Hi,
I have had my One x since this Monday, constantly using mobile data because i didnt have WiFi at hand. I noticed my battery dropping super fast for no real reason. What i also noticed was the icon all the time switching back and forth between 3g and H ... I dont really know why this is happening, does anyone have an idea? Now that im using WiFi my battery seems to drop a lit less quickly..
Offtopic question about the battery: when i got the phone i didnt let it charge before i started using it, i just let it drop from the 20 % to 0 and then charged it... Did this maybe mess things up?
Thanks a lot
Sent from my HTC One X using XDA
Same here. I'm having the same issue. I'm using mine on AT&T.
I have seen my signal go 3G to H+ a lot but my battery is no worse than my GNex. I am also on ATT.
Sent from my HTC One X using XDA
Generally speaking, my Android phones have shown a 3G symbol when not using data, and will switch to H when starting to transfer data. This is when you have 3G network coverage.
A bigger battery drain is normally when you have poor signal, and the phone is always trying to search for a signal, or when it is constantly going between 2G and 3G/H.
Being on wifi is definitely easiest on the battery though.
Sent from my HTC One X using xda premium
Mmm thats weird never seen that happen with my previous phones... I always thought the arrows on the side indicated wether or not they were using data or not... The arrows beside the 3g flash as well when using data...
I hope the update comes soon. Because i dont really like the battery life atm
Sent from my HTC One X using XDA
.26 firmware has major batt issues... You guys are not alone...I'm getting more pissed by day...
mr.boonet said:
Mmm thats weird never seen that happen with my previous phones... I always thought the arrows on the side indicated wether or not they were using data or not... The arrows beside the 3g flash as well when using data...
I hope the update comes soon. Because i dont really like the battery life atm
Sent from my HTC One X using XDA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
See if you get the arrows beside the 3G symbol. I'm pretty sure on mine, as soon as the arrows come along, it switches to an H.
Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk
You are completely right about the arrows thing. I just can't imagine the switching being better for the battery or whatever... Seems to me that just keeping it on H would be less hard on the battery than constantly switching between 2 radio's.
Or is it 1 and the same radio?
mr.boonet said:
You are completely right about the arrows thing. I just can't imagine the switching being better for the battery or whatever... Seems to me that just keeping it on H would be less hard on the battery than constantly switching between 2 radio's.
Or is it 1 and the same radio?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Am pretty sure 3G and H are the same thing, so it won't affect battery drain. It's not like switching between 2G and 3G, which I think causes more battery drain because your phone is searching and switching. I'm sure there's some expert here that can clear it up.
Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk
Mm ok indeed, but i guess when the engineers at htc/google do it like that, and it's not only happening on my device, there should be quite a good reason for it
Sent from my HTC One X using XDA
I think some confusion is present here.
3G data and HSDPA data are both 3G technologies on the same frequency bands. However HSDPA uses MORE power because it bonds on multiple channels to get the bandwidth up. When the phone is doing very low amounts of data, or no data, it will revert to 3G only to save power. It will ONLY go to HSDPA when it is obvious there is much data to be transferred! This behaviour is correct and appropriate.
Just thought I would add there is only one mobile network radio in our phone so there will never be any radio switching issues.
M.
Sent from my HTC One X using xda premium
jonstatt said:
I think some confusion is present here.
3G data and HSDPA data are both 3G technologies on the same frequency bands. However HSDPA uses MORE power because it bonds on multiple channels to get the bandwidth up. When the phone is doing very low amounts of data, or no data, it will revert to 3G only to save power. It will ONLY go to HSDPA when it is obvious there is much data to be transferred! This behaviour is correct and appropriate.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That makes absolute sense. Except that what tends to happen (with me at least) is that it switches multiple times while I am trying to load something which interrupts the transfer again and again. Sometimes I get 'Connection error' messages while trying to download apps from Google Play. If I keep trying, it will download successfuly after a few tries, when it can stabilise long enough on either 3G or H. And it isn't a situation where I'm on the edge of either because this happens no matter where I am. Any insight on this?
jonstatt said:
I think some confusion is present here.
