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Sudden increase in battery and data usage

H

HilaryN

Lurker
I have a Samsung Galaxy S2, Android Gingerbread 2.3.5.

Two weeks ago my battery suddenly started draining really quickly, lasting half a day instead of 2 days. Similarly with my spare battery (lasting a couple of hours instead of a day).

At the same time 3G Watchdog warned me that I had nearly reached my monthly data limit of 500MB even though I was only half way through the month and hadn't been using the Internet any more than usual (I would normally only use about 250MB a month).

All my apps are set to manually sync. The only apps I can think which might use data in the background are BBC Weather (refreshes every 4 hours, unlikely to be the problem as I can see the data going up by the minute in 3G Watchdog) and Whatsapp.

I've gone into Settings, Accounts & Sync, and unticked Background Data. This has reduced data consumption from around 20+MB a day to 7MB a day - still much higher than it used to be and much higher than I want as that represents half my data allowance without me even doing anything.



After doing this I tried using the Network Usage app to find out what was using the data but the figures don't seem to correspond with those in 3G Watchdog. It shows Maps and Google Play Services as the top users.

I've also deactivated data when I'm not using the phone.

Battery usage seems much better as a result of these 2 actions.

However when I go into Play Store it forces me to switch the Background Data option back on...

I have to have data switched on to use sat nav (Google Navigate)... but it's taking half an hour to find GPS signal, (though it's better with background data switched off)... I'm guessing this is because so much data is being chewed up otherwise :-( and it's making sat nav unusable. I work in a different place every day and rely heavily on satnav.

Is all this a result of the recent Google Play Services update? I'm on v 5.0.84 (1259630-034). At one stage battery usage showed Google Play Services at the top , now it shows Andriod OS.



What can I do about this? It's not practical to keep deactivating data and background data because I'm sure I will forget. Is there a way to uninstall the latest update of Google Play Services to see if this fixes the problem?



I'd be grateful for any suggestions.
 
Welcome to the forums, HilaryN! :hello:
As a quick question, why are you still running Gingerbread? Were you ever notified of an update to 4.0+? I'm just curious if perhaps your phone is constantly downloading the update both killing your battery and using data.
 
HilaryN said:
Is there a way to uninstall the latest update of Google Play Services to see if this fixes the problem?
Click to expand...

If you have the option to remove updates it will be at Settings > Apps > Google Play Services > Uninstall Update (on my phone the option is greyed out).

Also what are your Play Store update settings? You can set it to only update over WiFi, here is how to change the Play Store settings:

1. Open the Play Store.
2. In the top left corner tap the shopping bag.
3. Tap Settings.
4. Tap Auto Update Apps.
5. Tap the option you want. The WiFi option will only use WiFi. "Update apps anytime" can use your mobile data. "Do not auto update apps" will not update any apps.
 
Thanks for your replies and thanks for the welcome.

Breadnatty, that's a good question. I was disappointed the phone came with an old version (2 years ago), but if I click Software Update, then Update (I have Auto Update switched off) in About Phone it says no updates are available. I thought I read somewhere I would have to update via a PC and it seemed a bit troublesome, given that I wasn't experiencing problems. But maybe now is the time...

Kate, I only seem to have the option to Uninstall Google Play Services, not uninstall update. (Maybe I should uninstall and install again.)

I have "Do not auto update apps" set and it notifies me when there are updates. (Thanks for the instructions. I wouldn't have remembered where to check that - I would have been looking on the phone.) That's been like that for 2 years and the problem only started 2 weeks ago.
 
Have you downloaded a new app,at the same time or a newg ame or something like that?,we are multiplatform gamers and our our top end tablets we run into that every now and then wehen we install a new game,best way to tell is if when using an app does your battery start to feel really hot,then this sucker is the cause,remove it.Only way around it.Normally though its something you have recently installed to blame when this happens,and as we said only way to rectify is total removal of said app.Hope this helps. If it isn't that,then the only other way is to borrow some friends battery and see if that one drains too,as fast,if it doesn't then its one in a,million event that BOTH your batteries are dying!.
 
Hi juju,

No, I haven't downloaded any new apps.

It's not just battery, it's data as well. There seems to be something running in the background, even when I'm not using the phone, which is eating data and battery, unless I disable data.

When I get time I'm going to try re-installing Google Play Services.
 
Have you tried rebooting the phone? I have a similar problem with battery drain, and factory reset and new battery had no effect. (I'm not sure about data use because my plan has unlimited data so my phone doesn't come with any tracking statistics for usage.) Anyway, I ask about rebooting because in my phone that will fix the problem for the rest of the day (or until the phone gets hot - me getting into a hot car will trigger the battery drain again), and I'm wondering if your problem is similar.
 
