Smartphones have made our lives easier but unlike the feature phones that we used in the past their battery life is terrible. It makes sense to do everything possible to conserve your battery life. Here are some tips on how to improve smartphone battery life.
1. Reduce screen brightness
In a smartphone, the screen is the highest consumer of battery power. To conserve power, reduce the screen brightness to the lowest level that your eyes can tolerate. For phones that have an auto-brightness feature turn it on because it adjusts the screen brightness to suit the light environment the user is in.
2. Turn off some features
Some features are like Wi-Fi, GPS and Bluetooth are battery drainers and should be turned off when not in use. Also, in areas where data you should turnit off as well because your smartphone’s battery is drained as it is searching for a data connection. In areas where there is poor network coverage put your phone in flight mode as the act of searching for network also drains the battery.
3. Turn off unnecessary notifications
Turn off notifications from non essential apps as each notification drains the battery. Just leave notifications for things like text messages, calls and Whatsapp. For email, you can check manually or turn on sync for a while at intervals.
4. Do not run apps in the background
Don’t let apps run in the background as this saps the battery juice. Only run apps you are using in the background and close the rest.
5. Keep your phone away from high temperatures
High temperatures tend to affect battery life so it is wise to keep your phone away from areas that have high temperatures. For instance, do not leave your phone in the car when it’s hot or in direct sunlight.
6. Do not watch videos or play games
When you are away from a power source, avoid watching videos, playing games or using apps that drain the battery.
7. Turn off vibration
Phone vibrations uses more battery power than ringtones so don’t put your phone on vibration unless you really have to. Tactile feedback also uses power so turn that off if your phone uses it.
8. Power saving feature
If your phone has power saving mode kindly turn it on as it helps limit apps that use a lot of battery power. The power saver feature automatically prevents your apps from updating in the background, dims your screen, reduces the screen timeout setting, disables on-screen animations, and turns off vibration.
9. Use battery saving apps
Battery saving apps can also help you save the battery juice on your smartphone. Here are some of the popular apps on the various platforms.
Android – JuiceDefender
Windows Phone 8: Battery
IOS: Battery Doctor
10. Get a battery case or portable charger
If you can’t make it throughout the day without charging your phone even after taking all the measures above then there is the option of using a battery case or a portable charger. Battery cases double up as protective cases and as rechargeable battery and they charge the phone on the go. Portable chargers can also charge smartphones and we profiled a few that are available in Kenya here.