Massive battery drain, caused by switching internet? - Galaxy S II Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

Hello everybody,
I am confronted with a nasty problem.
My 2 weeks old s2 suffers under massive battery drain if using the 3g/hsdpa internet. I will explain it with a timeline:
In the morning, phone was fully charged over the night.
I start my day with 100 % in the edge network. I live on countryside, there is not just more :-/
I can listen to music, surf in fb, .... battery does not drop significantly. I think everything is fine.
When I drive over to the next city, where I go to school, 3g/hsdpa is available.
Phone switches permantly between 3g and hsdpa, even if signal is above 3 lines.
Internet is really slow or even just does not work!
Battery starts to drop massively!
As I write this, it's 3:45 pm, my battery is just about 25%.
Today, I only listened to music, played some mini games and bugvillage, tried to surf and checked ebay...
Technical Informations:
Cognition 1.51
Changed modem to kdj, read that it is better than kh3
Ninpo 2.1.3 kernel
Display is on auto setting
TW 4.5 Launcher
Apps running in background(just to receive/send informations,not opened):
Facebook
Whatsapp
Googletalk
Gmail
Bugvillage
Is there a fix for the switching signal, which causes this massive battery drain or do you know where the problem is?
Regards,
crapman
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App

With email and other apps synching all the time, 8 hours battery life is probably quite normal. I can get thru the day till 9pm by emails every hour, no chat but I read a lot. Screen on time typically 3 hours..wifi and 3g on.
I use stock dxkh2 and speedmod t39
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk

Sounds like a modem/radio problem you could try changing and see if it makes a difference.
If your getting weak signal it does drain the battery.
Could also be a rouge app causing wakelock.
Search for betterbatterystats app on the forum this should help you track down if an app is causing problems
EDIT: also if your only getting E at home try changing to 2G only
settings - wireless and network - mobile data.

This is a bug in the modem. Either play around with different modem versions and see if the behavior changes, or use the *#301279#* dial code to enter a hidden menu, and chose to release R99, this will disable H speeds and it will limit you to 3G, and not switch anymore. It may improve battery life.

iwang said:
With email and other apps synching all the time, 8 hours battery life is probably quite normal. I can get thru the day till 9pm by emails every hour, no chat but I read a lot. Screen on time typically 3 hours..wifi and 3g on.
I use stock dxkh2 and speedmod t39
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why does Samsung build a phone which battery lasts 8 hours using all functions???
Sounds like a modem/radio problem you could try changing and see if it makes a difference.
If your getting weak signal it does drain the battery.
Could also be a rouge app causing wakelock.
Search for betterbatterystats app on the forum this should help you track down if an app is causing problems
EDIT: also if your only getting E at home try changing to 2G only
settings - wireless and network - mobile data.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I think the same, do you know which modem/radio is the best?
I installed this app but it makes me not more intelligent than before.
For what I have to look?
This is a bug in the modem. Either play around with different modem versions and see if the behavior changes, or use the *#301279#* dial code to enter a hidden menu, and chose to release R99, this will disable H speeds and it will limit you to 3G, and not switch anymore. It may improve battery life.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For a bug, which is caused by Samsung, i have to decrease my internet speed?
I want to have fast internet....?!
Nevertheless, thanks for your replies!

modems are kinda region specific, so what works best may not be very good for you. I've stuck with KG6 but i hear that the KH3 one is pretty good
In betterbatterystats click where it says process and change it to wakelocks, these are the apps keeping your phone from deep sleep when the screen is off. so the ones with alot of time below them are not doing your battery any favours.
If you switch to 2g in bad reception areas it can really help, i know its hassle to keep changing but if your handset is constantly switching from 2G/3G your not getting fast internet anyways
hope this helps!

mynamesteve said:
If you switch to 2g in bad reception areas it can really help, i know its hassle to keep changing but if your handset is constantly switching from 2G/3G your not getting fast internet anyways
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's switching between 3G and H/H+ all the time. I have the same problem sometimes, it has nothing to with signal strength it seems.