3G data and HSDPA data are both 3G technologies on the same frequency bands. However HSDPA uses MORE power because it bonds on multiple channels to get the bandwidth up. When the phone is doing very low amounts of data, or no data, it will revert to 3G only to save power. It will ONLY go to HSDPA when it is obvious there is much data to be transferred! This behaviour is correct and appropriate.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's called "fast dormancy," do a search on XDA or Google. It saves battery provided the carrier you're using supports fast dormancy. It's erratic when they don't and should be turned off. AT&T supports fast dormancy so that shouldn't be the cause for anyone on their network to have abnormally high battery usage. I’ve used an i9100 for a year all over AT&T’s network and never had an issue with fast dormancy active. And it works exactly like described above. In certain parts of the country (EG: Louisiana) my battery drains 25-50% faster but that's due to signal not fast dormancy.
you guys also have to calibrate your battery in order to get a decent battery life
Fast dormancy can be disabled by going to service menu by typing *#*#9900#*#*
Worked with most of my devices. Donno it will work with this device as i dont have one now.
Related
hi all
recently i have just calibrate my battery.. and it works just fine
but now i found that it drains alot quicker using 3g signal compared to wifi...
the drain rate can take 10% /hour on 3g and only 4% / hour for wifi
why is that ?
is there something wrong on my gsm ?
btw am using leedroid froyo 2.0c and using latest radio 32.47.xxx
pls some one can tell me.. what to do ??any clues on this ?
3G has more power drain than wifi so it's normal.
Sent from my HTC Desire
elmalote said:
3G has more power drain than wifi so it's normal.
Sent from my HTC Desire
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
oiya ? is it ?
coz on my iphone it was different... wifi was worse..
anyway.. is there anyway to slower battery drain ?
interqd said:
oiya ? is it ?
coz on my iphone it was different... wifi was worse..
anyway.. is there anyway to slower battery drain ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My 3G has always had higher power drain than WiFi. There isn't really anything you can do about it other than to turn it off. Alternatively you can disable "Always on Data" under Wireless & Networks => Mobile Networks
interqd said:
oiya ? is it ?
coz on my iphone it was different... wifi was worse..
anyway.. is there anyway to slower battery drain ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Disable automatic sync. My data networks are switched off since last week. Now my battery lasts 2-3 days. I only use wifi at home.
You can also use juicedefender to control battery use and sync intervals.
interqd said:
hi all
recently i have just calibrate my battery.. and it works just fine
but now i found that it drains alot quicker using 3g signal compared to wifi...
the drain rate can take 10% /hour on 3g and only 4% / hour for wifi
why is that ?
is there something wrong on my gsm ?
btw am using leedroid froyo 2.0c and using latest radio 32.47.xxx
pls some one can tell me.. what to do ??any clues on this ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This can also be caused by low/patchy 3G coverage in areas you are in.
If the 3G signal is weak then the handset will use a lot of power to try and keep the signal, as it prefers it over 2G.
If you don't mind the slower data speeds, switch to 2G/GSM Only as this does not use as much power (due to 3G cell breathing - Google it )
r2b2 said:
If the 3G signal is weak then the handset will use a lot of power to try and keep the signal, as it prefers it over 2G.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
One way to alleviate *some* of that is to set the phone to "GSM Auto (PRL)".
Go to dialer and dial "*#*#INFO#*#*". That should take you to the settings screen.
r2b2 said:
This can also be caused by low/patchy 3G coverage in areas you are in.
If the 3G signal is weak then the handset will use a lot of power to try and keep the signal, as it prefers it over 2G.
If you don't mind the slower data speeds, switch to 2G/GSM Only as this does not use as much power (due to 3G cell breathing - Google it )
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Definitely true. Your cell will consume much more power when you are outside of coverage area. The antena will keep searching the network according to your preference. So if you have 3G active all the time the phones internal antenna will keep looking for it and will drain your battery quicker.
okey..
thx all 4 d answers...
goo that to know there's nothing wrong with my signal or battery..
i think my problem is bad signal coverage.. as i always be in the shop which is so inside ....
but cant make it to edge/gsm as 2g speed is awful here in indonesia...
i think i'll just use juicedefender
thx..
