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Can anyone recommend a good task killer? I was using task manager for a while, but was only getting up about 110 of mem on average. The autokill widget is pretty key, any recs?
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Have you tried not using one? There is no need for an auto one and the task manager built into ji6 is good to check for rouge apps.
Yeah, I was using task manager and then tried using the j16 task killer. The j16 manager doesn't have a quick kill button, and as a result doesn't feature ignore/kill lists.
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you do not need to use any task killers with android.
rlxurmnd said:
you do not need to use any task killers with android.
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That's a matter of preference, not fact.
Personally I like to know what is still running in the background and kill it if need be, or just monitor what stays open that I wasn't expecting. Perhaps that's what the OP was looking for as well?
I use 'System Panel' Works well enough for me - provides adequate feedback about your system. You might find it useful as well.
Advanced task killer? The tmo rep that sold the vibrant to me in july was recommending it to everyone. Theres a quick kill widget and an ignore list option, you can even set it to auto kill when the screen goes off.
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WarezAppz said:
That's a matter of preference, not fact.
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Well seeing as Google and every top android developer says not to use task killers, I'd say its fact.
OP do not use a task killer, especially an auto kill one. If you really need a task manager use Watchdog Lite.
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speoples20 said:
Well seeing as Google and every top android developer says not to use task killers, I'd say its fact.
OP do not use a task killer, especially an auto kill one.
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This. And NEVER take a sales person at their word.
Android does not need a task manager. It does not manage programs the same way that windows does. It will automatically kill apps on it's own if it needs to.
Typos and other gibberish courtesy of Swype
On older "legacy" phones that were fighting for thier share of less then 128mb of RAM I could understand why you would need to free RAM (even though android does it in its own way). On the newer model phones I dont see a need unless you are loading every single screen possible with widgets & have tons of services running in the background.
Between a shortcut to "running services" and the new Task manager, you can see exactly what APPS & SERVICES are still running and which ones are using the CPU.
Simply put.... What app, or appssss for that matter, are you going to load that is going to need all 100+mb of RAM to run????
Have you all not noticed the JI6 task killer shows CPU %... the ONLY thing that matters. I have never seen an app taking up my CPU... that's because android is doing what it's supposed to.
Do NOT use a task killer.
Instead of writing all "Task Killers" off as bad...
You should generally refrain from use of task killers that automatically kill tasks or provide an "End All" functionality. However, I like AppSwipe (from the Market) which is more focused on "Task Switching" than anything else. It can be launched from long pressing the Search key. If you must kill tasks (limited functionality for this is available though the app), only killing the tasks you start (one at a time) is encouraged.
That's my take, anyhow...
^ you suggested something that is already built into our phone. No need for an app.
Couple of things
If you get Watchdog or task manager or alike you will notice that when things are open it provides how much ram is being occupied and how much CPU (usually in %) is being burdened.
So you will notice that Almost all of the programs will be held in TSR (terminate and stay resident) type of stat use, but typically, do not need cpu resources.
So, in other words unless it is using resources like cpu or ram I wouldn't give it a worry
s15274n said:
^ you suggested something that is already built into our phone. No need for an app.
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Yeah, you can get your last 6 opened apps by long pressing the Home key...
Task killers now, are more for saving battery if anything. Apps that are written to stay running in the background are definitely going to kill battery.
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s15274n said:
^ you suggested something that is already built into our phone. No need for an app.
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kuhan said:
Yeah, you can get your last 6 opened apps by long pressing the Home key...
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Seriously? I did no such thing. If you think that just having a limited "recent history" of apps that were running but may not necessarily be currently running at the time of display is the same thing as something like AppSwipe then just ignore my whole previous post. It was meant for those who aren't satisfied by merely long pressing home and want an actual task switcher instead.
ultra spikey said:
Task killers now, are more for saving battery if anything. Apps that are written to stay running in the background are definitely going to kill battery.
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Task Killers drain your battery faster than letting apps run in the background.
speoples20 said:
Task Killers drain your battery faster than letting apps run in the background.
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No it doesn't. Provide some facts to back up that claim please.
speoples20 said:
Task Killers drain your battery faster than letting apps run in the background.
