[Q] EL29 4g vs wifi battery life? - Samsung Epic 4G Touch

For those of you who have a good 4g signal, do you get better battery life on 4g or wifi? I have read some old threads on other phones and other variations of S2 and the general thinking is that wifi has better battery life but thats different hardware. I'm running stock rooted EL29 and battery drain seems about the same so far when I have good 4g.

I don't get 4g anymore since my work moved, but when I did, 4g sucked the battery like a baby on a bottle.
I always have wifi on, 24/7 and am actually connected probably 21 hours out of the day. I get an average of 18-24 hours on normal usage. I don't stream anything...
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA App

Dalmus said:
I don't get 4g anymore since my work moved, but when I did, 4g sucked the battery like a baby on a bottle.
I always have wifi on, 24/7 and am actually connected probably 21 hours out of the day. I get an average of 18-24 hours on normal usage. I don't stream anything...
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA App
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Second that I have 4g where I live and I also have wifi at home I have been testing the last couple days and it seems 4g has suck the battery a whole lot faster then my wifi
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA App

Thanks guess I will just stick with wifi when I can. 4g speeds have nice peaks but they seem to be all over the place and at times slower than 3g

Related

[Q] battery sucks after 3g boost hack

I did the 3g signal boost hack that you can find in the 4g signal boost forum and in less then a couple of hours I noticed that my battery life went down quick.. before on a full charge I was getting like around 17 to 18 hours a day.. but now im only getting like 8 in a half hours on a full charge.. I am on the SuperNova1.5_DK28 rom.. and I use Juice Defender.. and I keep blutooth and GPS on all day long..
I just wanted to know if anyone else battery sucks after doing the hack, or am I trippin??
Did you do the 4g trick as well? And did you have 4g on? The 4g trick will probably hurt your battery life when in it is on in low or no signal areas. I don't know why the 3g trick would affect your battery.
DiGi760 said:
Did you do the 4g trick as well? And did you have 4g on? The 4g trick will probably hurt your battery life when in it is on in low or no signal areas. I don't know why the 3g trick would affect your battery.
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Click to collapse
no I didnt do the 4G trick because I NEVER use it.. but im using it right now to tether and its BLAZIN fast. its damn near like using comcast. lol
so im gonna try the 4g trick right now.. and just use 4g when im tethering..
but on the 3g.. I even did the battery clear thing that I read on a diffrent forum. and it still came back with only 8 hours fully charged.. im probably gonna change to a diffrent rom in the next few days so hopefully it changes it back to the way it was..
Can you give me a link to the signal boost hacks? Im interested in trying these out
Thanks

[Q] 4G or WiFi drains more battery?