As you may know desire has a built in feature that monitors when you do need 3g connection and when not, so when you do not need it it automaticly switches to 2g. I have also read somewhere that this feature consumes less battery then being always on 2g. Is that true? I still heard a lot of people that are most of the time on 2g while they do not browse the internet, reporting decent battery lives.
So, as the title says, which is better?
2g uses less battery than 3g. Use 2g when not using data for the best battery life.
Whoever said that 2g and sometimes 3g uses less battery that 2g only needs to go back to school, its mathematically impossible if 3g uses more battery.
Sent from my HTC Desire using XDA App
lvnatic said:
As you may know desire has a built in feature that monitors when you do need 3g connection and when not, so when you do not need it it automaticly switches to 2g.
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Click to collapse
are you completely sure about that? my phone seems to be always in 3G as long as it is available and switchs to 2G if it cant get a 3g connection.
anyway, 2G is the best option battery wise.
there is a video from google i/o 2k9 talking about this. I think it's this one : http://developer.android.com/videos/index.html#v=OUemfrKe65c
I have used both modes for some weeks, but i didn't see any difference.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=688492
How about this? Does it apply to desire as well? I am curently using gsm only when im not browsing the net.
2g only will use the least battery.
Auto is great but the issue is that it will preferentially seek 3g. To seek 3g more power is required. (Now this is a negligible amount on its own). However if comparing the battery use in only a 2g area the 2g phone will last longer.
Sent from my HTC Desire using Tapatalk
if you have signal i recommend to use 3g. the cells needs more power to have/transmitt fast data connections like hdspa and in that case the cellphone need less battery to connect to it. in Romania the network it's kinda new hardware, because we use cellphones later than anyone else and the tech was envolved when we first install the network, but remember if your cellphone go from 2g to 3g often, this will consume a lot of power.
Robert A said:
if you have signal i recommend to use 3g. the cells needs more power to have/transmitt fast data connections like hdspa and in that case the cellphone need less battery to connect to it. in Romania the network it's kinda new hardware, because we use cellphones later than anyone else and the tech was envolved when we first install the network, but remember if your cellphone go from 2g to 3g often, this will consume a lot of power.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So you recommend wcdma only? Even when I don't use the internet? Its true that I have signal most of the time, but I am on "gsm only" all the time, switching to wcdma only when I browse the net.
I would recommend GSM auto (PRL) from the testing menu ( *#*#4636#*#* ) then in phone information. Your phone will still use 3G but only when the signal is strong. Otherwise it will prefer 2G.
WCDMA preferred will try to force 3G even when the signal is weak. Consuming more battery.
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App
2G only uses the least power.
3G only uses moar power.
Constant switching uses the most, it peaks at 600mA battery drain in the process.
3G only will only give you signal outages, therefore I would not recommend it. It is not widespread as GSM signal is.
Oh I finally know how to acces PRL options, thanks. But regarding this, I found this thread on the nexus one section, which says wcdma prl is better. Any of you know how accurate that is?
Edit:
sheek360 said:
He mentioned that gsm auto prl will save the user a bit more power because it wont force the phone to continuasly hunt for a stronger signal. Typically this option gives our n1's a weaker signal and slower data speed. But he said it depends on our network in our city.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nvm, it wasn't battery related anyway. And I found what I needed. Thanks a lot.
Im back to gsm only, gsm auto prl didn't seem to be better in terms of battery saving.
Is this an Android feature or is there something wrong with my 3G?
What happens is that whenever I am using my browser and searching on Google and my data connection shows 3G, when I click something it switches to H. Then, after page load, it changes back to 3G.
It makes me wonder if something is wrong with my 3G, or it is some battery-optimizing done by the phone.
Am I missing something? I did not notice this with my HTC Desire, it stayed on 3G or H until connectivity became worse or better.
perfectly normal,as 3G just being the band you can be called on,but once you start browsing and download stuf,your conection turns into HSPDA(thus the H) this is the data conection integrated in 3G(its faster than actual 3G)
you can see it as a download mode.
H is just a download indicator if you ask me.
thus maybe your HTC was downloading constand or had a lower refresh rate?
the described action you present is pretty common on my nexus S
Yes this is normal behaviour in stock Android.
