Evo 3D

[novox77]

Is there a better guide out there then? I was just thinking, an official thread with all the consolidated tips on battery saving would be very helpful.

When it comes to optimizing battery life, less is more in my book, which is why I scorned that 20 tips article. When 5 of those tips are 95% effective, I don't really need the rest of those tips and gain the remaining 5%. But that's just me. I'll give you an example if you can bear a short story:

This past weekend, my wife and I went for a long run. I had my Evo; she had her iPhone. We're both using an app (RunKeeper) to track our locations and report them to a website, where our friends can monitor our run progress. For whatever reason, her GPS was being very inaccurate, which was throwing off not only her location, but her distance, her pace, her splits, elevation, everything.

So I go online afterwards to see if anyone else is getting bad GPS data with their iPhones. Sure enough, there are. The problem? The phone defaults to aGPS data via 3G.... Cell tower triangulation, rather than using satellite trilateration. The solution? Shut off 3G during the run.

Fortunately, the iPhone being GSM and on AT&T allows data on 2G, and the location data being sent to RunKeeper is very small, so the 2G is sufficient. Now she can report accurate positioning. After we verified that disabling 3G fixed the issue, she forgot to turn it back on.

Today, she tells me that her phone battery drained a whopping 10% during the whole day. Normally, her battery is near dead by bedtime. Tonight, it was at 85% full. Phone switches to wifi at home, where she uses her phone the most. But wifi is very easy on the battery. During the day, she's busy at work, and she's on a computer, so she rarely needs data from her phone. So with 3G on, it's draining most of her battery even though she's not really using the phone.

Moral of the story: turn off 3G unless you need it. Android has a lot of toggle widgets that make it really convenient to turn off/on your radios. Use them. This isn't an Android/Evo-specific problem. I cured my wife's _iPhone_ battery woes. Doing this one thing can hugely boost your battery life.

That is why I scoff at tips telling me to turn down my screen brightness or shut off my LED indicator lights. Psh.

Before trying any list of tips, try managing your 3G radio. Use wifi where possible. For most people, this one tip will give your battery the performance you expect from a phone. Naturally, I don't expect this to be the cure-all for all battery woes, but it's a HUGE one. It may be enough, or maybe you need to do more tweaking. But just remember, not all tips are created equal.

Some of you might be thinking that you shouldn't HAVE to manage 3G. That's fine if you feel that way. Just understand that 3G is a fundamental drainer of batteries, so... if you want it to drain away while you're not using the phone, that's your choice too. Again, this isn't Android-specific; it applies to any phone that is 3G-capable.

 

[yourfriendmat]

When it comes to optimizing battery life, less is more in my book, which is why I scorned that 20 tips article. When 5 of those tips are 95% effective, I don't really need the rest of those tips and gain the remaining 5%. But that's just me. I'll give you an example if you can bear a short story:

This past weekend, my wife and I went for a long run. I had my Evo; she had her iPhone. We're both using an app (RunKeeper) to track our locations and report them to a website, where our friends can monitor our run progress. For whatever reason, her GPS was being very inaccurate, which was throwing off not only her location, but her distance, her pace, her splits, elevation, everything.

So I go online afterwards to see if anyone else is getting bad GPS data with their iPhones. Sure enough, there are. The problem? The phone defaults to aGPS data via 3G.... Cell tower triangulation, rather than using satellite trilateration. The solution? Shut off 3G during the run.

Fortunately, the iPhone being GSM and on AT&T allows data on 2G, and the location data being sent to RunKeeper is very small, so the 2G is sufficient. Now she can report accurate positioning. After we verified that disabling 3G fixed the issue, she forgot to turn it back on.

Today, she tells me that her phone battery drained a whopping 10% during the whole day. Normally, her battery is near dead by bedtime. Tonight, it was at 85% full. Phone switches to wifi at home, where she uses her phone the most. But wifi is very easy on the battery. During the day, she's busy at work, and she's on a computer, so she rarely needs data from her phone. So with 3G on, it's draining most of her battery even though she's not really using the phone.

Moral of the story: turn off 3G unless you need it. Android has a lot of toggle widgets that make it really convenient to turn off/on your radios. Use them. This isn't an Android/Evo-specific problem. I cured my wife's _iPhone_ battery woes. Doing this one thing can hugely boost your battery life.

That is why I scoff at tips telling me to turn down my screen brightness or shut off my LED indicator lights. Psh.

Before trying any list of tips, try managing your 3G radio. Use wifi where possible. For most people, this one tip will give your battery the performance you expect from a phone. Naturally, I don't expect this to be the cure-all for all battery woes, but it's a HUGE one. It may be enough, or maybe you need to do more tweaking. But just remember, not all tips are created equal.