I second Lyrl's recommendation to reboot the phone if you haven't already. Some apps run in the background while draining battery and sucking data (like JustUnfollow). If you have an app like that, the draining should stop after a restart until you use the app again, unless it's set to start automatically. Hope this helps.
 
Hi both,

The phone was switching itself off in my handbag at work because the battery was draining so quickly, until I switched off background data + disabled 3G, and I switch the phone off every night.

In battery usage, Android OS is always showing as 70+%. No Apps show in there (that's strange, considering I was using Navigate today - on the car-charger, or my battery would never have lasted even without this problem).
 
HilaryN said:
Hi both,

The phone was switching itself off in my handbag at work because the battery was draining so quickly, until I switched off background data + disabled 3G, and I switch the phone off every night.

In battery usage, Android OS is always showing as 70+%. No Apps show in there (that's strange, considering I was using Navigate today - on the car-charger, or my battery would never have lasted even without this problem).
Click to expand...

Two suggestions: First, it'd be best to upgrade. Believe me, the UI makes it worth it, AND you get a data manager in settings as a useful tool.

However, if you still think it's too much of a bother, try going to Settings>Accounts. Go through each of the accounts and see if there is anything that is constantly trying to sync. I used to have a problem with the Google>Sync Internet constantly churning without ever accomplishing anything. I ended up going to Manage Applications and wiping the data and cache of that app, solving the problem.

Hope one of these two helps you out!
 
Hi HilaryN,

If shutting down background data helps, then I'd bet an app is causing this problem.

I had the exact same issue on a demo Samsung Galaxy S5 I was using. I thought I'd have to mention poor battery life when I wrote the review on it. Then, I started poking around for apps that didn't have a setting to disable auto refreshing and did a force stop on JustUnfollow. After that, no more going dead halfway through the day. Battery started lasting at least two days between charges. I have to make sure I force stop that app if I ever use it.

I also just checked, and the app does not show up in the battery list even when I know it's running and I'm sure it was causing the battery drainage problem. So, whatever app causes your problems is likely hiding behind Android OS or just hiding somehow. I'd be happy to look at your apps list if you'd like me to take a stab at what your offending app might be.
 
New_Guy777 said:
Two suggestions: First, it'd be best to upgrade. Believe me, the UI makes it worth it, AND you get a data manager in settings as a useful tool.

However, if you still think it's too much of a bother, try going to Settings>Accounts. Go through each of the accounts and see if there is anything that is constantly trying to sync. I used to have a problem with the Google>Sync Internet constantly churning without ever accomplishing anything. I ended up going to Manage Applications and wiping the data and cache of that app, solving the problem.

Hope one of these two helps you out!
Click to expand...

Thanks, New_Guy. It was only a bother to upgrade when I wasn't having problems, but I will certainly consider it. I have to use Samsung Kies on my PC to do it, is that right?

How do I see if something is constantly trying to sync? When I go to Accounts & Sync, each app has a grey round arrow next to it. (Whatsapp, Work email in the native email app, Skype, Kobo, Samsung account, Gmail.)
 
catcallsbeth said:
Hi HilaryN,

If shutting down background data helps, then I'd bet an app is causing this problem.

I had the exact same issue on a demo Samsung Galaxy S5 I was using. I thought I'd have to mention poor battery life when I wrote the review on it. Then, I started poking around for apps that didn't have a setting to disable auto refreshing and did a force stop on JustUnfollow. After that, no more going dead halfway through the day. Battery started lasting at least two days between charges. I have to make sure I force stop that app if I ever use it.

I also just checked, and the app does not show up in the battery list even when I know it's running and I'm sure it was causing the battery drainage problem. So, whatever app causes your problems is likely hiding behind Android OS or just hiding somehow. I'd be happy to look at your apps list if you'd like me to take a stab at what your offending app might be.
Click to expand...

Thanks, catcallsbeth. That would be great if you could. Where would I go to check the list? Is it in Applications, Running Services?
 
Just an update: I finally bit the bullet and uninstalled Google Play Services. I'm happy to say, my phone is back to its old self in terms of battery and data usage - no need to turn off my 3G when out and about.

I thought it might re-install itself when I wasn't looking, but it doesn't seem to have yet. I think it's over a week, now. (I haven't yet visited the Play Store since uninstalling, though.)

No adverse effects as far as I can see since uninstalling. Google Maps and Navigate work fine.

I still haven't upgraded my Android version as I have to get a new PC first - mine's on its last legs and doesn't have space for Kies. I'll get around to it one day!

Thanks again for all the replies - I really do appreciate the support.
 
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