Heavy battery drain while idling in a weak signal area

dpham00

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I was in a very weak signal area on Saturday and even with the screen off most of the time, the battery still drained pretty badly. Once I left this area, the battery life returned to normal.

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Sent from my Verizon LG G4
 

Rukbat

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When the signal is weak from the tower to you, the phone assumes that it's going to be weak from you to the tower, so it runs the transmitter at maximum. That drains a lot of battery. (And produces a lot of heat.)
 

Bruce39

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Have a Question - Which app (or apps) is using 81% of battery? Cell radio, wifi, blue tooth & screen do not show excessive battery drain.
 

sswitzer

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Have a Question - Which app (or apps) is using 81% of battery? Cell radio, wifi, blue tooth & screen do not show excessive battery drain.

Yup -- that's a very good question. Could it be an app that is going crazy trying to find location or something like that?
 

dpham00

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Have a Question - Which app (or apps) is using 81% of battery? Cell radio, wifi, blue tooth & screen do not show excessive battery drain.
Not sure. I was in a hurry so didn't get a chance to investigate. The held awake time is very high too.

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Bruce39

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Battery life is an obsession of mine. My wife & I usually take several extended camping trips per yr, poor or nonexistent cell coverage is the norm even with Verizon (AT&T is the only other option). I really monitor battery usage closely; I will delete or close apps that use excessive battery & use airplane or turn off if needed. Our kids or friends will text instead of calling; will answer when have cell coverage. Can usually go 2 or 3 days & charge when gets to approx 50%, can only charge while driving.
 

tardus

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When the signal is weak from the tower to you, the phone assumes that it's going to be weak from you to the tower, so it runs the transmitter at maximum. That drains a lot of battery. (And produces a lot of heat.)

Interesting. I always thought the reason for the battery drain in areas of week or intermittent signal was the hunting for the signal. I guess you learn something new every day :)