Some of you might be thinking that you shouldn't HAVE to manage 3G. That's fine if you feel that way. Just understand that 3G is a fundamental drainer of batteries, so... if you want it to drain away while you're not using the phone, that's your choice too. Again, this isn't Android-specific; it applies to any phone that is 3G-capable.

Agreed. I was shocked the first time I found that Wifi was actually better on my battery than 3G. It really makes sense when you think about it.

 

[Deleted User]

so say, when my phone is in my pocket or it is sitting on the desk at work and i am not using it, i can have a widget that i can snap too and turn off 3G/4G and still get my phone calls and text messages, while keeping the battery load fairly low?

 

[ebolamonkey3]

so say, when my phone is in my pocket or it is sitting on the desk at work and i am not using it, i can have a widget that i can snap too and turn off 3G/4G and still get my phone calls and text messages, while keeping the battery load fairly low?

Yea, you'll still get phone calls and texts on EDGE, like all the dumb phones are able to. But 3G is supposed to provide better call quality.

Does anyone know if Gmail will sync over EDGE? That's the most important thing to me really.

Also, if I put my phone on airplane mode, will it still let me know of missed texts/calls/emails after I turn the connections back on?

The reason I ask is that my work place is shielded so that only AT&T phones work inside the building, and there is no wi-fi. Phones just die if I don't turn off the radio b/c it's constantly searching for signal. My Sanyo Zio didn't even make it through the workday today, but I lasted the whole day on a 60% charge over the weekend when I had good signal.

 

[ArmageddonX]

I'm looking forward to having a phone sophisticated enough to actually have the option to adjust things like 3G/4G radios and other miscellaneous settings. Exciting to me... I'm such a geek lol

 

[novox77]

On a CDMA phone, data only works on 3G, 4G, or wifi. Phone calls and SMS ONLY use 2G. So if you only need your smartphone as a phone, disable all your data radios. Well, leave wifi on if you're on a hotspot. Just staying connected on wifi has almost no effect on the battery. With 3G and 4G off, you won't believe how long your battery will last, especially if you've traditionally kept one or both of these on.

Sense comes with toggle widgets for 3G, 4G, and wifi. If you use an AOSP ROM or use a custom launcher, you'll have to download a toggle widget from the Market. There are a lot of choices. I bought Switch Pro.

Another alternative is to use the Tasker app to set rules for when 3G is turned off and on. That eliminates the need to manually toggle it on/off. I've yet to do this personally, but I've heard people use it to good effect.

 

[jerofld]

I'm looking forward to having a phone sophisticated enough to actually have the option to adjust things like 3G/4G radios and other miscellaneous settings. Exciting to me... I'm such a geek lol

Stay away from Moto, then. The only way I can disable my 3G radio on my Moto is by being in a known WIFI router's range or turning on airplane mode.

 

[ebolamonkey3]

On a CDMA phone, data only works on 3G, 4G, or wifi. Phone calls and SMS ONLY use 2G. So if you only need your smartphone as a phone, disable all your data radios. Well, leave wifi on if you're on a hotspot. Just staying connected on wifi has almost no effect on the battery. With 3G and 4G off, you won't believe how long your battery will last, especially if you've traditionally kept one or both of these on.

Will I still get push notifications from Gmail if I stayed on 2G?

 

[EarlyMon]

Yea, you'll still get phone calls and texts on EDGE, like all the dumb phones are able to. But 3G is supposed to provide better call quality.

Does anyone know if Gmail will sync over EDGE? That's the most important thing to me really.

As EDGE is a 3G tech, I would expect mail to work over EDGE - but I've not been on AT&T in years and am forgetful, so somebuddy smarter has to pitch in and support or correct me on this one.

Also, if I put my phone on airplane mode, will it still let me know of missed texts/calls/emails after I turn the connections back on?

Text and email are data services managed elsewhere and downloaded to your phone when it's available. So yes, when your phone goes back on you'll get your SMS and emails - notifications are configurable, to your liking.

Calls are logged by your handset. If it was off, you ought not see calls that came in. Think of caller id box being unplugged in your house - same thing. But if they left voicemail, those will come through.

 

[dprids]

Well... Reviews are not looking so good...

Planning for disappointment of:
- poor call quality
- poor 3D performance
- poor data performance

Honestly, none of the reviewers is blown away by the phone... But, I need a new phone, and I'm not gonna wait around for the next latest and greatest. Maybe I will just get this phone with no real big expectations...