what wastes more energy? having 4g on or having wifi on? i read the other threads but it had to do with 3g.. they said 3g wastes more power. is this the case with 4g as well?
thanks!
WiFi drains more battery always
that's from personal observation on all the phones i've owned in the past to now
as soon as you use WiFi the battery drains like there's no tomorrow
however this phone seems to handle it quite well
Yeah, 4G is a big battery hog. Wifi doesn't drain as much so long as you are connected to the same one for a while.
EDIT: just saw AllGamer's reply. Wifi really drains that much? I remember seeing the Droid Razr review saying that 4G eats batteries for breakfast. I might be wrong then!
Sent from my SGH-T989D using xda premium
They both drain battery about the same in my opinion.
When ever I can I turn both of them off to save battery.
It's really easy with the toggles that a couple roms have.
This phone is a BEAST!
From my personal experience wifi doesn't drain as much as 4g.
Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda premium
WiFi is far more efficient than the cellular network, and any usage will count against your allocated full speed GB's.. not a good thing.
don't have a sgsII yet but my experience with my vibrant is that wifi if connected uses less battery than hspa. If I'm not connected to a wifi network it drains the battery looking for one.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using xda premium
heygrl said:
WiFi is far more efficient than the cellular network, and any usage will count against your allocated full speed GB's.. not a good thing.
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Forgive my ignorance but how come the usage of Wifi will count against your allocated full speed? My personal experience has been different .
knut150 said:
Forgive my ignorance but how come the usage of Wifi will count against your allocated full speed? My personal experience has been different .
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I meant not using it will count against your data allotment
lol so there's no unanimous answer. i guess i'll just try to experiment a little and see which one uses more. thanks everyone.
4G uses more battery than WiFi
Definitely 4G... I sit on wifi all day and do not use much battery at all.
skadude66 said:
Yeah, 4G is a big battery hog. Wifi doesn't drain as much so long as you are connected to the same one for a while.
EDIT: just saw AllGamer's reply. Wifi really drains that much? I remember seeing the Droid Razr review saying that 4G eats batteries for breakfast. I might be wrong then!
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From what I understand, LTE is a bigger battery hog than HSPA+.
jasnmb said:
From what I understand, LTE is a bigger battery hog than HSPA+.
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For sure. And after that I'd say HSPA+ > WiFi in terms of battery draining.
Wait, our phone runs off energy. Please tell me its kinetic?!
Sent from my Juggernaut SGSII or Galaxy Tab 10.1 now "In Paris"
bhowanidin said:
Wait, our phone runs off energy. Please tell me its kinetic?!
Sent from my Juggernaut SGSII or Galaxy Tab 10.1 now "In Paris"
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Solar backpack maybe ?
ok guys lets keep this topic sane, yeah it's funny, but lets go back on topic
it's a very valid & informative question
my personal experience shows me WiFi is worst, but others here says 3G/4G is even worse, but from personal experience 3G/4G is less than WiFi
so even i find that contradiction very interesting
the thing that could make a difference is the signal strength, perhaps better 3G/4G reception requires less power to maintain the connection?
possibly the same reason why WiFi always seems to do worse for me, because all the Starbucks, Airport, Hotel, Library, and other coffe/restaurant places that offer WiFi it's horrible, very slow, and hard to maintain signal, probably because tooooooooo many people are hogging it or maybe just because too many devices are bumping each other off the Router/WiFi AP on those establishments
Whenever I use wifi I turn my data off and gst better battery that way. If you have a bad data signal or wifi it'll take more battery to try to keep a connection.
In my Bio class I have terrible data signal and my battery will drain really fast with heavy use but if I turn on my wifi and turn off the data my battery iis way better
Sent from my SGH-T989 using XDA App
So after doing testing of my own I have come to the conclusion that 4G drains more battery than wifi. With wifi I can get about 14 hrs, but with 4G I only get 6-8 hrs.
This phone is a BEAST!
AllGamer, makes sense. If you have slower networks, your screen will be on for longer as you wait inbetween pages and downloads. Fast downloads => less screen time.
My personal experience with wifi vs THREE-g is that wifi eats my battery quickly (on all previous phones and there have been many, including present BB Torch for work). An d 3G doesn't drain as quickly.
However I agree wifi seems pretty sippy and efficient on the SGH-T989. My battery is learning. I am now getting 1 day and 13 hours of discharge time. Very moderate use. 4G. So yes there well may be a difference between 3 and 4G.
I will test wifi-only as soon as I can in the next few days.
AllGamer said:
ok guys lets keep this topic sane, yeah it's funny, but lets go back on topic
it's a very valid & informative question
my personal experience shows me WiFi is worst, but others here says 3G/4G is even worse, but from personal experience 3G/4G is less than WiFi
so even i find that contradiction very interesting
the thing that could make a difference is the signal strength, perhaps better 3G/4G reception requires less power to maintain the connection?
possibly the same reason why WiFi always seems to do worse for me, because all the Starbucks, Airport, Hotel, Library, and other coffe/restaurant places that offer WiFi it's horrible, very slow, and hard to maintain signal, probably because tooooooooo many people are hogging it or maybe just because too many devices are bumping each other off the Router/WiFi AP on those establishments
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Constant 4G and battery life