Try flashing different kernels, may help. Check and control what is constantly synching..
No phone with big screen lasts 24 hours with all sync and push and chat/streaming/browsing, even blackberry.
the battery does take some time to cycle and will give better battery life.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk

AndreiLux said:
This is a bug in the modem. Either play around with different modem versions and see if the behavior changes, or use the *#301279#* dial code to enter a hidden menu, and chose to release R99, this will disable H speeds and it will limit you to 3G, and not switch anymore. It may improve battery life.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The dial code really helped me, battery is much better and I can now use my internet properly, despite I am a bit sad not having HSDPA speed :-/

Related

[Solved] Battery Drain problem with 4.x firmware

UPDATE : The battery drain is absent in the 4.xx OTA update. This is for people who used the flash tool or updated via PC Companion.
PROBLEM: As you've noted, there is a bug in the new 4.x (2.3.3 with xLOUD) update. It constantly searches for network even while connected to one. Due to this users are experiencing poor battery life that lasts no more than 10 hours on moderate use.
SOLUTION: Go to settings > Wireless and Networks > Mobile networks > Network Operators > and manually select your operator (2g/3g will be identifiable by the 2g/3g icon). Manually selecting the network reportedly kills the auto search bug ( No wonder Sony pulled the update from PC Companion). If this doesn't work for other devices ( I've only tested in R800i ), It's better to flash back the 3.xx firmware to ensure the long term capacity of your battery.
People are reporting normal battery performance after this setting has been done.
Comments are appreciated
I'll be sure to do this when verizon actually gets the update.... ; ;
Sent from my Xoom using Tapatalk
Confirmed as working. Thank you
Thanks for the feedback.
I went back to 3.x but after i saw this solution i installed 4.x and yes after 2 continous hours of using my play (wifi on and downloading stuff)i only lost 25% , i even noticed a change in the battery log compared to before this fix
Thanx !
Tried it on my Neo, did not help at all. Same hardware and almost same software so should've done wonders, but no
confirmed working here' r800i after switching to manual.
cheers
Sent from my Xoom using xda premium
confirmed working on my r800i after switching to manual...
now need cancel batterystats.bin without root.... maybe...
No Idea why it doesn't work on the neo.
Sent from my R800i using XDA Premium App
what do you mean by this?
UPDATE : The battery drain is absent in the 4.xx OTA update. This is for people who used the flash tool or updated via PC Companion.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
only those who used Flash Tool or PCC got the problem?
i updated to 4.0 (xLOUD) via OTA and i noticed significant decrease in battery performance since then, even with my Network set to Manual search.. tsk tsk
Which is your model? R800i?
Sent from my R800i using XDA Premium App
of course dude, would i be here if my phone isn't PLAY?
just kidding.. i know what you mean..
yeah it's R800i UK Generic
Not working on my phone.. I go to bed with 90-95% charge w/o any apps running except those bloatware, then after 8-9hours of sleep I only have 30-35% left on my battery
And yeah I noticed it since the xLoud update..
brochador said:
Not working on my phone.. I go to bed with 90-95% charge w/o any apps running except those bloatware, then after 8-9hours of sleep I only have 30-35% left on my battery
And yeah I noticed it since the xLoud update..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
don't have this problem
Please root your phone and throw the bloat away. SETCPU when screen off underclockED will save even more battery. You can also put Voltage control lower for even more juice
I used the XDA App to post this, what did you use?
brochador said:
Not working on my phone.. I go to bed with 90-95% charge w/o any apps running except those bloatware, then after 8-9hours of sleep I only have 30-35% left on my battery
And yeah I noticed it since the xLoud update..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
whoa that's an overkill.. i only get 3-6% drain overnight..
brochador said:
Not working on my phone.. I go to bed with 90-95% charge w/o any apps running except those bloatware, then after 8-9hours of sleep I only have 30-35% left on my battery
And yeah I noticed it since the xLoud update..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Check your battery usage.
If you have more than 35-40%% use on mobile standby, then your phone has the bug causing the battery to drain.
Contrary to what some people may believe, "Mobile standby" doesnt mean "idle", it means it is scanning for signal.
Take sim out, take battery out, for a few minutes, reboot, then use the solution the OP describes to permanently turn of the bug.
Cat_On_Droid said:
don't have this problem
Please root your phone and throw the bloat away. SETCPU when screen off underclockED will save even more battery. You can also put Voltage control lower for even more juice
I used the XDA App to post this, what did you use?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My phone is rooted and I already freeze some bloat long time ago, still the problem occurs.. BTW, what's setcpu? Is it like a juice defender? I tried juice defender ultimate, but I dont like it even in basic mode..
dsswoosh said:
Check your battery usage.
If you have more than 35-40%% use on mobile standby, then your phone has the bug causing the battery to drain.
Contrary to what some people may believe, "Mobile standby" doesnt mean "idle", it means it is scanning for signal.
Take sim out, take battery out, for a few minutes, reboot, then use the solution the OP describes to permanently turn of the bug.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mobile Standby--21%
Phone idle--16%
Android system--14%
Display--10%
Will try to take sim and battery for a few minutes later..
This is a most bizzare problem you have.
SetCPU can overclock (drain battery even more) or underclock (save battery) the cpu.
Ideally you want it underclocked when the screen has dimmed off, and overclocked when you are demanding graphical intensity. (games etc).
I personally think you have the scanning for radio bug still. Are you sure you have turned OFF automatic network?
dsswoosh said:
This is a most bizzare problem you have.
SetCPU can overclock (drain battery even more) or underclock (save battery) the cpu.
Ideally you want it underclocked when the screen has dimmed off, and overclocked when you are demanding graphical intensity. (games etc).
I personally think you have the scanning for radio bug still. Are you sure you have turned OFF automatic network?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, It's already set to manual..
I have a quick question.
I seem to be having the battery drain bug on my R800i (UK) however, I am a bit worried about setting it to manual.
I am with Orange here in the UK, and with Orange u can also use T-Mobile transmitters, where i live and work, i switch between Orange and T-Mobile quite often, if I was to set my phone to manual, and to Orange 3G, when i lost Orange 3G signal, what would happen? Would it still automaticall change to the T-Mobile signal, or would i be left without any signal at all??
I am rooted, and I am already using SetCPU, with also the lowest setting when on stand-by, so the only other reason for my battery drain is the bug.
Thanx in advance, and sorry that it turned out to be not such a quick question, lol.