Great to hear, thanks
Yeah it was constant on my HTC Desire, either on H or 3G. Apps were the same, so I don't think Desire did some background work that Nexus isn't doing.
I like it, thanks!
Every phone I've had from the Nexus One would do this - usually stock roms don't show an "H," only 3G, so you can't tell that it's switching between.
My HTC desire would switch between 3g and h on Orange but if I roamed on to t mobile it would permanently show as H. I guess it can also depend on the network.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk
You don't want it to stay on H .. it uses heaps more battery. There's also limited capacity on the network to support H connections. If everyone connected in H they would run out. It's meant to be temporary while you need to download a webpage, etc.
Mine is doing this too
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk
I think there's been a thread on this already, but just to reiterate:
This is just a feature of UMTS and HSPA. Using HSPA takes more battery than UMTS or EDGE, so you only want it on when you are actively downloading or uploading data. Otherwise, UMTS serves just fine for background data and syncing.
When you're reading a web page (your example), there's not a lot of data being transfered, and you're sitting on UMTS. As soon as you click a link, it switches to HSPA, pulls down the info, and switches back again.
To my knowledge, stock android shows the difference between 3G and H pretty accurately. Carrier and/or manufacturer customized ROMs often tend to lead towards leaving "H"/"H+"/"4G" in the status bar more than 3G. If you watch your "about phone" > "status" screen, you'll see your phone switches between UMTS and HSPA quite often, even if the interface is preferring to show you "H". I think its mostly a marketing tactic that also reduces customer confusion.
So bottom line, you should be happy it switches to save your battery!
I have this and trust me, it cains battery.
I have never seen H in my Nexus S.
So this is good
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App
gogol said:
I have never seen H in my Nexus S.
So this is good
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App
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Click to collapse
That's because the Nexus S is a 3G phone that doesn't have the hardware required to transmit HSPA+ signal.
matt2053 said:
That's because the Nexus S is a 3G phone that doesn't have the hardware required to transmit HSPA+ signal.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The Nexus S is HSPA capable. just not HSPA+.
Actually HSPA doesn't use _more_ battery when you're camping. It only uses more battery while transferring, but even thats debatable. Eg 10mb downloaded in 1 minute over HSPA vs 5 minutes on 3G - which uses more battery to complete the task?
What does use extra battery is IF it has to switch to another tower to get you HSPA. However the network is pretty smart at choosing the most efficient thing to do, although it is biased to move people to towers which allow the most number of subscribers to be on the network. For example, if you are in a built up area and there are 3 towers within range, one perhaps right next to you, you may be switched to one further away so that one can service a user on the edge of its signal area. Although this uses more of your battery, it allows both of you to use the network rather than just 1.
Booo. So I just upgraded from a mt4g (the old one) to a GN, and now when I stream Sirius, it cuts out as it switches between H & 3G. I used Wifi today because it was driving me crazy. I wish there was a switch to turn off 4G, not 3G also.
So, when i turn on my packet data, it is switching to edge constantly ... It is set to GSM/WCDMA auto, but im in very good coverage area of my city (downtown) and i notice edge more often than h+ ?
Any one knows reason ?
That will drain your battery when the phone keeps switching 2g and 3g.
I have and problem on my previous Motorola RAZR. I just keep it at wdcma only. Works fine on my previous and current.
But it still switches from time to time from H+ to 3G
Sent From my Samsung Note 2 GT-N7100
vash_h said:
That will drain your battery when the phone keeps switching 2g and 3g.
I have and problem on my previous Motorola RAZR. I just keep it at wdcma only. Works fine on my previous and current.
But it still switches from time to time from H+ to 3G
Sent From my Samsung Note 2 GT-N7100
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for reply, but... I often go to several parts of my city where coverage is not so great. Then again, in our biggest shopping mall coverage is awful .. So if i just keep it on WDCMA only it would have poor reception there..
Still no solution
Any one?