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That's reminds me...ideally if you must use one then at least choose one that can be invoked "on demand" by a hardware button / key when you need it and then ends itself immediately when you're done with it.
Ok I have looked around and have not found the answer. SO here Goes
In windows if you want to keep the memory that you have clear of background applications, you can run system configuration and just remove the check-mark for those items you dont want to auto start.
I have Advanced Task Killer installed and will set it up to auto kill and will manual kill apps as well. Instead of consistently looking at ATK to shut down apps, is there a way to just keep all the apps you not using nor have ever started from suddenly being there and sucking the life out of your battery?
Having applications "running" in the background (i.e., still in memory but in a suspended state) does NOT negatively affect your battery life. These applications are actually just remaining in memory because that memory does not need to be used by anything else at the moment. If an active application gets to a point where it needs more memory, Android will automatically close applications that are in a suspended state (i.e., not actively being used) to make room.
In other words, using an app killer is NOT necessary and I definitely recommend NOT using one. By closing the application repeatedly, you are just causing the application to take a longer amount of time to start up next time you use it. You're making your Android experience worse by using one, not better.
There is one caveat to this, and that is when you have an application installed that doesn't play nicely -- i.e., even when you stop using that application, it will continue to use up CPU cycles (never go into a suspended state). This is actually pretty rare unless you are installing really poorly written programs, but it can happen to some popular apps too (usually the result of a bug). In this case, you should either uninstall that application or use an app killer to only kill that one app.
I've heard both sides of this argument, and don't know who to believe. I didn't think I needed a Task Killer, but then I saw it repeatedly on "top 10 apps for Android" and "must have Android apps" lists from respected sites like cnet... who to believe?!
Cnet ≠ respected
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drumist said:
Having applications "running" in the background (i.e., still in memory but in a suspended state) does NOT negatively affect your battery life.
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I need to confirm this. Anyone? I dont care about memory because I bet Android excels at that, and at any rate, memory is there to be used, not to keep it empty.
But I come from a Symbian smartphone and "minimized" applications DO uses battery. Maybe little, but noticeable.
Anyone can confirm that background apps consume negligible battery juice?
Additionally, is there a nice task changer? Like windows Alt+Tab. I feel my Android like an iPhone, that I need to press the home button to move to another already opened app and that's just plain stupid. So far I'm using Multitasking Lite, but it can get sluggish once there are too many apps opened. Any suggestion would be warmly welcomed.
"Running" background apps DO NOT consume battery life unless they're actively syncing. If it's just in the memory saving the state of the app then that is fine.
As far as using a task killer, if you are manually killing apps and they keep starting back up then that is a bad thing for your battery. The app uses cpu cycles everytime it starts up again and syncs data. You can use a task killer to close apps that opened on startup or when you're done with them. If they stay closed until you choose to open them again then you're saving memory, but nothing to do with battery life.
ocswing said:
"Running" background apps DO NOT consume battery life unless they're actively syncing. If it's just in the memory saving the state of the app then that is fine
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Thanks for confirming ;]
Darius_bd said:
Additionally, is there a nice task changer? Like windows Alt+Tab. I feel my Android like an iPhone, that I need to press the home button to move to another already opened app and that's just plain stupid. So far I'm using Multitasking Lite, but it can get sluggish once there are too many apps opened. Any suggestion would be warmly welcomed.
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Obviously you can switch over to some apps by pulling down the notification menu and selecting the appropriate app. That only works on apps that put themselves in the notification menu though (multimedia apps and things like Google Nav usually do this).
Otherwise, you can press and hold the home button to bring up the list of 8 most recently opened apps without exiting the active app. This works but like I said, it's the 8 most recent apps, so it will list apps that aren't necessarily still running anymore. It's more of a shortcut to having to go search in your apps menu or home screens to find a recent app than a way to see what is currently running.
drumist said:
Otherwise, you can press and hold the home button to bring up the list of 8 most recently opened apps without exiting the active app. This works but like I said, it's the 8 most recent apps, so it will list apps that aren't necessarily still running anymore. It's more of a shortcut to having to go search in your apps menu or home screens to find a recent app than a way to see what is currently running.
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What can I say, I hate pressing the home key to hunt for the icon that opens the app I already opened more than 6 other apps ago ;] Guess I'll stick to Multitasking Lite for the time being. Thanks!