I think i figured out android os drain prob..

hey guys ive been really really trying really super hard to figure out why my android os is always at 80-90 percent cuz after 10 hours my battery is almost dead (in the red) so i got os monitor, cpu spy, and betterbatterystats to try to hunt the prob down and i have spent countless days since i got the phone to figure out what it is thats draining my battery so im on stock with codeworks kernal for cwm and rooted with superoneclick i froze a lot of apps and what not but still had the prob so i left my house one day to hit the beach and i said well i dont need wifi or gps so i turned it off for the 1st time and at the end of the day when i get home and pull out my phone from my bag it said it was on for 10 hours and i was only at 80 percent!!!! so i tested it some more and it seems that my android os is not high at all when wifi and gps are off plus i get awsome battery so my guess would be wifi drain i just want other ppl to try it also and see if that fixes there probs too idk just thought i would share my story sorry its so long but plz dont bash me if ive said noob stuff thx
Ya because when I'm right next to my router which is awesome I don't even get full signal so I think its the wifi.signal.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using xda premium
You should always turn off WiFi and Bluetooth when not connected to something. WiFi has been a thorn in my side too. I don't use it very often, and sometimes when I use it at home I forget to turn it off.
One of the things I miss most from my WinMo phone was the constant LED and notification indication WiFi is on. With Android and iOS if you are not connected you don't have any icon showing its on. There should be a WiFi with an X, like when you have no signal, to indicate: Hey you! Yeah, you ... you left WiFi on, you dope! Or, an option built into the OS that will let you turn it off automatically when disconnected for so long. I know there are apps to do this (juice defender is a popular one), but this such a core common sense thing that should be built in. At least with Bluetooth you see the logo staring at you when you leave it on.
Sorry to rant, that's been bugging me for 3 years.
GPS on the other hand only activates and uses battery when needed. However all sort of apps can call the need. Again, this warns you when its in use, so its not a surprise later.
I get much batter battery life than with my captivate, but I keep on top of WiFi and BT when not using them.
Sent from my Galaxy S II (i777)
and this is why people use apps like JuiceDefender and Tasker or Locale
mbze430 said:
and this is why people use apps like JuiceDefender and Tasker or Locale
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For wifi you can just set the policy to When screen turns off.
So far, not a single person has been able to actually find a wifi bug.
Every time someone thinks they've found it, things have been working as intended.
If you have an app that causes lots of network traffic, it'll inhibit deep sleep, but since most of the time spent handling the network traffic is in excessive suspending/resuming, Android OS gets the blame and not the responsible app.
Useful references:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1290020 - the first 15-20 pages are garbage, but the last 15-20 has some excellent data collection
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1308030 - My list of known identified battery drainers
Let me guess - you are running Skype or another IM application that does not use Google C2DM? (As far as I know, only Google Talk and Tango use C2DM)
I'm surprised that turning off wifi didn't make things worse, unless in your case the app responsible behaves differently when on a cellular network, or you have packet data disabled.
BetterBatteryStats is almost useless for hunting Android OS drain, as it does not show kernel wakelocks. The only way to get the truth is to get the contents of /proc/wakelocks
thank you entropy for that info but yes im stuck at the fact that even on mobile network it dont drain like it does with wifi which im not a pro or anything but im just assuming that it cant be an app cuz if it was i would think it would use the same amount of data whether it was wifi or mobile cuz internet is internet but for me i dont know about other ppl everytime i turn off wifi my battery dramatically increases by alot and my android os is never the highest anymore when its off so i dont know if this will do anything but i will do a factory reset and try my testing again like that and see what happens.... plz correct me if i say anything wrong im just trying to help but i only know so much im not a dev lol
p.s. *edit* oh and to answer your question no i am not using any type of im like skype or what not the only thing i have on the phone is the talk thats on it but ive never even clicked it before so it has never been run yet or set up or w/e not sure of that matters but yea... but thank you entropy for that info it really helped me think a little bit more
quarlow said:
You should always turn off WiFi and Bluetooth when not connected to something. WiFi has been a thorn in my side too. I don't use it very often, and sometimes when I use it at home I forget to turn it off.