So, I'm fairly certain it's a well-established fact that the constant switching from 4G to 3G drains a lot of battery on our phones since 4G isn't a widespread service yet. I have also heard that 4G is a more efficient antenna and if you have a constant 4G connection, the battery life isn't impacted much. I was wondering how much of this is true- I live in Atlanta, which was one of the first cities to get Verizon's LTE service, and as a result, I have a sold 3-4 bar signal of 4G at all times. I go to school downtown, work in the metro area, and live in the metro area. Since I got the phone, I've just left it on CDMA, as the speeds are fine for me and I typically get 30 hours or so of battery life with data and sync on (and WiFi, when available). Would switching to 4G change that number drastically?
Thanks!
Also, a side question: I leave GPS turned on as that only polls when an application calls for it, but I've left Google's Location Services off. Is there a real need to leave that on? With GPS only, I tend to get an immediate reading with wonderful accuracy.
I'm calling bs. Please post a screenshot of your battery life of 30+ with gps and 3g all day.
rabaker07 said:
I'm calling bs. Please post a screenshot of your battery life of 30+ with gps and 3g all day.
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I'd be happy to post a screenshot the next time I run my phone down. As I said, GPS doesn't drain your battery at all unless you're using Maps constantly, so that isn't really a major factor for me. Also, I DO have the extended battery.
Also, I can't help but note how this doesn't really relate to the content of the thread at all.
rabaker07 said:
I'm calling bs. Please post a screenshot of your battery life of 30+ with gps and 3g all day.
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Not at all what the topic was about but it's easily possible. I've gotten 30 hours on 3G no problem. Right now I'm at 20% after 20 hours with moderately heavy usage. Close to 4 hours of screen on time.
As for the topic, best way to find out is to try it. Couldn't tell you for certain one way or the other.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using XDA App
hotleadsingerguy said:
Not at all what the topic was about but it's easily possible. I've gotten 30 hours on 3G no problem. Right now I'm at 20% after 20 hours with moderately heavy usage. Close to 4 hours of screen on time.
As for the topic, best way to find out is to try it. Couldn't tell you for certain one way or the other.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using XDA App
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Right, I suppose that would be the easiest approach. I just fear starting my day out on 4G and then realizing that my battery is shot when I really need it. Though, I could always just turn data off if I see my battery draining super quick.

[Q] Constantly in a bad reception zone

When I'm at school (5 days a week) most of my classes are in a building where I do not get a lot of reception, aka, my battery gets killed by the phone to keep up the signal. I do get reception, around 1-2 bars, but that still drains the battery extremely fast. Is there any app or something that I can do to help reduce the amount of battery drain?
I don't want to put the phone into air plane mode because I can still send and receive text messages, but it's just very slow.
Have you tried putting it in cdma only mode?
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using XDA
You could save a lot of battery life by either connecting to a wifi hotspot (if available) or by turning off background data. The problem your phones having is that it has to turn the gain way up on its cellular radio in order to transmit and receive data. By reducing the amount of background data usage (or off loading it to another network with better signal--i.e. wifi) you'll save a lot of juice.
If you can't do either, there are some things you can do with Tasker to reduce data usage to windows of time instead of always on. May be something to consider.
- chris
isinisterx said:
When I'm at school (5 days a week) most of my classes are in a building where I do not get a lot of reception, aka, my battery gets killed by the phone to keep up the signal. I do get reception, around 1-2 bars, but that still drains the battery extremely fast. Is there any app or something that I can do to help reduce the amount of battery drain?
I don't want to put the phone into air plane mode because I can still send and receive text messages, but it's just very slow.
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Click to collapse
Drop it into 2G only or connect to WiFi.
taappel said:
Have you tried putting it in cdma only mode?
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He's in Canada, so using the GSM model.
Give juice defender a try. It used to almost double the battery life on my old X10 when I worked in a building that I could only get 1 bar at best.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
GreatBigDog said:
Give juice defender a try. It used to almost double the battery life on my old X10 when I worked in a building that I could only get 1 bar at best.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
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JD sucks on the Nexus, unless it has gotten an update since last month.. WiFi doesn't want to reconnect. I've seen others say the same thing.
WiredPirate said:
JD sucks on the Nexus, unless it has gotten an update since last month.. WiFi doesn't want to reconnect. I've seen others say the same thing.
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yessss someone else with the wifi problem.when in like a perfect wifi signal zone, my friends gnex connect oerfectly and mine just says saved, wont connect to the networj
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium

