Help HTC Desire battery problem

[Deckland]

This may or may not be related, but i'll ask here anyway... seems to be a charge related issue.

I put my Desire on charge (either connected to computer or on AC charger) and seems once it reaches 100% charge, charging stops... whilst still connected to charging device, battery level drops over time. Had it back to store once, where battery was replaced, but seems it's still doing this.

Now, other devices I've had in the past stay at 100% when connected, or whilst being used when still on a charger... My Desire seems to not do this.

In others experiences, is what I'm seeing normal, or do I seem to have an issue here? In Australia, phone has latest version of 2.1 software (2.2 not available through Telstra yet) and I'm not prepared to root the phone.

Happens when I'm on AC charger or connected to computer, no matter what connection mode I have selected on the phone eg: charge only, HTC sync, disk drive or internet sharing.... no difference noticed.

Have turned off as much background stuff as I can. Even noticing now it's connected to the computer, but there's no charge symbol on the battery, though it says 100% charged. Would have thought it would indicate I'm still connected.

Has anyone else noticed this, is it normal, or do I need to take it back yet again?

Update...

Have had it back to be looked at, and the battery was replaced initially (don't have it in front of me to tell if it's an 06m or 05m), but the issue still continued... Yes, at the time I was using a task killer, once I got rid of that, it seemed the issue largely went away....

HOWEVER!!!

An issue I WAS having was that if plugged in to a charge device, and being used (watching video whilst on charge, for example) the charge level would still drop.

Had it back in for repair again, and got a note from the repairer basically explaining that yes, this will happen... using the device depletes the battery at a faster rate than it will charge, so this is considered normal for this device. Even after I explained that every other device I have does NOT work this way, I have been assured by the authorised repairers that this IS to be considered normal.

So phone is now on it's way back to me. I won't say I'm happy, but I'm satisfied I've had an explanation from a source who should know what they're talking about.

I do think it needs to be addressed in documentation though, as I've been through the wringer with HTC Customer Service, and all for nothing it seems, had the info been available up front and easy to find. Something I guess to be aware of if you're thinking of buying one of these.

 

[Nev..]

Just to add my experiences with the HTC Desire battery into the mix.

I have had my phone about 6 months. I probably use it as much as I used the iPhone 3GS I had prior to that. I used to be able to get pretty much a full day out of my iPhone and the battery drain was fairly predictable. The Android battery drain is more unpredictable, probably due to apps and widgets being able to sit in the background consuming CPU. Now that is not necessarily a bad thing, because it's nice to have the benefits of multitasking, but the price you pay is battery life, and I guess that's to be expected.

I find the biggest problem I have with the Desire battery is the charge time. The iPhone would charge from 0% to 100% in less than 2 hours. My Desire battery takes a good 4-5 hours to charge from flat (that is using an iPhone charger which is rated 5V 1A, which is identical to the HTC supplied charger). I get the same charging rate from the HTC charger.

I think the greatest problem with a thread like this is that comparisons vary greatly. The definition of "moderate use" might vary greatly from person to person, so it is possible to get 12 hrs or 36 hours life from a battery with "moderate use" because one person considers that putting the phone down for 15mins/hr is moderate use while another person considers picking the phone up for 15mins/hr to constitute moderate use.

I'm currently waiting on a couple of spare batteries to arrive. Bought them on ebay for $6 each. If I find that I get the same life out of a non-OEM 1400mAh battery that I get from the OEM 1400mAh then I'll be sure that my battery is 'normal'. However I would like to improve the charge time to somewhere in the region of 2hrs.

 

[pinkieaddams]

guys, my battery lasts for like, a day...is this normal? i'm not using it so much but it seems to me that the battery drains very quickly. for example, i had nokia 5800 express music before htc desire and i charged it like every 2 or 3 days... so, assuming that desire is a smartphone, that is the explanation to such a "poor" battery or what? :S

 

[Tonkist]

 

[78michel]

I got also a 35H00132-06M battery and I found a very strange behavor
I made some records and publihed on my blog : 78michel.unblog

 

[All Thumbs]

Is there any way to test if a battery is faulty. I worked for many years in the marine and automotive industries and we had proper battery testers.

Hi guys
Some advice please.
With Green Power Premium installed my battery was lasting about 12 hours. Much less than some other claims but livable with. My use is only ever minimal, but like I say livable.

Battery life has just dropped through the floor. Down to literally 4 - 6 hours.
Usage is
Cell Standby 26%
Phone idle 25%
Android System 21%
android.process.acore 9%
Maill 7%
Wi fi 6%
Display 6%

Any suggestions please ?

