[Battery] Complaints and Problems

[howarmat]

cell standby is the cell radio itself, the phone idle is other components/programs use while the phone is idle i think. not for sure though and havent found anyone that can really answer it.

Both are 1 and 2 if you are just letting your phone sit and not use it much. If you are using the phone alot the android system and OS take up more than those usually

 

[TheSultan]

1. search around a bit on the 1,000 threads on this issue. You'll first notice that it takes a few days to "acclimate" to the user and figure out it's own settings. Give it a week before you decide.

2. your results really aren't that bad.

3. you'll also see in the bazillion other complaint threads that it's important to tell us some other things to help troubleshoot.

-GPS
-location widgets like Latitude always updating?
-email refresh


just a couple obvious ones..

 

[howarmat]

It would be nice if there was a certain (edit - as in positively accurate) way to determine which app(s) keep the phone awake when they shouldn't.

My up time is currently at 30 hours, awake time at 1:40, and battery at 70%, probably going on 60% - I don't have the battery life widget installed. I have not taken any battery saving measures, ie. "Enable always-on mobile" is checked as is "Background data". I have my gmail account set up to sync the calendar and contacts, and the HTC mail app set up to grab my gmail via activesync "as they arrive", and IMAP for my Yahoo mail.

But yesterday was a different story. Everything was running fine, with numbers like above, but at some point I did something that caused it to stay awake continuously. As best I can remember, I used bluetooth on the phone, and turned it back off when finished. I listened to Slacker. Also the FM radio and turned it off when finished. bTunes as well, and used "Exit" to leave that app. The grand total time of usage with all music items above was probably 45 minutes. Oh and I also plugged it into the computer so that I could copy some MP3 files to it.

So today I haven't done any of those things and I haven't had any problems. Tomorrow I will start one by one and pay attention to what happens with my awake time. But this could be more difficult to track than by using my method. That's why an app like "spare parts" that is certain to track apps that keep the phone awake would be useful until the bugs are worked out.

most all apps like battery left and such do a great job monitoring what apps are using the battery most. i assume spare parts do the exact same thing.

 

[cdodge]

well, i just got off the phonw with vz to get a replacement sent out. I did have to pay full retail and then they would credit me back when they got mine. Not a big issue as it will save me time from having to shut my phone off to complete the charge.

I am curious. the peopel that are not having the battery issue, what happens if you shut your phone off after the light turns green. Does it turn green again shortly after the phone is shut off or does it charge another 20 minutes like mine?

 

[Musky]

well, i just got off the phonw with vz to get a replacement sent out. I did have to pay full retail and then they would credit me back when they got mine. Not a big issue as it will save me time from having to shut my phone off to complete the charge.

I am curious. the peopel that are not having the battery issue, what happens if you shut your phone off after the light turns green. Does it turn green again shortly after the phone is shut off or does it charge another 20 minutes like mine?

I always charge my phone at night when it's off and I haven't had any battery issues. I use it all day and usually have around 20% left when I shut it off and put it on the charger.

That's how I have always charged my phones and have very seldom had battery problems.

 

[amarryat]

well, i just got off the phonw with vz to get a replacement sent out. I did have to pay full retail and then they would credit me back when they got mine. Not a big issue as it will save me time from having to shut my phone off to complete the charge.

I am curious. the peopel that are not having the battery issue, what happens if you shut your phone off after the light turns green. Does it turn green again shortly after the phone is shut off or does it charge another 20 minutes like mine?

How do you shut the phone off?

 

[cdodge]

I always charge my phone at night when it's off and I haven't had any battery issues. I use it all day and usually have around 20% left when I shut it off and put it on the charger.

That's how I have always charged my phones and have very seldom had battery problems.

I charge my phone every night to. I do realize that it is a smart phone and i am not going to get 2-3 days out of it. My issue is like some of the other's. I don't even get 10 hours with absolutely no use at all and one time i didnt even get 6 hours. After i did the cahrging trick I got 31+ hours with some use but that was only one time.

I checked my stats and the phone did not stay awake so I know it was not caused by an app keeping it awake. I also applied factory settings to wipe the phone and still had the poor results.

Thats why i decided to get it exchange because i hear that there are alot of people not havig the issue so that make me belive I had a defective phone. Maybe its possible there was a bad batch that went out.

 

[cdodge]

How do you shut the phone off?

I hold down the power button and then select Power off.

 

[Aaron1017]

I have to turn off my phone so it charges that last 5%. With phone on, if I unplug the phone from the charger when the light turns green, the battery level will drop to 95 or 96% within a minute of being unplugged.

If turn off the phone it will charge for an extra 15 to 30 mins before the light turns green. The battery level will remain at 100% and gradually drop properly to 99, 98, 97, etc.

