A question about very short battery life on my new Galaxy Nexus..

[Withacupofcoffee]

Hi

Galaxy nexus is my very first android smartphone.
Coming from a crappy blackberry, I am blown away by what GNex can do.

However, I'm very surprised by how short the battery life is on this phone. I've read from other posts that GNex is known for having short battery life, but this seems too much..

For little background information,
I live in a rural area where there's very little network. I barely get 3g service.

I rooted my phone and installed aokp milestone 6 rom.

I have my brightness. Set to about 25%.

I have some big widgets on the screen, like ever note calendar, and pulse.

I was on the 3g network surfing the Web (on very weak 3g) for little more than 2 hours, and the battery is less than 15%.

I included some screen shots of my battery state.

As a GNex and an android newbie, is this normal?
I really appreciate your time..

 

[Andrew Martonik]

Re: A question about very short battery life on my new Galaxy Nex

Not surprising. Since you're posting here, I'm assuming this is a GSM model? (if you're posting with a CDMA model I wouldn't be surprised at all by this battery life).

A very low network signal means your phone has to boost the power to the radio to stay connected to the network. If you're also doing a lot of data transfer (like the last part of your graph there), the battery will drain very very quickly. That's still pretty steep, but not out of the realm of possibility.

For comparison, on my GSM GNex, I get about 12-14hrs total usage w/ about ~3hrs "screen on" time in a normal day. Although if I sit there with the screen on for an hour straight in the middle of the day it'll shorten that life considerably.

If you want to look into it more, I'd suggest an app like "Better Battery Stats" (there are tons like this) that'll show specifically what's draining battery on your phone. From the look of things, I'd say you don't have any major problems here other than just keeping the phone

 

[Withacupofcoffee]

Re: A question about very short battery life on my new Galaxy Nex

First of all, thank you very much for a detailed answer.
It is indeed cdma phone... I guess I have to run to better manage my use and get used to the limited battery life.

 

[Andrew Martonik]

Re: A question about very short battery life on my new Galaxy Nex

First of all, thank you very much for a detailed answer.
It is indeed cdma phone... I guess I have to run to better manage my use and get used to the limited battery life.

You should post in the Verizon Galaxy Nexus or Sprint Galaxy Nexus section. This section is for the GSM (Google) model.

You may get some detailed help pertaining to just the CDMA one there.

 

[Eileen89]

I have the GSM Galaxy Nexus. I only got less than 11 hours out of the first charge. Also it took my Nexus at least 25 minutes to boot back up again after the battery completely discharged this afternoon. I'm going to give it 2 more cycles of charging before I decide whether to get an extended battery or return it.

This was day one:

View attachment 30852

View attachment 30853

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

 

[Andrew Martonik]

Re: A question about very short battery life on my new Galaxy Nex

I have the GSM Galaxy Nexus. I only got less than 11 hours out of the first charge. Also it took my Nexus at least 25 minutes to boot back up again after the battery completely discharged this afternoon. I'm going to give it 2 more cycles of charging before I decide whether to get an extended battery or return it.

This was day one:

View attachment 30852

View attachment 30853

I would not at all be unhappy with that. 4.5hrs of screen on time is HUGE. Average for the GSM model is about 3hrs of screen on.

The 25min to boot back up after completely discharging is the intended action. The phone will wait to turn on until the battery has charged up a considerable amount so that it won't turn off again during the boot sequence. Especially if you're charging via USB or a low-amperage wall charger, it may take a bit before the phone agrees to boot up.

There's nothing wrong with your device. Both of these things are very normal.

 

[fender7217]

Re: A question about very short battery life on my new Galaxy Nex

I'm surprised you're surprised... Your screen is constantly on!

Even at 25% power it's going to drain that fast. The Nexus has a big Super AMOLED screen. That's the battery killer.

I'd keep brightness set to automatic. That will keep it as dim as possible while still being readable - conserving as much battery as possible.

 

[oxeneers]

Re: A question about very short battery life on my new Galaxy Nex

Dude, you had the screen on for 4+ hours. That's pretty great battery life. We're all so obsessed with battery stats on Android because we can get all these details, but check other platforms - iOS, BB7, etc, and you'll see poorer battery life than 4+ hours screen on.

 

[Eileen89]

I would not at all be unhappy with that. 4.5hrs of screen on time is HUGE. Average for the GSM model is about 3hrs of screen on.

The 25min to boot back up after completely discharging is the intended action. The phone will wait to turn on until the battery has charged up a considerable amount so that it won't turn off again during the boot sequence. Especially if you're charging via USB or a low-amperage wall charger, it may take a bit before the phone agrees to boot up.

There's nothing wrong with your device. Both of these things are very normal.