Handwritten from my Note 2
Same issue here mate. G Search also starting to show others having similar issues. Do you find you if you hit refresh when in browser it switches 2g 3g or visa versa ? This is the only thing ive found thats consistent also during speedtest net my connection speed does not change significantly while It switches 2g 3g etc. No real antenna issues and in known good 3g area only thing thats annoying is it produces a stall as it appears to switch eg delay in page load. Think we may have to wait for an update pehaps. Only had my gn2 for 2 weeks. Original rom and hard reset to no change. Sorry I cant help ...just adding to your info.
Sent from my GT-N7105
Yes!! Thats whats exactly happening to me.. But, it happends only when im on edge and when i refresh browser it hits h+ immediately..
Dont know why is this happening
Handwritten from my Note 2
vash_h said:
But it still switches from time to time from H+ to 3G
Sent From my Samsung Note 2 GT-N7100
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's how it works. It goes to 3g when your phone become idle to save power and switches to h+ when your requesting data. For the most part, this is a good thing. You don't want your phone to be locked in to H+ all the time and waste unneeded battery power. It usually switches back to 3g after phone is idle for around 30 seconds (but this delay may greatly differ from network to network). As far as switching constantly from edge to 3g, not really sure about that, my guess is you're in an area with not-so-good 3g coverage, or maybe that's how your network operates (though that would be strange, since constant switching from edge to 3g actually wastes power).
You can dail *#0011# on your stock dailer and watch the RCC state to know how your phone switches from one state to another and how long it takes.
Or you can watch this video (which incidentally was uploaded by xdadevelopers) to learn more
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8L50sCY7CI
Thanks Mohjee.
Any ideas why this doesnt appear to happen on my SG2 ? Steady 3g at work compared to in and out 3g with SG Note 2 .
Sent from my GT-N7105 using Tapatalk 2
Just and observation on LTE and battery life if you are in an area that has been refarmed to get LTE but may not have the strongest signal for it yet.
I get constant LTE signal wherever I go in Baltimore. Download speeds are great. But the signal isn't super strong yet. So my phone does a lot of pinging the towers to stay connected. That is the yellow signal in my battery graph. This causes a decent amount of battery drain while the phone is asleep.
But 3G signal is great. That is the green line in the battery graph. You can see that when I switched to 3g (or HSPA as it really is) the battery drain while idle reduced dramatically.
So if you are in an area like this and you really need the battery to last longer, put it on 3G and it should help a lot. At least until T Mobile increases the LTE coverage, which I am sure they will.
And for when you need the LTE speed, I have an LTE button on my quick settings panel to activate it so I still get the speed when I need it, but not the battery drain when I don't. (Note, I'm using cm10.1 rom. I am not sure if the TW roms have that quick setting button available. But it can be done in settings.)
This option is not for everyone. But if you are not a heavy data user like me it might be great for you.
Sent from my SGH-M919 using xda app-developers app
Skipjacks said:
Just and observation on LTE and battery life if you are in an area that has been refarmed to get LTE but may not have the strongest signal for it yet.
I get constant LTE signal wherever I go in Baltimore. Download speeds are great. But the signal isn't super strong yet. So my phone does a lot of pinging the towers to stay connected. That is the yellow signal in my battery graph. This causes a decent amount of battery drain while the phone is asleep.
But 3G signal is great. That is the green line in the battery graph. You can see that when I switched to 3g (or HSPA as it really is) the battery drain while idle reduced dramatically.
So if you are in an area like this and you really need the battery to last longer, put it on 3G and it should help a lot. At least until T Mobile increases the LTE coverage, which I am sure they will.
And for when you need the LTE speed, I have an LTE button on my quick settings panel to activate it so I still get the speed when I need it, but not the battery drain when I don't. (Note, I'm using cm10.1 rom. I am not sure if the TW roms have that quick setting button available. But it can be done in settings.)
This option is not for everyone. But if you are not a heavy data user like me it might be great for you.
Sent from my SGH-M919 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How do I put it in 4gHSPA +
Awesome advice
Sent from my GT-I9505 using xda premium
thetbg said:
How do I put it in 4gHSPA +
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are many apps in the Play Store that allow you to do that.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Xparent Skyblue Tapatalk 2
Never thought to have data go to 3g and lower.. I've always used tasker to disable... no off screen email but I go in and manually check it anyways so it works for me. I get 2.5 hours out of 1 percent when my device sleeps.