4 Smartphone Settings Tips to Extend Battery Life for Both iOS and Android

Revealing 4 smartphone settings tips that help extend battery life, including background app refresh and location access permissions. These techniques apply to both iOS and Android devices.

Fast Company magazine published an article recommending four smartphone settings to extend battery life to last all day without using power-saving mode. It points out that the common cause of battery draining quickly in the afternoon is usually not battery degradation but many background services running constantly, including apps using GPS, fetching data over weak cellular signals, and high-resolution displays with high refresh rates.

The first tip is to limit background app refresh. Fast Company notes that most apps don't need this feature, especially social media, shopping apps, and typical games that use this permission to quietly download ads and content while the device is idle.

• On iOS, go to Settings, select General, then Background App Refresh. Change the setting from Wi-Fi and Cellular to Wi-Fi Only, or turn it off entirely except for essential email and chat apps.
• On Android, go to Settings, select Apps, then choose unnecessary apps one by one. Enter Battery settings and set background usage to Restricted.

The second tip is to check location access permissions, since GPS is one of the most power-consuming components. When apps check location frequently in the background, the system activates location hardware and rapidly drains power. The solution is to go to location privacy settings.

• ..On iPhone, go to Privacy and Security, then Location Services.
• On Android, go to Settings, select Location, then App permissions.

Then change unnecessary apps from Always to While Using the App, or disable them entirely. Also, turn off Precise Location for apps like weather or news that only need to know the general province.

The third tip is to reduce screen load, as the screen is the most power-hungry hardware. There are three sub-methods.

The first is enabling Dark Mode, which is effective only on OLED screens because OLED lights individual pixels, and pixels showing true black use almost no power.

• On iOS, set this in Settings under Display and Brightness, then select Dark.
• On Android, go to Settings, Display, then turn on Dark theme or Dark mode on Samsung devices.

The second method is turning off Always-on Display.

• On iOS, go to Settings, Display and Brightness, then Always On Display.
• On Android, go to Settings, Display, then Lock screen.

The third method is to limit the screen refresh rate to 60Hz for devices that support 120Hz.

• On iOS, go to Settings, Accessibility, then Motion, and enable Limit Frame Rate.
• On Android, go to Settings, Display, then Motion Smoothness or Smooth Display, and change from High or Adaptive to Standard.

The final tip is choosing the network. Fast Company states that 5G modems use significantly more power than 4G or LTE modems, especially in areas with unstable 5G signals like airports or trains.

• On iPhone, go to Settings, Cellular, then Cellular Data Options and Voice and Data. Select 5G Auto to let the system switch to LTE automatically when 5G does not provide clearly better speeds, or choose LTE outright in weak signal areas.
• On Android, go to Settings, Network and Internet or Connections on Samsung devices, then SIMs or Mobile networks. Tap Preferred network type or Network mode and change to LTE mode.

Additionally, Fast Company recommends that the main cause of quick battery drain during travel is usually weak cellular signals, not any particular app. When in areas with poor signal or metal-structured rooms, the phone boosts its transmission power to contact cell towers. If you notice only one signal bar while working in weak signal areas, manually enable Airplane Mode and reconnect via Wi-Fi. This stops continuous cellular signal searching and saves energy, though you won’t receive calls or SMS during this time.

Source:FastCompany