Ray

 

[Jon_LTD]

Ouch.


Are you rooted? I'd be inclined to do a factory reset. Barely touching my phone I can squeeze 48 hours use. 12 hours would not be acceptable for me. I have it off charge at approximately 7am and it lasts until 10pm with some juice remaining after a day of moderate use.

Either you need a new battery or something is requiring a lot of power. Have you checked your battery's health? After 12 months I'm still on "good" and noticed nothing drastic in battery life. If anything it has improved since I tweaked and rooted it.

 

[All Thumbs]

Not rooted. Frightens the daylights out of me.

I have done the battery tweaking.
Did a factory reset about 2 months ago following another problem.

I really do think I have a faulty battery, BUT, how do I test it ?

Is the only answer to buy a spare battery and try that. Slight complication is that I live in Portugal, but bought the phone in the UK. If that is the answer are there some batteries better than others ? Lot of questions I know.

Ray

 

[Jon_LTD]

Not rooted. Frightens the daylights out of me.

I have done the battery tweaking.
Did a factory reset about 2 months ago following another problem.

I really do think I have a faulty battery, BUT, how do I test it ?

Is the only answer to buy a spare battery and try that. Slight complication is that I live in Portugal, but bought the phone in the UK. If that is the answer are there some batteries better than others ? Lot of questions I know.

Ray

I use an App called Android Assistant to check the health of my battery. I'm not sure how credible it is but I imagine its measured on what your phone is running vs the rate on your battery discharge so there will be some logic behind it.
Was the battery only giving you 12 hours of life after you last did the factory reset?

 

[All Thumbs]

Yes. 12 hours max. Even with everything switched off that I think might use power. Even then if I listened to internet radio I would get maybe 3-4 hours before it went phut.
Believe me, I do not use the phone a lot. Don't do facebook or anything like that. What I do find really useful is that it is linked to my email account. I have 3G and wireless.

Ray

 

[All Thumbs]

Just noticed that I am a junior member. Age 60. Rest of you must be old buggers !!!

 

[Jon_LTD]

Just noticed that I am a junior member. Age 60. Rest of you must be old buggers !!!

Heh, one day you might be a senior!

As for your battery, I conclude you have a dying/faulty battery. One last question would be how old is it? And I suppose how many charge cycles has it been through? I've had my phone just over a year and it probably has been on charge every night so I estimate 400 full cycles and it's still on "good" and get 12 hours easy on a relatively heavy day. Probably closer to 18 when using it a lot.
Also, you can check if anything stands out under battery use by pressing Menu > Settings > About Phone > Battery Use (or something similar as I'm not on Sense and I can't remember the exact order).

I guess if it was in warranty I'd query it with the shop you bought it or manufacturer.. Or shell out for a new battery which you can manage to pick it up from anywhere between

 

[All Thumbs]

Only 6 months old. But warranty is impossible for me here. So I should be able to get a new one off Amazon. Are there some better than others ?

 

[All Thumbs]

Just ordered a larger capacity battery and replacement back cover from Amazon. It is nearly double the storage of the standard battery. Just hope the extra size isn't a problem. 24 hours on stndby would be heaven.

Cheers everybody

 

[Jon_LTD]

Just ordered a larger capacity battery and replacement back cover from Amazon. It is nearly double the storage of the standard battery. Just hope the extra size isn't a problem. 24 hours on stndby would be heaven.

Cheers everybody

Jolly good. I'd be disappointed if I couldn't get 24 hours with that. Expect long and happy days with plenty of use on your phone

 

[All Thumbs]

Thanks
Heres a turn up.
Just to try it I removed Green Power Premium. Loaded Android booster. The paid version and after 8 hours ( with the battery that was dying after 4 hours ) I am still at 85%. Strange. Strange. Strange.

Explain that one away.

Sneaky feeling that someting was stopping that battery actually recieving full charge.

Ray

 

[Jon_LTD]

Thanks
Heres a turn up.
Just to try it I removed Green Power Premium. Loaded Android booster. The paid version and after 8 hours ( with the battery that was dying after 4 hours ) I am still at 85%. Strange. Strange. Strange.

Explain that one away.

Sneaky feeling that someting was stopping that battery actually recieving full charge.

Ray

Hmm that is quite odd! Did you download Green Power Premium straight after your factory reset ? Could have restricted charge or drank your power. I suppose you can cancel your order now.

 

[All Thumbs]

New battery en route. Probably get about 3 1/2 weeks standby with this !! One of those alls well that ends well thingies.

Cheers