularity will slowly be taken over by those manufacturers app. Will independent third party Android app be squeezed out of the Android Market remain to be seen.

 

[MRW1215]

So, what settings should be set up in JD for it to be of any use?

 

[klipsch]

I couldn't find the post that I used for a template. Since there are so many settings to choose and understand...if you just Google Juice Defender Settings, you'll find all kinds of post regarding them. When I found the most in depth post, I just followed the exact settings just to get started. I haven't found a need to change them yet. Best of luck. If I can find the post I used I'll post the link...

 

[Saltine713]

JD is for people who don't know how to turn off certain radios of their phone, like data, bluetooth, GPS, etc....

For those with more than 1 braincell, JD does nothing.

 

[aysiu]

JD is for people who don't know how to turn off certain radios of their phone, like data, bluetooth, GPS, etc....

For those with more than 1 braincell, JD does nothing.

Actually, Juice Defender just automates things--it's more about convenience than what's possible or not possible. It's like having a spreadsheet program instead of calculating everything out by hand. Yes, you can manually turn off your data every time you turn off your screen and then manually turn the data back on every time you turn your screen back on, but that's kind of annoying to have to do every time. JD does it for you.

 

[Scur]

Here's what I did to make Juice Defender work for me.

 

[klipsch]

Here's what I did to make Juice Defender work for me.

Hey...I just found the post I used for my out of the gate settings...

 

[jerofld]

Actually the more recent Android models by the manufacturers already come with some of those features you all want. For Motorola, they actually have an option called Motorola Widgets on top of Android Widgets. I believe for HTC, Samsung etc are also coming up with those more generic features users want.

So I believe in future, such app popularity will slowly be taken over by those manufacturers app. Will independent third party Android app be squeezed out of the Android Market remain to be seen.

Google has one of these standard in Android. It's called "Power Widget".

But what I think will make these programs like JD useless is the fact that some phones will automatically sleep their data radios when not in use. They come up every so often and check on statuses, then go back to sleep. My DX did it. My Evo 3D does it.

/shrug