3-5 Hours Screen On Time

I've seen screenshots of people getting 5 hours of screen-on time. Is anyone here getting that? If you are, please post screenshots below of your setup, and be VERY specific on what you are running, and how you are doing it. Please share the knowledge. Oh, and please don't bother posting if you're using an extended battery.
I'm running Liquid Smooth 1.4 and the (supposed) 3800 mAh Trexcell battery that I bought for $20 on Amazon.
With the standard battery the most screen-on time I ever got was 2:30 hrs. Now I get 3:30-4:00 hrs of on-screen time. Not quite double, but an improvement.
Frankly I don't know how anyone is managing 4 hours of screen-on time with the stock battery.
As an addendum: Even when I was running stock, I was getting equal-to or worse values for screen-on time.
95% of the people getting 4-5 hours of screen on time are on the GSM version. 2-3 hours is typical for Sprint and Verizon users.
Setups don't make a huge difference. What makes the difference is usage while the screen is on.
Depending on the usage, i can get 4 hours screen time on stock 1750mAh battery.
Just occasionally surfing the web using WiFi, no 3G connection, occasionally pressing the power button to check the time and 30% brightness.
I use AOKP + Franco (both latest), and always get around 3h - 3.5h. Half the time I'm using wifi, and I never use data. I don't have cell service 25% of the time, and usually have weak cell service.
Most of them are on wifi... like me I can get 5hrs of display time over wifi but only about 3hrs on my terrible 3G speeds and connection.
With the stock battery.
Sent From My Sprint Galaxy Nexus via XDA Premium
When I was running AOKP build 36 with Franco Kernel 166 I was able to get 3:55 with the stock battery. I did underclock to 1036MHz with some slight undervolting. I never use WiFi and my data is only on when my screen is on. I also played games for about an hour and a half.
Now I'm on AOKP build 38 with Franco's Milestone 4, and I usually average 2-3 hours of screen on time.
Unless the spring and verizon versions are so wildly different, I'm going to ask for screenshot proof if this. I bet you're mistaking "awake" time for screen-on time.
absoluteparanoia said:
Unless the spring and verizon versions are so wildly different, I'm going to ask for screenshot proof if this. I bet you're mistaking "awake" time for screen-on time.
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They are wildly different. They use different cellular technology.
But you just said at the top of the thread that Spring and Verizon have comparable times, now they are wildly different? They are both CDMA. In the case above its WiFi only.
absoluteparanoia said:
Unless the spring and verizon versions are so wildly different, I'm going to ask for screenshot proof if this. I bet you're mistaking "awake" time for screen-on time.
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No problem...
Sent From My Sprint Galaxy Nexus via XDA Premium
absoluteparanoia said:
But you just said at the top of the thread that Spring and Verizon have comparable times, now they are wildly different? They are both CDMA. In the case above its WiFi only.
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I thought you were talking about Sprint/Verizon and the GSM model, that is my fault.
BUT, Verizon has LTE for the majority of people, which will suck the battery dry faster than EVDO Rev A on Sprint.
joshnichols189 said:
I thought you were talking about Sprint/Verizon and the GSM model, that is my fault.
BUT, Verizon has LTE for the majority of people, which will suck the battery dry faster than EVDO Rev A on Sprint.
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I concur... usually if you have good LTE speeds and connection.. your battery life will be better same goes for 3G... i've seen people with full bars on 3G pull almost 4hours with the stock battery, yet with a 1-2 bar connection and a .50mbps speed... i can almost get 3 hours. I would assume that LTE would be less of a battery drain unless you have terrible connection to it.
ÜBER™ said:
I concur... usually if you have good LTE speeds and connection.. your battery life will be better same goes for 3G... i've seen people with full bars on 3G pull almost 4hours with the stock battery, yet with a 1-2 bar connection and a .50mbps speed... i can almost get 3 hours. I would assume that LTE would be less of a battery drain unless you have terrible connection to it.
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Click to collapse
LTE is more of a battery drain than EVDO I believe. Unless you have full signal. All the time.
joshnichols189 said:
LTE is more of a battery drain than EVDO I believe. Unless you have full signal. All the time.
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Click to collapse
hmm doesnt make sense, i figure the faster speeds would help... then it wouldnt have to struggle to pull something up through, lets say the web browser. I mean if you have 1bar of LTE then yeah thats gunna drain faster or similar to 3G. But 3-4 would be optimal.... i assume im terribly wrong but.. these are just my thoughts and assumptions
ÜBER™ said:
hmm doesnt make sense, i figure the faster speeds would help... then it wouldnt have to struggle to pull something up through, lets say the web browser. I mean if you have 1bar of LTE then yeah thats gunna drain faster or similar to 3G. But 3-4 would be optimal.... i assume im terribly wrong but.. these are just my thoughts and assumptions
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Click to collapse
In terms of data transfer, sure but I believe just getting and holding onto an LTE signal, especially for a CDMA-based phone causes a lot of the problems.
HOW!!!!! What are you running, what apps you have, etc.
Like I said over all wifi. Skanwich and Samurai Kernel. I don't have anything that syncs. I dont use any "battery" apps and this is just Xda and various other games and YouTube... it just doesn't show up... for some reason. Also its undervolted but stock frequencies. Using the on demand governor.
Sent From My Sprint Galaxy Nexus via XDA Premium
joshnichols189 said:
LTE is more of a battery drain than EVDO I believe. Unless you have full signal. All the time.
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I can vouch for this. When I am at home I drain battery as slow as EvDo when on LTE. But I have a better signal than most people out there.
Whatcha running?

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