When you have a program open, example is a video player. When I hit the home button does that program really fully close? Why I ask this is because I'll open up a web browser and input a web page. Before the web page even fully loads I'll hit the home button. Then even after a few minutes I'll load up that same browser and that page that didn't fully load will be there loaded up. I just want to make sure that when I close a program, it really is closed. That's all.
Hitting home does not "Close" or quit the program it rather puts it in the back round to fully quit it you must hit the recent apps button (Third on the left) and swipe the app away or get a task manager for those pesky back round apps.
Tech Faded said:
Hitting home does not "Close" or quit the program it rather puts it in the back round to fully quit it you must hit the recent apps button (Third on the left) and swipe the app away or get a task manager for those pesky back round apps.
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Actually swiping apps away from recent list doesn't really close the apps. It just removes them off the recent list. Only a task manager can do that or going into settings, then apps, then force stopping it. But really,Android manages the memory very well itself. Alot of times, the way Android works, manually stopping a program will be more harm than good. Most of the time Android will just pull it back up itself therefore causing more CPU usage for that task tl bring it back. ANDROID keeps some apps semi-loaded. Ones it feels with load faster once you launch it since its already partially loaded. ANDROID is not like a PC where the processes in background will automatically slowbthings down or drain battery faster. Only certain apps that truly run in background can have that effect if too many loaded up. Whatever you do, don't use any auto memory killers or auto task managers or battery saver apps like juice defender, etc... those do more harm than good.
Unless your tablet is running with alot of lag, just try to ignore or resist the urge to keep constantly killing apps or whatever. You will see Android itself does a great job at managing it and will free up memory when actually needed. I'm still trying to do the same also resisting the urge. I just use Asus built in Task manger widget to see what's running in the background. If something clearly not needed then ill kill it. Beware though not to kill system apps or you might cause them to crash or be unstable.
A good app I came across is called BetterBatteryStats. Made by an xda member. Just type name of app in search box here in forum. That app will let you see what's truly running in the background and using up most battery or CPU processes. Has some great tips in there also in help section. IT LET me see how the Google currents app, although I wasn't using it, kept running in the background and using up processes and adding to battery drain. I would always see it pop up in my task manager although I never opened it and I have the refresh data set to long intervals. So it's basically a rouge app..lol. I uninstalled that mofo. Its a great app but runs to much in background regardless of data refresh settings and sometimes doesn't allow prime to stay in deep sleep when screen is off. Partial wakelocks, kernel wakelocks, etc...are all things you have to look over when determining what apps are causing most battery drainage or not allowing prime tl stay in deep sleep. Because they will partial wakelock n get data or whatever. It gets technical..lol learned alot from that one app. Free here in xda forums .
demandarin said:
Actually swiping apps away from recent list doesn't really close the apps. It just removes them off the recent list. Only a task manager can do that or going into settings, then apps, then force stopping it. But really,Android manages the memory very well itself. Alot of times, the way Android works, manually stopping a program will be more harm than good. Most of the time Android will just pull it back up itself therefore causing more CPU usage for that task tl bring it back. ANDROID keeps some apps semi-loaded. Ones it feels with load faster once you launch it since its already partially loaded. ANDROID is not like a PC where the processes in background will automatically slowbthings down or drain battery faster. Only certain apps that truly run in background can have that effect if too many loaded up. Whatever you do, don't use any auto memory killers or auto task managers or battery saver apps like juice defender, etc... those do more harm than good.
Unless your tablet is running with alot of lag, just try to ignore or resist the urge to keep constantly killing apps or whatever. You will see Android itself does a great job at managing it and will free up memory when actually needed. I'm still trying to do the same also resisting the urge. I just use Asus built in Task manger widget to see what's running in the background. If something clearly not needed then ill kill it. Beware though not to kill system apps or you might cause them to crash or be unstable.