One of the things I miss most from my WinMo phone was the constant LED and notification indication WiFi is on. With Android and iOS if you are not connected you don't have any icon showing its on. There should be a WiFi with an X, like when you have no signal, to indicate: Hey you! Yeah, you ... you left WiFi on, you dope! Or, an option built into the OS that will let you turn it off automatically when disconnected for so long. I know there are apps to do this (juice defender is a popular one), but this such a core common sense thing that should be built in. At least with Bluetooth you see the logo staring at you when you leave it on.
Sorry to rant, that's been bugging me for 3 years.
GPS on the other hand only activates and uses battery when needed. However all sort of apps can call the need. Again, this warns you when its in use, so its not a surprise later.
I get much batter battery life than with my captivate, but I keep on top of WiFi and BT when not using them.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree on Bluetooth. I disagree on wifi - Even for background data, wifi is FAR more efficient than cellular data in terms of power usage. There is no longer any reason to turn off wifi, unless you have a misbehaving app that consumes lare amounts of data when on wifi.
Unlike previous devices, the standby drain of the BCM4330 chipset in our phones is EXTREMELY low.
If Samsung's power_profile.xml numbers are correct, the wifi standby drain current of the BCM4330 on the Galaxy S2 is less than 1/10 that of the chipset used in the I9000/Captivate.
However, radio data is far less power efficient than it was on the I9000/Captivate - A change in the architecture of our phone's radio interface means that any radio data transfers, even for a single packet, incur a minimum 6 second wakelock penalty. (Compare to an average of 1 second for small wifi packets.) This doesn't even count the power penalties involved in transmitting to the tower vs. transmitting to a wifi access point.
In fact, when taking these two things together (high wakelock penalties for radio data, and wifi standby drain 1/10 that of previous devices), you should actually not only avoid turning off wifi, you should set the sleep policy to "never" so that it prefers wifi to the cell radio.
praramis said:
thank you entropy for that info but yes im stuck at the fact that even on mobile network it dont drain like it does with wifi which im not a pro or anything but im just assuming that it cant be an app cuz if it was i would think it would use the same amount of data whether it was wifi or mobile cuz internet is internet but for me i dont know about other ppl everytime i turn off wifi my battery dramatically increases by alot and my android os is never the highest anymore when its off so i dont know if this will do anything but i will do a factory reset and try my testing again like that and see what happens.... plz correct me if i say anything wrong im just trying to help but i only know so much im not a dev lol
p.s. *edit* oh and to answer your question no i am not using any type of im like skype or what not the only thing i have on the phone is the talk thats on it but ive never even clicked it before so it has never been run yet or set up or w/e not sure of that matters but yea... but thank you entropy for that info it really helped me think a little bit more
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are incorrect. Some apps specifically check whether they are on wifi or on cellular data and change their behavior accordingly. "Internet is Internet" is not true - cell data is fundamentally slower and more expensive in nearly all situations, and as a result, many apps behave differently on wifi.
For example, normally Google Talk will not allow video chat on cellular data, only on wifi, unless it has been hacked to change that behavior.
Some apps specifically have "use this feature only when on wifi" checkboxes, such as Amazon MP3.
I am 90% certain you have such an app somewhere driving data transfers.
Turn on wifi, reproduce the drain, and pull /proc/wakelocks as documented in the threads I linked above.
There has, to this day, not been a single documented case of the wifi chipset just randomly "wigging out" and keeping the device out of deep sleep - in EVERY single case, root cause was eventually traced back to network traffic, which could then be traced to an app. (For example, Skype in AndreLux's case.)
You might also want to install something like My Data Manager to see what is generating your network traffic.
When I first got my GS2, I was getting rapid battery drain and high heat. Turns out, I had put a SD card in that used to be in my old phone, and Google+ was uploading all the old pictures and videos that were on the card. My Data Manager showed me that this had used almost 800M of mobile data.
My data manager will show you what your usage is on mobile and on wifi, and which specific apps are using how much.
Entropy512 said:
Let me guess - you are running Skype or another IM application that does not use Google C2DM? (As far as I know, only Google Talk and Tango use C2DM)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Trillian does as well.