Thanks for posting this. I am coming from a iPhone that have me 24 hours on a charge. But I guess I do need to realize that it takes a lot of power on a screen that's as big as the Nexus. You are right about the charging via a USB as that is what I was doing when it took 25 minutes to power back up again. I'm going to use the adapter that came in the box today and see what happens. I guess I can always invest in a spare battery which is something I couldn't do with my iPhone.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

 

[Eileen89]

Dude, you had the screen on for 4+ hours. That's pretty great battery life. We're all so obsessed with battery stats on Android because we can get all these details, but check other platforms - iOS, BB7, etc, and you'll see poorer battery life than 4+ hours screen on.

Some iPhones aren't as good as others when it comes to battery life, however, my 4S typically gives me 6 hours of use and 24 hours of standby time.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

 

[dalvik]

Re: A question about very short battery life on my new Galaxy Nex

I have the GSM Galaxy Nexus. I only got less than 11 hours out of the first charge. Also it took my Nexus at least 25 minutes to boot back up again after the battery completely discharged this afternoon. I'm going to give it 2 more cycles of charging before I decide whether to get an extended battery or return it.

This was day one:

View attachment 30852

View attachment 30853

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

4hrs 30 min with 11 hrs it's really A LOT.... I was never able to get that much on my Skyrocket, btw I'm getting about the same results with my GN now with simular screen-on time, but i did order a spare battery from expansys. i always do for all my phones.

 

[sting7k]

Re: A question about very short battery life on my new Galaxy Nex

Get the OEM extended battery.

 

[dancing-bass]

Re: A question about very short battery life on my new Galaxy Nex

I guess I can always invest in a spare battery which is something I couldn't do with my iPhone.

I purchased 2 extended batteries (2000mAh), a desktop charger for them and of course the battery cover that will fit them. Generally the only time I use a USB cable is to transfer files. Other then that I leave one battery in the charger and just swap batteries when I need to. Stock battery is 1750, so really the jump to 2000mAh isn't that big by the numbers, but I was amazed at the difference the extra 250mAh makes. Worth the money in my books!

 

[jpr]

Re: A question about very short battery life on my new Galaxy Nex

If you want to save battery by lowering your screen brightness lower than phone's stock settings allow, particularly at night, there is an app called Screen Filter. It is free and I've been using it for a couple years. You can lower the brightness all the way down to nothing (but don't do that because then you won't be able to see anything on your phone and will have to pull the battery to reboot). I personally find the lowest stock settings to be too bright at night or in a dark room so I use this often. And the lower your screen brightness, the less battery is used.

 

[dalvik]

Re: A question about very short battery life on my new Galaxy Nex

I managed to squeeze 3 hours 57 minutes of screen time with 10hrs and 52 minutes on battery... and it's showing 6% right now. I did however order an OEM battery (not extended just the spare one) from expansys.com should be getting it next week. but overall this phone's battery is great, especially after coming from the GS2 Skyrocket

 

[Andrew Martonik]

Re: A question about very short battery life on my new Galaxy Nex

Thanks for posting this. I am coming from a iPhone that have me 24 hours on a charge. But I guess I do need to realize that it takes a lot of power on a screen that's as big as the Nexus. You are right about the charging via a USB as that is what I was doing when it took 25 minutes to power back up again. I'm going to use the adapter that came in the box today and see what happens. I guess I can always invest in a spare battery which is something I couldn't do with my iPhone.

You just won't be getting iPhone-like battery life, that's just how it is. That's what happens when you get a high-powered phone with a screen this big.

Ya gotta remember that USB 2.0 will output 500mA at the port, and loses power as it goes down the line. Anything under 500mA will barely keep the phone charging during use, so it'll take a while to charge up.

Wall chargers are usually 1A (1000mA) at the wall (some of which are 2A), and for that reason can charge up much faster.

 

[con5150]

Re: A question about very short battery life on my new Galaxy Nex

Get the OEM extended battery.

is there a specific model to get for the Galaxy Nexus?

any link


thanks

 

[pounder001]

Re: A question about very short battery life on my new Galaxy Nex

is there a specific model to get for the Galaxy Nexus?

any link


thanks

Update: Here is the seller information
Member id mulkin ( Feedback Score Of 3404) 99.7% Positive feedback
Active auction Item number:120843206231

Bought mine off of eBay for around $30.00 w/free shipping if I remember correctly - Seller had a 99+% rating, shipped out of Korea, 2000mAh NFC OEM Samsung battery and OEM Samsung battery door/ fit and finish were perfect

 

[sting7k]

Re: A question about very short battery life on my new Galaxy Nex

is there a specific model to get for the Galaxy Nexus?

any link


thanks

It depends. There is a different one for the GSM and CDMA versions. So make sure you get the right one. The GSM version is a 2000mAh unit and for CDMA it is a 2100mAh battery. It really adds almost nothing to the phone. IMO Samsung should have made it the stock battery.

You should be able to find them on ebay pretty easily. Samsung makes them and make sure it also includes the back cover.

I got my Galaxy Nexus off ebay and it came with both the stock and extended batteries so I got lucky. Also included a charger to charge the spare battery on it's own. I was satisfied with the whole deal.