A good app I came across is called BetterBatteryStats. Made by an xda member. Just type name of app in search box here in forum. That app will let you see what's truly running in the background and using up most battery or CPU processes. Has some great tips in there also in help section. IT LET me see how the Google currents app, although I wasn't using it, kept running in the background and using up processes and adding to battery drain. I would always see it pop up in my task manager although I never opened it and I have the refresh data set to long intervals. So it's basically a rouge app..lol. I uninstalled that mofo. Its a great app but runs to much in background regardless of data refresh settings and sometimes doesn't allow prime to stay in deep sleep when screen is off. Partial wakelocks, kernel wakelocks, etc...are all things you have to look over when determining what apps are causing most battery drainage or not allowing prime tl stay in deep sleep. Because they will partial wakelock n get data or whatever. It gets technical..lol learned alot from that one app. Free here in xda forums .
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I was under the assumption that ICS fixed that? I suppose I was mistaken I apologize for my misunderstanding.
Demandarin, what makes you think swiping doesn't close a program? It does and its very obvious it works, just swipe then open the same program and you will see it starts over and will not be where you left off.
Try Settings > Developer Options > Don't Keep Activities. Sounds like it will fully close tasks once they are closed.
atgmartin said:
Try Settings > Developer Options > Don't Keep Activities. Sounds like it will fully close tasks once they are closed.
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This is a very bad setting to enable if you ever have to switch back and forth between two different activities (for example email & web browsing). In general you should just leave the developer options alone.
As for closing apps.. why does it matter?
Apps that are not actively running don't use CPU and therefore don't use battery. Some apps sync information in the background, such as weather apps and email and while they do this battery is being used, however you can optimize the frequency of the updating to preserve as much battery life as possible.
In general unless you have experiencing performance issues, let Android manage itself.
If you absolutely need to turn off running apps, use the Asus Task Manager widget that comes pre-loaded on your tablet. You can use the Asus Task Manager to kill individual apps or all apps with a single click.
ON ICS, the swipe does stop the task running in the background, but I've seen where it the app may begin again, but as a background activity as almightywhacko describes.
People don't understand. Apps DON'T "run" in the background. They only run when you interact with them.
Buff McBigstuff said:
People don't understand. Apps DON'T "run" in the background. They only run when you interact with them.
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Well, it depends. Apps don't run in the background like they do in windows, but some apps do continue to run processes in the background like data syncing and what not. However, it the app doesn't do this stuff then it only holds its state.
Also, I have not seen swiping recent apps closing apps. I think it is just happenstance if an app is closed by swiping it off the recent apps. Looking at the logging and monitoring the app state I have seen no correlation between running/not running apps and the recent app list.
However, as other people said, manually closing apps in Android will most likely reduce your performance rather than do anything beneficial.
I always get mad at those stupid apps that pretend to be providing a service. They won't go away. even if kill them they just come back(like Kenny). The app that likes to bother me the most is Zen pinball. I really like the game but it is always popping up prompting me to enable openfeint which I had already signed up for. I press enable but it still does not go away.
UmbraeSoulsbane said:
Well, it depends. Apps don't run in the background like they do in windows, but some apps do continue to run processes in the background like data syncing and what not. However, it the app doesn't do this stuff then it only holds its state.
Also, I have not seen swiping recent apps closing apps. I think it is just happenstance if an app is closed by swiping it off the recent apps. Looking at the logging and monitoring the app state I have seen no correlation between running/not running apps and the recent app list.
However, as other people said, manually closing apps in Android will most likely reduce your performance rather than do anything beneficial.
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Only if they spawn a service. As far as activities, which most people would consider to be the "app" part, those do not run in the background. It just sits until it gets killed or used.
...and I don't mean 'minmize' like what pressing the home or back button does. (which merely puts it in the multitasker menu list, still open.)
I mean closing it like when you swipe it out of the menu list. (which are far as I can tell, seems to close it off enough to stop what it's doing and free up the memory it was using!)
Sometimes I want to just close an app since I know I won't be using it for a while and I want to conserve cpu/memory/battery - or merely manage the list of things in my multitask list. kinda like on Desktop. (you don't want every app on your pc open all at once, do you, do you?!) and I just want a simple way like on the desktop to close that app when I want to close it.
SO: Is there some app that can assign a custom screen gesture (like the lovely letter C for 'close') to perform 'fully exit current app' or some solution like that? I started to research, but couldn't seem to find one very quickly, so thought I'd ask here, at THE place to ask.
also I apologise for using things like Windows terms ('minimize'), i know that's not how it works in android. But you do know what I mean.