jetarpon said:
You might also want to install something like My Data Manager to see what is generating your network traffic.
When I first got my GS2, I was getting rapid battery drain and high heat. Turns out, I had put a SD card in that used to be in my old phone, and Google+ was uploading all the old pictures and videos that were on the card. My Data Manager showed me that this had used almost 800M of mobile data.
My data manager will show you what your usage is on mobile and on wifi, and which specific apps are using how much.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you guys are such a great help thank you but where can i find your data manager?
Entropy512 said:
I agree on Bluetooth. I disagree on wifi - Even for background data, wifi is FAR more efficient than cellular data in terms of power usage. There is no longer any reason to turn off wifi, unless you have a misbehaving app that consumes lare amounts of data when on wifi.
Unlike previous devices, the standby drain of the BCM4330 chipset in our phones is EXTREMELY low.
If Samsung's power_profile.xml numbers are correct, the wifi standby drain current of the BCM4330 on the Galaxy S2 is less than 1/10 that of the chipset used in the I9000/Captivate.
However, radio data is far less power efficient than it was on the I9000/Captivate - A change in the architecture of our phone's radio interface means that any radio data transfers, even for a single packet, incur a minimum 6 second wakelock penalty. (Compare to an average of 1 second for small wifi packets.) This doesn't even count the power penalties involved in transmitting to the tower vs. transmitting to a wifi access point.
In fact, when taking these two things together (high wakelock penalties for radio data, and wifi standby drain 1/10 that of previous devices), you should actually not only avoid turning off wifi, you should set the sleep policy to "never" so that it prefers wifi to the cell radio.
You are incorrect. Some apps specifically check whether they are on wifi or on cellular data and change their behavior accordingly. "Internet is Internet" is not true - cell data is fundamentally slower and more expensive in nearly all situations, and as a result, many apps behave differently on wifi.
For example, normally Google Talk will not allow video chat on cellular data, only on wifi, unless it has been hacked to change that behavior.
Some apps specifically have "use this feature only when on wifi" checkboxes, such as Amazon MP3.
I am 90% certain you have such an app somewhere driving data transfers.
Turn on wifi, reproduce the drain, and pull /proc/wakelocks as documented in the threads I linked above.
There has, to this day, not been a single documented case of the wifi chipset just randomly "wigging out" and keeping the device out of deep sleep - in EVERY single case, root cause was eventually traced back to network traffic, which could then be traced to an app. (For example, Skype in AndreLux's case.)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thank you im learning every day because of ppl like you who like to share information like that i would love to reproduce the drain and pull the wakelocks but honestly i have no idea how to and i havent really searched for it either but i think i might just have to learn how to use adb and what not hopefully i can find out what app is draining my battery and causing android os to be super super high thx
I gave the ADB commands necessary for pulling the wakelocks file in one of the threads I linked on the first page.
For getting ADB set up, if you're on Windows you may want to look for Droid Explorer (Google it) - it's a pretty nifty frontend to ADB and I believe it helps you install ADB.
praramis said:
you guys are such a great help thank you but where can i find your data manager?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The name of it is "My Data Manager." It's in the market.
It's not mine, I just use it.
Okay..u guys should try out a app called "WIFI STATUS". It gives u a notification when your wifi is on but not connected. Really a awesome app.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using xda premium
Entropy512 said:
I gave the ADB commands necessary for pulling the wakelocks file in one of the threads I linked on the first page.
For getting ADB set up, if you're on Windows you may want to look for Droid Explorer (Google it) - it's a pretty nifty frontend to ADB and I believe it helps you install ADB.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thank you i will def look into that im actually installing right now.....
jetarpon said:
The name of it is "My Data Manager." It's in the market.
It's not mine, I just use it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thx i will try this out
punjabiest said:
Okay..u guys should try out a app called "WIFI STATUS". It gives u a notification when your wifi is on but not connected. Really a awesome app.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
On but not connected shouldn't be a problem for our devices - see my previous posts about the fact that our standby drain is supposedly VERY low.
On but transferring lots of background data when connected will go killtacular on your battery.

