Android battery drain

[Dick Dastardly]

I'm sure everyone noticed that some phones exhibit a battery drain even when all functions are turned off and the phone is even switched off. I always assumed this is because of poor design, but this issue affects both expensive and cheap models from all manufacturers so there's really no way of knowing what you're getting beforehand, not as if reviews will touch the issue, although personally i find it upsetting.

It's not normal to have an electronic device in idle while in airplane mode and the battery losing 1-5% of it's capacity per day without ever touching it.

What's more upsetting is that the battery drain issue is new to me, i don't remember ever noticing it on early or older Android phones, the only way to notice some drain would be to leave them on, in airplane mode for months at a time.

A more current and precise example would be my Motorola phones, a 2023 G32 phone doesn't exhibit any drain even after 1 year of heavy usage, but a brand new G24 loses battery capacity fast no matter what setings are used, the only solution is to completely turn it off while not in use.

My latest theory is that this has something to do with the android OS and not the hardware itself, which makes sense, since like i said, old Android phones did not really manifest this issue no matter what brand or model we are referring to.

I do notice that Android OS has started going downhill maybe around Android 11, i'm sure all those "AI" or "big brother" functions do drain the battery no matter what the usage pattern is, but functionality has been impacted as well and it's becoming frustrating.

No matter what android phone you buy today, the OS will demand on a daily basis you activate Gemini, google discover or some other "feature"(i disable everything by default, even the spell checker and other minor automated functions).

It is truly a slap in the face to spend a small fortune on a so called quality device, only to discover Android or Google reverts your setings, for example the "trending searches", which i turn off constantly only for them to turn it on again, this cat and mouse game(shout out to Windows 11) wears me out to the point that i'm not interested in spending money on another phone, even a cheap one.

Let me tell you something, my 20 year old Nokia N70 turns on and works just fine, there are no ads on that thing and no battery drain either....it's got a 18 year old battery inside(that can be replaced in 10 seconds when needed).

There's only so much i can tolerate for the sake of being able to use my phone as a laptop replacement or web surfing device. Android phones reached their peak around 7-10 years ago, then the rollercoaster of issues started manifesting itself, from green lines, to overheating and now, Android OS acting as if he's in charge and i'm merely the guy allowed to watch ads every time i open youtube, the web browser or even the gallery or any other app ??

 

[Patrick T. Kelly]

My practice is to charge my phone in the evening. I usually charge it to 80%. As soon as it has reached the 80% charge I shut the phone down, power off. With my Sony Phone, when I woke in the morning and turned on the power, I would have around 78%. I asked on a forum of tech folks what was happening and they decided that the start process took 2%. They were wrong. If I turned the phone off, waited an hour and turned in on, I had 80%. The startup had used less than 1% so I assume it was doing something. With my current Xiaomi phone, I charge it to 80%, sometimes it stops charging at 79%, and when I start it in the morning it is still at 80%, sometimes 79%. Sony was doing something while I slept that the Xiaomi doesn't do.

This is just an observation of an 83-year-old man who is not a tech and has never played one on television.

 

[SC489]

The battery will drain just by being connected to the mobile network since there are polling signals between the phone and phone mast. Have only one network active to reduce this drain and switch off 5G if possible which consumes more power. I turn off Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, mobile data & GPS when not needed. Also reduce or stop syncing and put most apps into deep sleep. My S25 drain is 4% overnight on doing this or zero if I turn off the phone at night which I often do.

 

[The Point and Shoot Pro]

I'm sure everyone noticed that some phones exhibit a battery drain even when all functions are turned off and the phone is even switched off. I always assumed this is because of poor design, but this issue affects both expensive and cheap models from all manufacturers so there's really no way of knowing what you're getting beforehand, not as if reviews will touch the issue, although personally i find it upsetting.

It's not normal to have an electronic device in idle while in airplane mode and the battery losing 1-5% of it's capacity per day without ever touching it.

