Hey everyone!
So I'm sure we've all seen the endless amount of heating and battery drain threads here on the forum, well in order to help those with these issues I've decided to create a thread of my own with the tips I've tested and have verified to work with several different users here on the forum. Now I'm sure a good amount of you have seen my screenshot passed around with a few of my tips so this will have all of that and a few more things explained.
So first off for the most part battery drain and heating go hand in hand so these tips should kill two birds with one stone.
Android System "drain" Explained
Android System is the "system server" which runs all the background services on the system. These are services that any installed app can start on boot. The app doesn't have to be running or in Recents. Anytime an app needs to check the internet for new posts or messages or whatever, a background services does this. There are other reasons for background services as well. Some apps "retry" when an error occurs, which mean they could be in a tight loop burning through your battery but you'll never know what causes it because all you see is Android System high. Generally, this should be a lower percentage than your screen. When its really high, it's an app problem.
App drains and 'alternatives' suggestions (NOTE: I am in no way associated with any of the developers of these apps nor am I being influenced or paid to promote them I genuinely enjoy them)
So many users I find tend to have much battery drain because of poorly developed/optimized apps. You must remember to check which apps that you have installed and their effect on your battery.
Here I will highlight a few well known battery hogs and provide some alternatives:
Facebook: It is very well known that the official Facebook app is a complete battery hog! So my recommended alternative is 'Friendly for Facebook' a nice light weight app with some customization here and there.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=io.friendly&hl=en Friendly for Facebook
Facebook Messenger: It seems like just about all of Facebook's apps need some serious work in terms of battery optimization. Now my recommendation for this is actually 2 you can use 'Friendly for Facebook' as well to get your messages or you can use 'Facebook messenger lite' (download from apkmirror if not found in your market)
Twitter: there are loads of different alternatives for Twitter my personal favorite is 'Flamingo' (Note: it's a paid app)
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.samruston.twitter&hl=en Flamingo
Chrome: Now this is one that you wouldn't expect to be too heavy but it is, I suggest you disable it (I know webview runs natively in chrome but don't worry once you disable it System webview will be enabled instead) the app that I recommend is 'Brave Browser' much more lightweight and the UI is the same as chrome so you won't have to learn to navigate something new
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.brave.browser&hl=en Brave Browser
Google: or should I say Google feed is the cause of quite a bit of drain so I suggest going into the Google app settings and turning off 'my feed' if you do not use it constantly
Settings tweaks
Now these are some changes you will need to make to your settings (don't worry nothing drastic)
WiFi- ok first go into WiFi settings and click the cog wheel now make sure to turn off Smart WiFi Switcher, Scanning always available, and Network Notification
Gestures- Remove any gestures you never use or just turn them all off it's up to you.
Display- Keep automatic brightness off to have better control on how much you actually need so that you can minimize the amount of battery used. I usually keep my brightness at around 25% and adjust it as I see necessary
Battery- Turn on aggressive doze/battery optimization, now under aggressive doze/battery optimization keep the applications that you absolutely need notifications from, 'unoptimized' (messaging apps especially)
*Overnight drain*
It is best to turn off mobile data and WiFi while you are asleep in order to minimize the amount of battery used. AFAIK this is an issue with Android 7.1.1 and has reportedly been fixed in 7.1.2 on Pixel devices though I am not 100% sure
Developer settings tweaks
Now I'm sure most of you know how to access the developer options but for those who don't:
*click the settings menu, and scroll down to "About phone." Tap it.
*Scroll down to the bottom again, where you see "Build number."
*Tap it seven (7) times.
Now that you have the developer options enabled
Enable 'doze mode' first
Now Scroll down until you find 'App WLAN Multi/Broadcasting Filter' turn that on.
Next scroll all the way down and go to 'inactive apps' and turn off everything you don't need in the background.
For those that have asked me in the past and will most likely ask again, here is an explanation for what the 'App WLAN Multi/Broadcasting Filter' does:
(The broadcast filter should be turned on unless you have problems with local (LAN) device discovery. For example, you may have a TV Remote that needs to discover the TV. If it fails, flip this off. There are lots of such broadcast packets on a corporate network and they can wake up the devices daily often when WiFi is on.)
These steps should help some people and improve the state of the forum as of currently. Please if you found these tips useful direct anyone that has opened a 'battery drain or heating thread' here.
Disclaimer: My thoughts and opinions change from time to time…I consider this a necessary consequence of having an open mind. My posts are intended to provide a semi-permanent point in time snapshot and manifestation of the various memes running around my brain, and as such any thoughts and opinions expressed within out-of-date posts may not the same, nor even similar, to those I may hold today.
Special Thanks
I'd like to thank a few people because this thread wouldn't be as informative without them
@elanglois for the great explanations of 'Android System' and 'App WLAN Multi/Broadcasting Filter'
(
@Bobbie63 @sahil.khiwani @adpro @Sun90 @ssagheer @varma246 @Dresa91 ) for helping me test and confirm these tips
@Baymax for the awesome gifs
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