Better for Battery Life: Wifi or HSDPA

Hi all, Blue here,
I am using a slightly modified rom made bsaed on the hktw rom made by a local. I am just wondering if wifi or data takes more battery generally?
BlueEditionE6 said:
Hi all, Blue here,
I am using a slightly modified rom made bsaed on the hktw rom made by a local. I am just wondering if wifi or data takes more battery generally?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
2g<wifi<3g<4g for battery drain, or at least that's what i've found from my side, with 2 g taking up the least battery, and 3g/4g taking up the most.
davtse said:
2g<wifi<3g<4g for battery drain, or at least that's what i've found from my side, with 2 g taking up the least battery, and 3g/4g taking up the most.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
On the Droid Razr (and infact any Android device) wifi uses MUCH less power and resources than HSDPA/3G+ services. The reason being that the gain needed on the radios part to receive a packet via wifi is (generally) much less than over a cellular connection, due to the quality of the signal being much higher. It hasn't got to work as hard to get a good set of packets to work with. Your phone will be working like a mad thing trying to buffer a YouTube video on HSDPA - dealing with massive packet loss and syphoning the 'good' data from the 'bad' data - whereas on wifi with much less packet loss and a higher rate of that 'good' data being received, it can relax a little.
My advice on battery life - download a data "toggle" widget and place it on an unused home screen. Whenever you are not using any mobile data services turn it off using this widget. Leave wifi on only when at home/a location where you know you will be able to use it. Turn it off when you go out. When you want to use mobile data when wifi is not available, just toggle it on. I get 3+ days of always-on use using this method.
davtse said:
2g<wifi<3g<4g for battery drain, or at least that's what i've found from my side, with 2 g taking up the least battery, and 3g/4g taking up the most.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
FrankPlummer said:
On the Droid Razr (and infact any Android device) wifi uses MUCH less power and resources than HSDPA/3G+ services. The reason being that the gain needed on the radios part to receive a packet via wifi is (generally) much less than over a cellular connection, due to the quality of the signal being much higher. It hasn't got to work as hard to get a good set of packets to work with. Your phone will be working like a mad thing trying to buffer a YouTube video on HSDPA - dealing with massive packet loss and syphoning the 'good' data from the 'bad' data - whereas on wifi with much less packet loss and a higher rate of that 'good' data being received, it can relax a little.
My advice on battery life - download a data "toggle" widget and place it on an unused home screen. Whenever you are not using any mobile data services turn it off using this widget. Leave wifi on only when at home/a location where you know you will be able to use it. Turn it off when you go out. When you want to use mobile data when wifi is not available, just toggle it on. I get 3+ days of always-on use using this method.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks guys, coz I notice that it seems like when I am using wifi, the batter goes faster. Maybe it's because when I am connected to wifi I use it more often? Thanks again
Sent from my XT910 using xda premium
It could well be. Or if you have applications that are configured to only sync/update when on wifi, this will naturally put your phone to more use than if say you only used 3G/HSDPA for checking email.
BlueEditionE6 said:
Thanks guys, coz I notice that it seems like when I am using wifi, the batter goes faster. Maybe it's because when I am connected to wifi I use it more often? Thanks again
Sent from my XT910 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When you say you have compared them with 3G , it means the phone's data sync causing this problem is out of question. As in both cases ( wifi and 3G) the phone would connect to data based on the set intervals.
Possible cause: if you have multiple wifi sources near your devices and you have granted them access, here your phone constantly tries to connect to the best available wifi . If this is true , just use wifi managers available on Play store or remove access to unwanted wifi routers/access points.