Think I should try and return it for another one?

 

[fortesquieu]

I have to turn off my phone so it charges that last 5%. With phone on, if I unplug the phone from the charger when the light turns green, the battery level will drop to 95 or 96% within a minute of being unplugged.

If turn off the phone it will charge for an extra 15 to 30 mins before the light turns green. The battery level will remain at 100% and gradually drop properly to 99, 98, 97, etc.

Think I should try and return it for another one?

Yea, I tried all these tricks, they still seem the same.

 

[cdodge]

Yea, I tried all these tricks, they still seem the same.

try this.

1.Charge the phone while it is on and wait until the light turns green.
2.Shut the phone off and it will charge another 18 minutes and then the light will turn green
3.Keep the phone shut off but unplug the cable and then plug it back in and then it will charge another 18 minutes until the light turns green
4.keep the phone off and then repeat step three, three or four times.

the 18 minutes is what i see, yours may be diffrent.

 

[zemerick]

try this.

1.Charge the phone while it is on and wait until the light turns green.
2.Shut the phone off and it will charge another 18 minutes and then the light will turn green
3.Keep the phone shut off but unplug the cable and then plug it back in and then it will charge another 18 minutes until the light turns green
4.keep the phone off and then repeat step three, three or four times.

the 18 minutes is what i see, yours may be diffrent.

I'm curious what could allow this to work. If you have the time, can you try a single charge up with the phone off, then start checking the voltage as it drops? ( Not sure if any battery apps list voltage, but you can find it by dialing *#*#4636#*#* then select battery information ). It'll take about 10 mins after first unplugging to get an accurate voltage. From there, every like 10 percent or so try to check it. Kinda shooting in the dark here, but that is some rather odd behavior.

Also, is your battery one of those that gets warm/hot frequently?

 

[Aaron1017]

I have to turn off my phone so it charges that last 5%. With phone on, if I unplug the phone from the charger when the light turns green, the battery level will drop to 95 or 96% within a minute of being unplugged.

If turn off the phone it will charge for an extra 15 to 30 mins before the light turns green. The battery level will remain at 100% and gradually drop properly to 99, 98, 97, etc.

Think I should try and return it for another one?

Can a few people test this and confirm their phones have the same behavior!?!?
This will help me decide if I should exchange it or not!

 

[kayst]

Can a few people test this and confirm their phones have the same behavior!?!?
This will help me decide if I should exchange it or not!

All the phones have the same behavior. It is not a bug - it's just the way the charging / battery thing works. When the battery is almost full, the phone switches to a trickle charge. If the phone is on, it consumes all the power of the trickle charge and the battery doesn't get topped off all the way. Either turn off the phone to get a full charge, or use a stand-alone battery charger.

I'm going with the extra battery / standalone charger option. That way, I'll rarely have to plug in my phone - just switch out batteries every morning.

 

[Locoman]

All the phones have the same behavior. It is not a bug - it's just the way the charging / battery thing works. When the battery is almost full, the phone switches to a trickle charge. If the phone is on, it consumes all the power of the trickle charge and the battery doesn't get topped off all the way. Either turn off the phone to get a full charge, or use a stand-alone battery charger.

I'm going with the extra battery / standalone charger option. That way, I'll rarely have to plug in my phone - just switch out batteries every morning.

I wish that was the case with mine. I charge the phone with it turned off over night. In the morning the green indicator light is on and I unplug it and plug it back in and it charges for another 20 mins. Unplug it again and it charges another 10 mins. If I don't do this the battery drains by 10% in no time. I have a universal battery charger and when I use it I don't experience the fast 10% battery drain.

 

[Dex]

Off the charger at noon, phone is dead sometime between 5 an 7, charge it back up, dead or near dead by 2 am or so and it goes back on the charger for an overnight charge. This seems to be a pretty normal thing. I use my phone a good bit and sometimes I needs to be charged a second time during the day, depending on usage. Seems kinda sad, really. I'm a little disappointed in the battery, but I'm not willing to shut down all of the features on the phone just to make it last a little longer.

FWIW I keep my Calendar killed, don't have Flickr sync on and have Mobile Always On unchecked.

 

[LarsWall]

All of my battery problems have stemmed from the phone not being able to sleep. One bug I found on my phone is that airplane mode causes the phone to not sleep at all. I know this may not be the case for most. I'd go to bed, put my phone on airplane, wake up and the phone's battery would be yellow and the up time was as long as I had slept. I just don't use it now.

 

[tpspeier]

Also, is your battery one of those that gets warm/hot frequently?

