If you had to identify some of the most annoying things in your life, a constantly-dying cell phone would probably rank up there on the list. There’s nothing quite as frustrating as charging your cell phone only to have it fizzle out a few hours later. And don’t you love when it happens right in the middle of a call or text? Or while you’re stuck in traffic?
When you’re caught up in that kind of situation, your first reaction is probably to toss the phone out the window, and then run over it a few times. Unfortunately, an unreliable cell phone battery is fairly common, and affects both iPhone and Android users.
The good news, is that there are ways to preserve your cell phone's power source. Check out some of these tips below:
When you’re caught up in that kind of situation, your first reaction is probably to toss the phone out the window, and then run over it a few times. Unfortunately, an unreliable cell phone battery is fairly common, and affects both iPhone and Android users.
The good news, is that there are ways to preserve your cell phone's power source. Check out some of these tips below:
- Go to Settings > Battery to see what apps and features have been draining the battery the most. They'll be displayed in descending consumption order so you can get a handle on what's sucking up the most energy, and decide whether you want to continue devoting that much power to each application/feature.
- If your phone has an extra power saving mode, use it if at all possible. Doing so could allow you to gain additional hours of standby time. Just keep in mind that it could also limit the device's capabilities.
- Reduce the brightness. This one move alone can noticeably boost your battery's life. The majority of phones manufactured these days include an auto-brightness feature that automatically adjusts the screen's brightness to suit the surrounding light level.
- Adjust your screen timeout settings so your phone's screen will power down faster when it's not being used. Keeping the screen timeout short reduces the amount of time the screen stays lit throughout the day, which can save you some major battery power.
- Apps that use GPS, Wi-Fi and mobile data to monitor your location are a huge battery drain. So when you’re not using the location-specific features on those apps, revoke their access to location services. Android users can also visit Settings > Location > Mode and select the “Battery Saving” option over “High Accuracy” to use Wi-Fi and mobile networks to determine your location instead of GPS, which tends to drain the battery faster.
- Monitor your phone’s signal strength. If you’re in an area with poor cellular coverage, the phone will have to work harder to pull in a signal. And if there’s no chance of getting a signal at the moment, switch the phone to Airplane mode to save energy.
- Portable USB power banks give you the flexibility of charging your phone on-the-go. And depending on your device, you may be able to buy a case with built-in batteries to give you extra power every time your phone is charged.
- Make sure your apps are up-to-date, as the latest versions often use less battery power.
- If you have your ringer turned on, turn off the “Vibrate” setting. When your phone is set to vibrate, it uses a lot more power than it would if just a ringtone were selected. That’s because it takes more energy to make the phone shake than it does to make it ring.
- If you’ve been experiencing unexplained battery drainage problems, rebooting your phone from time to time could help.