[Q] Wifi settings for min. battery consumption

Hi,
I was trying to search but didn't find a conclusive answer.
Which option is better in terms of battery consumption, especially during the night:
1. Turn off wifi and use cellular data.
2. wifi + Keep Wi-Fi on during sleep set to "Never".
3. wifi + Keep Wi-Fi on during sleep set to "Only when connected".
4. wifi + Keep Wi-Fi on during sleep set to "Always".
Thanks in advance!
bump...
anyone knows?
Animor said:
Hi,
I was trying to search but did find a conclusive answer.
Which option is better in terms of battery consumption, especially during the night:
1. Turn off wifi and use cellular data.
2. wifi + Keep Wi-Fi on during sleep set to "Never".
3. wifi + Keep Wi-Fi on during sleep set to "Only when connected".
4. wifi + Keep Wi-Fi on during sleep set to "Always".
Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You have sort of answered your own question... for Minimal battery consumption set it to 2 (Never). I would recommend just sticking to 3 which is better for overall use or just toggling your Wifi yourself.
#2 amigo
Sent from my Nexus 7 using XDA Premium HD app
Aegishua said:
You have sort of answered your own question... for Minimal battery consumption set it to 2 (Never). I would recommend just sticking to 3 which is better for overall use or just toggling your Wifi yourself.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for your answer.
But isn't setting it to 2 during night is the same as turning wifi off and use cellular data instead?
So does it mean that cellular data is better in terms of battery?
And why 3 is better for overall use?
Lets assume that cellular data is free of charge for this matter, and my only concern is battery.
Sent from my Galaxy S3 using Tapatalk 2
Animor said:
Thank you for your answer.
But isn't setting it to 2 during night is the same as turning wifi off and use cellular data instead?
So does it mean that cellular data is better in terms of battery?
And why 3 is better for overall use?
Lets assume that cellular data is free of charge for this matter, and my only concern is battery.
Sent from my Galaxy S3 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Listen to Coreym and set it to 2 all the time, wifi uses way less batterylife than 3G mate. 3G sucks the life out of your battery. Just try it and you will see
what about using only 2G instead of 3G? How it is compared to WiFi usage?
Garreth88 said:
what about using only 2G instead of 3G? How it is compared to WiFi usage?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sure and while you`re at it disable 3 cores permanently, lower brightness to 0 and don`t ever use your phone for better batterytime, 2G will consume more power as it is slower and so it takes longer to retreive data.
gee2012 said:
Listen to Coreym and set it to 2 all the time, wifi uses way less batterylife than 3G mate. 3G sucks the life out of your battery. Just try it and you will see.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, but if wifi is better than 3g for the battery, why not set it to 3 or 4 and use wifi all the time?
Sent from my Galaxy S3 using Tapatalk 2
Animor said:
Ok, but if wifi is better than 3g for the battery, why not set it to 3 or 4 and use wifi all the time?
Sent from my Galaxy S3 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just looked in my own settings and i have option 3 checked: wifi on Always. It also depends on the user, do you use wifi a lot or just once in a while. The best thing to do is try a few settings for yourself and see which setings consumes the least amount of battery.
Settings WiFi on always .
WiFi / mobile data not in use or not required = turned off via toggles .
jje
But I do want data during the night - for example for whatsapp, emails and so on. So turning both off is not an option for me.
- On one hand, people here say to set wifi, but "never" during sleep. But that means to use only 3g during the night, doesn't it? Or I'm missing something here?
- On the other hand, 3G costs more than wifi in terms of battery.
So I don't understand how these two go together.
I have set to "Always" so the device have not to reconnect when unlocking screen, what drains battery imho.
But in the night I set flight mode on cause I want and need to sleep and don't need new SMS or Whatsapp or calls
Animor said:
But I do want data during the night - for example for whatsapp, emails and so on. So turning both off is not an option for me.
- On one hand, people here say to set wifi, but "never" during sleep. But that means to use only 3g during the night, doesn't it? Or I'm missing something here?
- On the other hand, 3G costs more than wifi in terms of battery.
So I don't understand how these two go together.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can someone clarify this for me please?
3g doesn't cost more in terms of battery so long as you have a very good signal. If you don't or if for some reason the network has a problem then it will drain the battery.
What I recently started using is a program called ds battery saver which toggles wifi or 3g periodically depending on what you set it up for so that you do get night time data but not on all the time. That helps with battery

Mysterious battery drain. Please help! (need PROs)

