[Android Central Question]

LG L41C with Android 4.4. At Settings>Battery>Usage on Battery, Google Play is shown as the app using the most battery power (almost 40%). There is a "Stop" button, but touching it does not seem to do anything. My question: Is there a way to turn Google Play ON only when I need it, and leave it OFF the rest of the time? Thank you.

[Rukbat]

Settings>Apps>Google Play - Force Stop. Run it if/when you want it, then force stop it again. (Restarting the phone, or turning it off, then turning it on, will turn it on again, and you'll gave to force stop it again.)

[B. Diddy]

Welcome to Android Central! Can you be more specific about the app that's listed? "Google Play" isn't the full name of any of Google's apps. Is it Google Play Services? Google Play Store? Or is it Google Pay?

[Francis Sinclaire]

B. Diddy: At Settings>Battery>Discharging>Battery Use Details, it is Google Services. The percentage there right now is 19% but it is often in the upper thirties or lower forties. The other high-ish item is Screen, which is now 25% (I have decreased the Brightness at Settings>Display>Brightness to 50%.)

Rukbat: Is there any reason that I should not Force Stop the Google Services? That is, will the phone function if I do so? I use the phone only as a telephone and for texting. No gaming, virtually no browsing.

Thank you both for your help.

For your information, what I am trying to do is decrease battery usage so as to extend the period between recharges. Searching that subject on various forums, everyone seems to agree that the Display is a big battery drainer, and also Google Play (which I believe now, thanks to B Diddy, is actually Google Services).

[B. Diddy]

I'm assuming that means Google Play Services, which is integral to the normal functioning of Google apps, as well as other apps that utilize Google Play Services. It's not a good idea to Force Stop it.

The important question here is if your battery is actually draining faster than usual, or if the battery life is normal. If it's normal, then chances are that Google Play Services isn't using an excessive amount of battery. With old Android versions like 4.4, the system reports battery use as a relative percentage, not an absolute. So 40% battery usage doesn't mean that the battery is down to 60%, and all 40% of the absolute usage has been Google Play Services. Instead, it means that if the battery is down to 90%, then Google Play Services has used about 4% of that absolute amount. This can be completely normal, especially if the phone has been idle for most of the time.

[Francis Sinclaire]

At Settings>Battery>Discharging>Battery Use Details, it does say Google Services, but undoubtedly you are correct that it’s Google Play Services.

“It's not a good idea to Force Stop” Google Play Services. In that case, I will not do so.

Since lowering Brightness, I am noticing that battery usage seems to be returning to normal. What happened is, several months ago, while in a darkened room, I increased Brightness to 100%, and then neglected to reset it later. By the time I noticed the apparent increased battery usage, I had forgotten that event, and began searching the forums for answers, particularly when a friend told me that a replacement battery costs about $40.

I will continue to monitor battery usage, but I think (hope) that resetting Brightness has resolved my problem.

Thank you both again.