Thanks
This is a question that a lot of people ask when moving to Android and the answer simply is, forget about it.
Android handles processes and memory in a completely different way to Windows. When an app is "minimized" it obviously leaves a footprint in the memory, but it uses no CPU (unless it's a polling app or something that keeps alive for a specific purpose).
Just trust Android to handle memory management - it does a very good job of it.
If you really, really MUST do something about it then the best thing you can do is get something like Juice Defender (there's tons of similar apps) and make it kill apps periodically. Most apps that people use for this type of purpose are merely placebo, but if it makes you feel better then I guess it's serving a purpose.
Archer said:
This is a question that a lot of people ask when moving to Android and the answer simply is, forget about it.
Android handles processes and memory in a completely different way to Windows. When an app is "minimized" it obviously leaves a footprint in the memory, but it uses no CPU (unless it's a polling app or something that keeps alive for a specific purpose).
Just trust Android to handle memory management - it does a very good job of it.
If you really, really MUST do something about it then the best thing you can do is get something like Juice Defender (there's tons of similar apps) and make it kill apps periodically.
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Thanks for your answer. I can sense you have wisdom and experience in your words there, but I want to probe a little further.
surely there can be an almost macro-like (again, windows terminology, sorry) functionality, that can be assigned to a gesture swipe that can emulate pressing home button, then swiping the bottom item away from the multitask menu? (which is always the one you just 'minimized')? Could an app like Tasker even do it?
i agree that good memory management is a beautiful thing, but there really should be manual control of closing apps, my reasons above are stated.
i wouldn't touch automatic time-based closing, i sometimes have saved states in apps and wouldn't want them closed when i don't want them closed.
Most apps that people use for this type of purpose are merely placebo, but if it makes you feel better then I guess it's serving a purpose.
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you really think it's all placebo, and that say, running 50 apps in android with finite set amount of ram on the device is all fine simply due to memory management?
is me experiencing lag in some android apps (or battery draining faster than I'd like), then closing off several running apps in the multitask list, then noticing the problem go away, all placebo????? what about google maps, say?! I'd love a one-step swipe action to CLOSE google maps when I'm done with it, not having to press home button, then multitask button, then swipe away google maps. (I know when minimized it consumes nothing like it does when open, but I think still it consumes more than if it were fully closed...)
it's not just about memory. edit: and I already stated in addition, I often want to simply manage what I have open. this is a basic function in desktop OSes, I think it's time it came to mobile. if not officially, there surely must be some hack/tool to do it. :S
download a task killer app with a widget.
press home button and press the widget and you're done
If you're using AOKP based ROM then there is hold back to kill in Settings > ROM control > general UI
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Hold homesçern key
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jman2131 said:
download a task killer app with a widget.
press home button and press the widget and you're done
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that's about 2/3 the way towards the current 3-step solution though :/.
Am I to be amazed that a function to put this simple task into a single gesture hasn't been done? or isn't possible? it HAS to be possible. Otherwise I'd be flabbergasted.
I have googled further and just can't seem to find something :|.
WAIT! I think I have! here. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.goodmooddroid.gesturecontroldemo&hl=en it has a "kill task" function that you can set up a custom gesture for. it's a start.
however I'm getting a "ERROR! No ROOT permissions?" error despite being rooted with supersu and successfully using other root apps etc, so I've emailed the dev and hope I can get it working :S.
But still, it seems a little clunky the offering of custom gesture types. I can't set a nice curvy gesture defined by tracing it on the screen. oh well - it's a start.....
jootanen said:
If you're using AOKP based ROM then there is hold back to kill in Settings > ROM control > general UI
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That seems the holy grail! too bad I'm on stock jb with plans for upgrading to CM .....
Hello, I have Android ICS and when I long press home button I see a task manager (opened apps), but I want to know if when I slide to remove the it will be just removed from list or it will be closed/killed?
Thanks.
When you slide it closes. If you want to kill (I can't see any reasons) just long press, then go to app info and force close.
Press thanks button if I helped
Enjoy the little things - Zombieland
I thought that killing a app I could save battery life.
jjforums said:
I thought that killing a app I could save battery life.
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Killing an app in fact, consumes battery and does not save.
App Killing is actually done to free up RAM, in case if wanted to play some high graphic games.