Just a random thought here ... is there any correlation between those having battery issues and whether or not the phone is kept in a pocket. Several of us have this phone here at work, and now that I think about it the few people with battery issues usually keep their phone in their pocket and usually wear jeans. I imagine that jeans pockets are not conducive to keeping the phone cool. Those of us that carry the phone on a belt clip or in our hand don't seem to have the issue.

 

[Skyfox16]

Going into setting and shutting off "enable always on mobile network" saves quite a bit. Shutting off mobile network saves even more. I am at 13 hrs right now unplugged with 50%. Mobile network was off almost all day along with BT and Wifi. Turned both on about an hour ago. Should last til 11 when I go to bed. I probably sent 100 texts today, made 10 minutes worth of calls, very little internet use.

but if you turn off mobile network, doesnt that mean you wont get any calls or texts? - kind of like airplane mode?

 

[JuniorNA]

but if you turn off mobile network, doesnt that mean you wont get any calls or texts? - kind of like airplane mode?

No, you get calls and texts, you just can't browse the internet, view marketplace, view weather, get emails, or do anything that you pay 100+$ a month for. if you're going to do that, get a LG chocolate 2 touchscreen, and enjoy the phone instead of shutting everything off to make it last a few hours longer. You know what I do? i know it's like magic, but believe me, it works. When i'm at work, i charge the phone so when i leave at 6pm, i have a full charge until 2am. Isnt that amazing ? Phone's like these need to be charged, they simply wont last all day with how we treat them. Not being a d*ck, just saying.....

 

[kenyu73]

Based on all the battery issues, I've started a new battery app project.. it monitors signal, drain, temp and awaketime so far... its free.. search "Battery Detective" or kenyu73.

send me emails for ideas... going to add more stuff soon too.

(sorry for spamming different threads, just hoping it helps others!)

 

[THORN74]

@skyfox16 ... the only thing i have noticed so far, after turning the "always connected" setting to off on day 2, is the weather/clock widget doesnt seem to auto updated while in sleep mode. It only takes a second or 2 after it connects to the network to update.

as for phone calls/text/email (i use the htc mail widget for my gmail) everything comes thru without delay. email push seems normal, phonecalls and texts wake the phone.

i havent done anything other than disable the always connected setting and my battery lasts me all day with out issues. i wouldnt say i am a heavy user, but rather moderate. i make 1 -5 phone calls, 1-10 texts and some surfing or games as time allows. i usually keep wifi,blutooth, and gps off.

currently im at 50% power with almost 9 hours since i unplugged last. i wouldnt call this a great battery, but im not really disapointed either.

 

[Bulldog]

I told myself I would not post about battery life until I'd dad my Incredible for a week. My girlfriend has had hers since release day. I thought that the "charge while on until green, then shut off and top off" method was a do-able work around, but now even that is failing. This batter is s**t, really. I charged the phone while on all night, then turned the phone off and it turned orange again for 10-15 mins before going green. I unplugged and turned on. Battery held at 100% for a few minutes (if not topped off while shut down it drops immediately) but even topped off, after just 10 minutes it dropped from 100% to 94%. After just over an hour of minimal use (just checking various settings mentioned in this thread) my phone is at 86%. That's BS. I'm not buying any extended battery until we figure out if it's a battery problem or a phone/OS problem. I'm also not willing to neuter my phone to make it through the day, by turning off most of it's features. I use wifi at home and office, so that rules out the "always on" network issue right? I've just turned it off anyways, so we'll see if it has any impact.

 

[Bearly]

try this.

1.Charge the phone while it is on and wait until the light turns green.
2.Shut the phone off and it will charge another 18 minutes and then the light will turn green
3.Keep the phone shut off but unplug the cable and then plug it back in and then it will charge another 18 minutes until the light turns green
4.keep the phone off and then repeat step three, three or four times.

the 18 minutes is what i see, yours may be diffrent.

I appreciate that suggestion, but here's the problem:

The point of plugging in a phone and letting it charge is to charge it (duh), but also to walk AWAY from it and let it do it's thing. If I have to keep my eye on my phone so I can do something every 18 minutes, that's the same as having the phone on me and it distracting me.

 

[cdodge]

I appreciate that suggestion, but here's the problem:

The point of plugging in a phone and letting it charge is to charge it (duh), but also to walk AWAY from it and let it do it's thing. If I have to keep my eye on my phone so I can do something every 18 minutes, that's the same as having the phone on me and it distracting me.

I think most of us are are hoping this is just a temporary workaround for now and are hoping for a better fix from HTC.

my bettery life tripled by doing the steps although everyone has been reporting diffrent results.

I received an e-mail from htc saying there were no known issues with the battery charging so I would recomend contacting them at the link below. Maybe if everyone that has the issue reports it maybe it will speed up a fix from HTC.
HTC Mobile Phones - Customer Service - E-mail Support