Help Google Services (power issues, debugging, etc)

[shalemail]

I don't remember where I read it but I swear I saw it in print that Google was going to be doing monthly security updates. (Approximately monthly anyway) via OTA, something that came about due to the stagefright snafu. I will join the chorus and say I hope it's fragmented and sent out via play store updates. Tho I won't be holding my breath.

That is in the top 5 things I miss about my moto X - that all the software Moto added was easily updated via play store (camera, moto assist, moto migrate, all that) much easier to deal with than this buggy azz bait shop.

 

[jj14x]

Even with the Moto X, if google is going to update the OS with monthly security patches, you'll have to deal with an OTA. I can't imagine Moto being able to apply OS level fixes via play store updates.

 

[shalemail]

Even with the Moto X, if google is going to update the OS with monthly security patches, you'll have to deal with an OTA. I can't imagine Moto being able to apply OS level fixes via play store updates.

I am certain you are correct.

But a guy can dream right?

Even through all this, I look at the new Nexus 5X and 6P and I feel really good that I still have the best Nexus phone available, is it just me?

 

[lunatic59]

I agree. I'm not impressed with either. I think Google is looking for that perfect blend of features and affordability and compromising both. The only thing other than Marshmallow that i'd like to try is the fingerprint sensor and see how fast/accurate it is in real world use.

 

[shalemail]

Agreed

I agree. I'm not impressed with either. I think Google is looking for that perfect blend of features and affordability and compromising both. The only thing other than Marshmallow that i'd like to try is the fingerprint sensor and see how fast/accurate it is in real world use.

Agreed. I had the Atrix back in the day and I loved the fingerprint scanner on it. Worked flawlessly. Very sad Moto never brought it back. But other than that ... 2 GB of RAM? Really? And the camera bulge on both ...uck, the Huawei is ....decent looking I suppose (other than the camera) but even it pales to the moto x pure, IMHO.

Back on subject, I am at 57% battery today, no anomalies, phone has been on since 4AM says I have till 11PM tonight. So tomorrow I will test again WITH the 360 mated to it, with WiFi on and BT on and we'll see where I am at by lunch.

 

[carrisco]

Hello Shalemail.

You're definitely not the only one with battery drain issues on 8.1.15...

My problem is even a little more odd.. I didn't have battery drain issues PRIOR to Google Play Services 8.1.15. It automatically updated on my phone on September 24 and that's when the crap hit the fan...

I'm using an S4 Mini Duos (GT-i9192) running KitKat 4.4.2 and never previously had an issue with battery drain (at least nothing severe enough to complain).

I've attached two photos below to illustrate the battery usage stats and specific Google Play Services info, etc. It definitely appears to be a wakelock issue. Since I can't access App Ops with KitKat 4.4.2, is there any way to deny the wakelocks without rooting? I use the phone for work and don't really want to root it just to get my normal battery life back. Pretty silly that an end user would need to perform a task like rooting just to get normal battery life.

Any ideas appreciated and sorry for harpooning the thread... But I felt it was related and also interesting that my problems STARTED with 8.1.15 rather than being solved with the upgrade...

192.185.14.156/~megabyte/rand_pics/Screenshot_2015-09-30-13-22-30.png
192.185.14.156/~megabyte/rand_pics/Screenshot_2015-09-30-13-22-39.png

-b.

 

[shalemail]

Well in my case it looks to have been entirely tied to one or more of the watch faces I had downloaded. Once I removed them I have not had the issue with Google services. That said. I am pretty sure when I got the latest update is when this all started. I should be able to have 50 watch faces that I downloaded from Google play and not have it cause a problem, its something Google needs to address go be sure. Since you're not on a nexus I can't say hold out for a week or two and you'll have marshmallow, instead I will say go through your apps and figure out which one or more are causing the problem and ditch them until the next update. Or .... Carry a spare external battery anker makes some nice affordable options. I have 2 for when the wife and I camp or travel. Good luck.



Update :



Here's the latest. Tuesday and Wednesday were my test days. On Tuesday I rolled sans Moto 360. A sad day indeed. With WiFi and BT off I made it all day had about 40% battery left by days end. (There is one caveat - I had to put it into airplane mode to get it to kill WiFi. I obviously took it back out of airplane mode but had to toggle it to get it to actually turn off the WiFi service. This bothers me.) Then yesterday I rolled with the Moto 360 (yay ) I left BT on and WiFi on (connected here at work) and made it to bed with 16%. Acceptable obviously cause I made it through my day, but unacceptable in the case of overall battery life.

Something is afoul in my phone and it's keeping my WiFi and/or my mobile data active and burning battery. My Android OS is eating enough battery to be in my top 2 or 3 battery stats. I am really hoping Marshmallow fixes it. If not I will factory re-set. If I am still having issues ... well honestly I haven't gotten that far. I may buy the X Pure or hell ....I may go fruity.
May the Lord have mercy on my android soul.

)EDIT(

The phone wants to stay awake all the time (or IS staying awake all the time) I downloaded greenify and it has been able to keep it asleep (the last 2 hours or so) so we'll see.

)UPDATE(

I went ahead and got a Moto X - I'm keeping the Nexus and I am not 100% sure I'll be keeping THIS X but already it is showing me how poorly the N6 is running right now. Really hoping Marshmallow fixes it.

 

[Curtis1973]

point blank : google apps are just energy consuming bloatware at this point. i delete everything related to google as soon as i can gain root. google offers me nothing to continue enduring the endless updates that seem to increase in size by two fold each update. i can recall when everyone wanted google apps. now people cant wait to get it off their devices.

 

[jwbeeler]

It's quite odd, this seems to be so arbitrary. One day Google Services will consume a lot of battery, the next day I go to bed with 75% battery remaining. It's pretty frustrating.

 

[jj14x]

point blank : google apps are just energy consuming bloatware at this point. i delete everything related to google as soon as i can gain root. google offers me nothing to continue enduring the endless updates that seem to increase in size by two fold each update. i can recall when everyone wanted google apps. now people cant wait to get it off their devices.

I understand/agree that there are times when Google services go haywire and start sucking battery down. But f you remove all google apps/services (I assume you do remove play services - that's the main battery hog for most people that have issues with G battery impact), what exactly are you gaining from getting a Google device? Why not just flash CM or another custom ROM?

For me, I can't remember the last time I had excessive drain from Google Services (never seen drain from other Google apps that I was not actively using). Google Photos/Google Now/maps/keep/Authenticator - If I got rid of those apps, I might as well get a blackberry or Windows phone

 

[Curtis1973]

You do have a point. No it isnt all of Google apps. Primarily play services. But if you remove or disable it you cripple the rest. So its a danged if you di or danged if you dont with google. So I just decided to delete it all and use third party.

 

[jj14x]

One thing that helps is a periodic reboot. In the (not-so-recent) past, I used to sometimes see play services battery usage spike a day or so after a new play services update. A reboot would fix it. So, now, I have just gotten into the habit of just rebooting my phone every weekend. Takes a minute or so, but no battery draining issues anymore. YMMV of course

 

[Guitardoc64]

I do that a couple of times a week. Wed and Sat usually. Or if I'm trying a new layer, sometimes it works better with a full reboot. I'll keep that in mind when I see play service getting greedy.

 

[shalemail]

I do a hard reboot (long press on power button) after every updated app now and at least weekly besides. I have had no noticeable issues with the N6 for weeks. Running like a gazelle.