Battery usage worse on LTE or WIFI?

[mhw100]

With data fairly cheap now I was thinking of turning off wifi to save battery. From what I'm reading it looks like it is better to stay on wifi as much as possible.

 

[B. Diddy]

I think it depends on what your cell signal is like. If you're on wi-fi but your cell signal is still poor, the battery can still drain since the cell radio is still on and trying to boost signal. I've experienced that at work, where my signal is generally much worse than at home.

 

[I_didnt_do_it]

Depends on how strong your data signal is. If it is strong and therefore can connect easily, your battery won't drain too bad. But if it is a weak signal, your battery will drain more because your phone is having to work harder to stay connected to the network.

 

[Mooncatt]

I think Wi-Fi is generally better for battery. If I'm not mistaken, it's a weaker radio, so isn't using as much power to run as the cell modem (even with a good mobile signal). Yes, the cell modem will remain on, but it uses next to no power when not actively trying to communicate.

 

[B. Diddy]

Yes, the cell modem will remain on, but it uses next to no power when not actively trying to communicate.

That's what I would've thought as well, but I've experimented on this at work -- with the cell radio on but still connected to wi-fi, the battery drain would be significantly worse than if I turned on Airplane Mode and then turned wi-fi back on. I did this for a little while, but then realized that wi-fi calling on wi-fi alone would lead to less reliable sound while on a call.

 

[Kizzy Catwoman]

That's what I would've thought as well, but I've experimented on this at work -- with the cell radio on but still connected to wi-fi, the battery drain would be significantly worse than if I turned on Airplane Mode and then turned wi-fi back on. I did this for a little while, but then realized that wi-fi calling on wi-fi alone would lead to less reliable sound while on a call.

That's an interesting experiment.