What's more upsetting is that the battery drain issue is new to me, i don't remember ever noticing it on early or older Android phones, the only way to notice some drain would be to leave them on, in airplane mode for months at a time.

A more current and precise example would be my Motorola phones, a 2023 G32 phone doesn't exhibit any drain even after 1 year of heavy usage, but a brand new G24 loses battery capacity fast no matter what setings are used, the only solution is to completely turn it off while not in use.

My latest theory is that this has something to do with the android OS and not the hardware itself, which makes sense, since like i said, old Android phones did not really manifest this issue no matter what brand or model we are referring to.

I do notice that Android OS has started going downhill maybe around Android 11, i'm sure all those "AI" or "big brother" functions do drain the battery no matter what the usage pattern is, but functionality has been impacted as well and it's becoming frustrating.

No matter what android phone you buy today, the OS will demand on a daily basis you activate Gemini, google discover or some other "feature"(i disable everything by default, even the spell checker and other minor automated functions).

It is truly a slap in the face to spend a small fortune on a so called quality device, only to discover Android or Google reverts your setings, for example the "trending searches", which i turn off constantly only for them to turn it on again, this cat and mouse game(shout out to Windows 11) wears me out to the point that i'm not interested in spending money on another phone, even a cheap one.

Let me tell you something, my 20 year old Nokia N70 turns on and works just fine, there are no ads on that thing and no battery drain either....it's got a 18 year old battery inside(that can be replaced in 10 seconds when needed).

There's only so much i can tolerate for the sake of being able to use my phone as a laptop replacement or web surfing device. Android phones reached their peak around 7-10 years ago, then the rollercoaster of issues started manifesting itself, from green lines, to overheating and now, Android OS acting as if he's in charge and i'm merely the guy allowed to watch ads every time i open youtube, the web browser or even the gallery or any other app ??

I think it's a you issue more than an android issue. If I leave my phone off charge after a day of use I will be around 60-70 percent left from heavy use while at work during the daytime. The next morning I will wake up and still have 55 percent or so. so 5% battery drain over night while just sitting there. This is the same for all android devices in my household. The 3 apple devices in our home run down more than that. an iPhone 11, ipad 9th gen and ipad 10th gen all drop around 10 to 12 percent over night if not plugged in. I have 2 pixel 8 pros, a moto g 5g, a flip 6 and a galaxy a8 tablet. None drop more than 5 percent over night.

 

[Fujiuseruk]

You can’t actually turn them off , the only way to do that is to remove the battery .

 

[André BARELIER]

I have no issues with my Pixel 9 pro. The battery lasts for 2 full days.

Maybe I have an explanation about your issue, but I don't know if it's relevant for non Pixel phones.

According to Google, the Pixel can be located even when it's switched off. To do this, I believe that the system relies on other Android phones in the vicinity, but I also believe that the phone is not completely switched off: it probably emits a very weak signal, which allows it to be located by other phones.

If that's true, the loss of charge between 0 and 5% is therefore normal.

 

[I2K4]

Despite continual breathless announcements of improved Android battery management I've never stopped using Greenify for direct control of what's running in the background - it's getting long in the tooth but still functions on A13. There may be current alternatives for newer Android. (In my decade plus with various phones and tablets, some models use much more juice for network standby, screen or other necessary functions than others.)

 

[Rodolfo]

Battery drain when your phone is "inactive" or even turned off, is mostly about battery science/technology, not any operating operating system or version. This does not mean that discharge does not vary across all kinds of product categories, including within categories, and OSs, and brands. Some manufacturers are better at managing battery power and efficiency than others, but none are able to avoid "inactive" discharge.

"Passive" discharging applies to any kind of battery in any kind of device, and there are many variables that affect discharging. None of us has any equipment/kit/whatever that uses batteries, or have any battery of any kind, that does not drain/discharge even when not in use, even when removed from a device. Look up the term self-discharge.

Batteries are quite remarkable in that they are even able to harness/store energy, and Battery Technology is always improving; but, all battery storage capacity is quite imperfect, always has been, and I'd guess always will be.