Ubuntu Tips n Tricks

How to Improve the Battery Life of Your Android Smartphone

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 03:57 AM PST

We've already seen how Android stacks up against iOS when it comes to features. As much as we love our droids, one thing that always annoys an Android fan is the poor battery life. No matter how you use the phone, the battery always seems to run out way faster than you'd expect. When compared to its arch rival iOS, Android seems to consume much more battery, which, apart from fragmentation issues, is one of the biggest drawbacks of this platform.

So, is there any workaround to this issue? Yes there is. Here at TechSource, we've compiled a list of some hot tips that would help you improve the battery life of your droid so that when you come home tired from work, you won't have to rummage your house for that dreaded charger.

1. Find out what's killing the battery

The first step you need to do is check out which services and apps are consuming the battery. Go to Settings -> About Phone -> Battery Use and you'll see a list of apps and services that are taking up your battery. The services or apps displayed at the top are the ones consuming the most battery life. So, if at all there are some unimportant apps there, you might want to disable or uninstall them. Usually, the top 3 battery hogs are Display, Voice calls and WiFi.

2. Browse better

When browsing on the Internet, make sure you visit the mobile version of a site. Don't load the desktop version of the site unless it's necessary. Not only will this save battery life by limiting Flash and other resource hogs, it will also save you a lot of money on data. If there are sites that you visit regularly, for example Reddit or Stumbleupon, make sure you download their apps as they would consume a lot less data and battery. Also, if you read blogs and tech sites, do make sure you pick up a decent RSS reader, and catch up on all the latest news there instead of visiting each site individually. If you don't know which RSS reader to pick, take a look at our earlier post where we've listed the best RSS apps for Android.

3. Put a leash on those apps

Uninstall or reconfigure the apps that run in the background when you don't want them to. Also, make sure you don't put every app on automatic update.

4. Turn off automatic syncing

Apart from Google's core applications, Android also lets other apps sync in the background. To see which apps have that capability enabled, go to Settings -> Accounts and Sync. Scroll down below to disable sync for any application that's not needed.

5. Turn down the brightness

Unless needed, there's no use keeping the brightness full all the time. Turn down the brightness using the power widget or by going to Settings -> Display -> Brightness.

6. Disable animations

If you're not into eye-candy, then you can disable or reduce the number of animations shown in the menus. Go to settings -> Display -> Animations and choose the option that suits you best.

7. Turn off WiFi when not needed

Unless you want to be connected 24-7, it's no use keeping WiFi enabled all the time. Disable the WiFi when you go to sleep or when you don't need it. You can quickly switch WiFi on or off using the power widget.

8. Turn off GPS unless necessary

GPS is another battery hog, which needs to be turned off when not in use. Make sure it's disabled when you're at home.

9. Play high-end games with charger on

If you're playing high-end games like 3D Golf and Backstab HD on your phone, your battery life will drain way quicker than you expect it to. To avoid that, whenever possible, play high-end games with the power supply connected to the phone.

10. Turn off live wallpapers

The live wallpapers on Android look beautiful, but what looks better is a full battery bar at the top. Unless you're busy making your iOS friends jealous, make sure you replace the live wallpaper with something more static.

11. Disable unwanted widgets

One thing that makes Android more useful – even in standby mode – is the fact that you can drop widgets on to your home screen. However, that doesn't mean that you should fill your screen with every widget that's out there in the market. Just install the essential ones and keep your battery bar happy.

12. Keep a close eye on the battery level

If the battery bar at the top isn't conspicuous enough for you to spot, then dropping battery widgets like BatteryLife by Curvefish on to your home screen might come in handy.