HTC Hero Battery Drain Question..

[daffyduck]

Go into each app and within the app settings, adjust the frequency of refresh / accessing the internet. Also, make sure you dont leave GPS or WiFi on permanently.

I charge mine most days. Just one of those things.

 

[rustynuts]

I have tried many of the tips for saving battery life I have now conceded to the fact that this phone needs a charge every night if I want to get a good days play with it, its a small downside but there's too many good things about the hero that make this no problem for me ; )

 

[itandy]

I only have to charge my Hero once every two days. I always switch off all Wi-Fi, Mobile, GPS and Bluetooth when I don't use them. This way I found the battery is actually quite good.

I also heard some people says certain applications tend to suck up battery badly, so you might like to check your installed applications as well.

 

[golder]

It seems to take 2 hours to charge from zero to hundred percent but if I leave the phone charging all night would not that be bad in the long term (to overcharge it by an extra six hours every night)?

 

[Sean-B]

It seems to take 2 hours to charge from zero to hundred percent but if I leave the phone charging all night would not that be bad in the long term (to overcharge it by an extra six hours every night)?

Won't be bad, when the battery is full, the phone stops charging and uses the charger to take its power from.

I have had an iPhone the past 2 years and the battery always last about 36 hours. So I just charged it every night and the battery still had the same capacity.

Battery life just sucks on the smartphones these days, but I can live with it..

 

[Plymouthbiker]

Mmm Just got a 3000mAh battery for my G2 Touch (htc hero) I was lucky if I got from 8.30am to 8pm with out it going flat. So far it's been on since 7.30am to 3.20pm and I've lost 10% battery power.... Great!!


See....
OddsAndPods.co.uk-Mobile-HTC & XDA Phone Accessories-Batteries-HTC Hero Extended 3000mAh Battery and Replacement Back Cover

 

[lekky]

I have a theory, I always charge overnight, leaving wireless on, and pressing the off button putting it in to sleep mode. I also have the option to turn off wireless when in sleep turned on.

So my theory is thus:

mobile data off
wireless on
phone in sleep

ABOVE mean that no apps are connected as wireless is off during sleep?

So when i wake up, turn on my phone, unplug it, wireless comes on, ALL my apps grab a connection and do a nights worth of updates, draining the battery like mad.

Something to think about anyway, i never put it into sleep at night anymore.

 

[daveybaby]

I get 2-3 days use out of mine with light-medium usage patterns. I make a point of turning off wifi, mobile data, bluetooth and GPS at night - and generally i leave wifi/bluetooth/GPS off all of the time unless i actually need them.

And i agree with what petergdakin said - try to limit how often apps and widgets access the internet. If youve installed an app that you dont often use, but find it's still firing itself up all of the time (my current bugbears include NoteMe and London Tube Status) then you might want to consider uninstalling them and finding better written alternatives.

 

[capuman]

hi,

I also have the european version of the Hero and id like to know if it also suffers from the sms problem.

I've searched all over the place online but cant find out if the european version has the problem. I've emailed HTC but have not received any replies yet. I know SPRINT released a fix to the bug last week which is great, however if the same issue happens on the european models then we also need the fix.

Also, i keep reading about turning off the

 

[daveybaby]

The european hero doesnt suffer from the sms 'always awake' problem.

If you turn off the mobile data connection then any apps you have installed that periodically access the net (e.g. email, twitter clients) wont be able to do so, so it will save your battery. So, probably not helpful if you *want* those apps to update, but if, say, youre going to be asleep anyway you may as well turn it off.

It's really easy to turn on/off anyway, so give it a try, there is an HTC widget to do exactly this (also ones for bluetooth and wifi).

You can still access the internet over 2G networks, it will just be much slower.

 

[capuman]

Ah thanks for the reply! thats great to know.

sorry but just to clarify then.

If i turn off the 'always on' option, the apps wont be able to update (and presumably i wont be receiving emails then either right?) but will the apps (such as the weather app) update when i manually tell it to update then?

Currently i have it set up so that i receive my hotmail emails automatically every 15 mins on the phone, but if that wont work if i turn off that option, what do you recommend?

Thanks!

 

[daveybaby]

If i turn off the 'always on' option, the apps wont be able to update (and presumably i wont be receiving emails then either right?) but will the apps (such as the weather app) update when i manually tell it to update then?

Nope, you wont be able to manually update either. But it's trivial to turn it back on again if you add the HTC widget to your home screen.

Currently i have it set up so that i receive my hotmail emails automatically every 15 mins on the phone, but if that wont work if i turn off that option, what do you recommend?

I recommend leaving mobile internet switched on in that situation. I leave mine on all day, and switch it off at night (if i remember), and generally still get 2 days out of a single charge.

I leave wifi off all day at work, and switch it on in the evening when i'm at home, and switch it off again while i'm asleep.

I leave bluetooth permanently switched off as i dont have any use for it currently.

GPS i leave on as it only gets activated when you use it (depending on what apps you have installed, i think some apps out there may use it in the background)

 

[capuman]

thanks for the replies.

So basically by turning off all the other things i dont need (wifi, get rid of the gps wireless assitance and google background data) i should be fine.

As you say, ill have to leave the 'always on' option on all day though if i want to receive emails. Then again, since im in the office all day i can probably have it off until i get home (so the reverse of what you do basically).

By the way, you mention there is a widget for turning this on and off, like the wifi/bluetooth one? sorry im probably being really thick but i cant seem to find it, could you explain where it is please?

Oh one last thing. Not sure about the uk version you have, but on mine, under the about phone i dont see the 'update firmware' option that our Sprint users seem to have and use to check for updates. Any ideas?

Thanks again, you are being extremely helpful.

 

[daveybaby]

[+] -> HTC Widget -> Settings -> Mobile Network

As for the 'check for updates' option, i dont have one of those either (mine's unbranded with stock firmware). Pretty sure all euro hero owners have to update via PC rather than over the air.

Glad to have helped.

 

[david83]

The best way to save battery is to only turn your phone on when you need to use it. Then after you've used it quickly turn it back off again. It should last for ages then

 

[Slug]

Not sure about the uk version you have, but on mine, under the about phone i dont see the 'update firmware' option that our Sprint users seem to have and use to check for updates. Any ideas?

Menu-Settings-Security-Firmware update

 

[capuman]

cool thanks!

i knew id seen it somewhere on the phone!

by the way i spoke to HTC last night, they confirmed that the sms issue is not happening on the european versions of the Hero.

I also asked about Android 2.1 and they told me that although they are not supposed to tell customers when a release is going to happen until its confirmed, they recon that by end of this month we should be getting the update!

by the way, anyone know of a good free app for gps navigation for the hero? I hear the new google one is good, but its for Android 2 right?

 

[lekky]

i also asked about android 2.1 and they told me that although they are not supposed to tell customers when a release is going to happen until its confirmed, they recon that by end of this month we should be getting the update!

:d :d