Intro
Hello I'm a very old lurker in this forum yet a new member and this is my first post so please don't kill me if I failed to follow the rules or if my English sucks. I will try to organize this thread and make it clear and easy to understand and read, while providing as much information as I can.
The Problem
So my i9100 has been having extreme battery drain lately, about 2% per 3 minutes. I refrain from using it throughout the day to help my battery hold until night. When I do so, it is usually about 40% by the time I go to sleep with having BARELY used the phone. Probably just now and then to answer a Whatsapp message or to check the time. I've long ago uninstalled all games since I can't even think of playing games with this horrible battery status.
How it started
The last thing I can remember before starting to have this problem is about a year(?) ago when I was on Jellybam. I had good battery, and then a build with an excellent battery came out and it worked perfectly. I can't remember which version it was, but a little after that, I updated Jellybam and noticed SUPER battery drain. I waited a little for the next updates but it wasn't fixed, so I changed a ROM. I noticed that it wasn't helping. So I tried the following for a couple of months now:
Attempts To Solve The Problem
I have tried the following:
Using lowest screen brightness
Disabling obvious stuff like GPS, Bluetooth, Wifi, 3G
Closing or even NOT installing any known battery consuming apps
NOT using task killers
USING task killers
Underclocking
Removing widgets. Using least icons possible on launcher
Using many different launchers
Changing ROMs, kernels and both
Reverting back to stock
Buying a new battery (extended and not original)
Trying a new original battery from a friend who has i9100
Flashing modems and RILs, including GetRIL. In fact, I've had better battery with worse signal (but not always). I think it was with XXLPH or XXLPW.
Using battery savers like JuiceDefender which basically do everything I've already tried. What's a smartphone without internet
Using BetterBatteryStats and Gsam Battery Monitor Pro. Did not notice anything special (but I am not pro enough to understand everything on BBS, though I googled some of the things and haven't noticed something unusual). Maybe some pro can help me with it.
Assumptions / Notes
A couple of versions ago, I have used Omega ROM version 4.2.1 which suddenly fixed(?!) my battery. I can't remember which build it was, but the new one doesn't fix the battery drain. I assume it could be due to the radio update to XXMS2
I have a feeling that the drain is related to the modem (aka baseband), because I've had some more battery-friendly modems and some less
I have tried many modems that are supposed to work perfectly (and really gave me good connection speed and signal), but they did not fix the battery drain. Even on stock rom
My provider is Golan Telecom, which is supposed to work good with Cellcom modems, but it didn't. At least not battery-wise
Last resort can be taking it to a lab, but it's hard for me to stay without my phone, and I think people here are more skilled than the noobs in the lab.
Can the problem be hardware-related but not battery-related? May it be caused by the huge amount of times I've flashed ROMs and kernels?
Had my phone for around 2 years
Never bricked my phone
Sorry for being a burden to this forum with this first post of mine, but thanks a TON of anyone who can shed some light on this problem for me!
*I have attached one log of BBS
2h screen on , 3h wifi running and 50% how you did that?
I don't think that is a big battery usage
Which battery do you have?
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
krazy1101 said:
2h screen on , 3h wifi running and 50% how you did that?
I don't think that is a big battery usage
Which battery do you have?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't know, the battery is just dying so fast...
I got the original one that comes with the i9100
It doesn't look horrendous to me. Things to do though :
1. Grant BBS root rights. Need it to see network and alarms.
2. Did you play music at all? If not, you need to diagnose apps which are putting out sound. Viber is a common culprit.
3. Deleted_wakelocks comes when you turn wifi off. As it's so large, something is killing you when you're on wifi. My guess would be wlan_rx_wakelock. Basically you need to turn off wifi when you're not actively using it to avoid the drain from it. "Better wifi on/off" may be an app which helps you out there, it'll automate the turning of wifi on and off with your screen.
Sent from a galaxy far, far away
Hopper8 said:
It doesn't look horrendous to me. Things to do though :
1. Grant BBS root rights. Need it to see network and alarms.
2. Did you play music at all? If not, you need to diagnose apps which are putting out sound. Viber is a common culprit.
3. Deleted_wakelocks comes when you turn wifi off. As it's so large, something is killing you when you're on wifi. My guess would be wlan_rx_wakelock. Basically you need to turn off wifi when you're not actively using it to avoid the drain from it. "Better wifi on/off" may be an app which helps you out there, it'll automate the turning of wifi on and off with your screen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for your reply.
1. I have given it root rights, and will soon upload an updated log
2. I haven't played music at that time, not that I remember, but even with different players or not players at all, and without sound on keypress, the same drain is occuring. Also, I have long ago stopped using Viber as it eats the battery even more. My battery can't afford to have Viber :/
3. The drain seems to continue with or without wifi. I usually leave my wifi on when I'm at home, like now, but I have also tried, many times, to leave 3G without wifi and see if the battery improves. It didn't, unfortunately.

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