Blog

Are you tired of constantly being tethered to a charger, desperately trying to squeeze every last ounce of life out of your smartphone battery? We've all been there, feeling the panic set in as our battery icon turns red and the dreaded low battery warning pops up. But fear not! In this post, we'll uncover some proven strategies and practical tips to help you extend the life of your smartphone battery. By implementing these simple yet effective techniques, you'll be able to make the most out of your device and say goodbye to battery anxiety once and for all. So, let's dive in and discover how you can stretch those precious battery minutes into hours!

Don't charge your phone overnight.

You’re probably thinking, “What? Why not?” So, we’ll tell you. It stresses the phone's battery. And when you stress the battery, it begins losing the ability to hold a charge and shortens the battery's lifespan.

When it comes to phone batteries, the best thing to do is to unplug your phone before it gets to 100% because the best charge for a lithium ion battery is about 50%. One myth about lithium ion batteries is that you should occasionally fully discharge and recharge to erase "battery memory." But it's not a good idea to charge today's cell phones this way. Partial charging is fine and better for your phone's battery life.

Don't touch your phone while it’s charging.

Actually, you can scroll Facebook or send text messages while your phone is charging but playing games or watching movies places what’s called a “parasitic load” on your phone battery. Over long period of time this will cause your battery capacity to decline and ultimately destroy the life of your phone battery. It’s also important to note that watching movies or playing games on your phone while it’s charging generates heat and that excess heat will ruin your phone battery life even faster.

Dim your screen.

The brighter your screen, the more it drains your battery. So, if your screen brightness is very high, consider disabling auto brightness. To dim it, under Settings click on “Display & Brightness,” then use the slider to adjust the screen brightness down a notch.

Take control of power-draining apps.

Apps like Uber and Grubhub track your location, and if they are doing so 24/7, it will drain your battery. On your Android phone, go to Settings, click on “Location” then “Mode,” and on the next screen tap “Battery Saving Option” (or "battery saver") to turn it on. Set this way, your phone will only know its location when it’s connected to a network. On many Android phones, you can also put unused apps to sleep under battery settings.

On your iPhone, open an app like Google Maps or Uber or Grubhub, etc., and make sure that the “Location” setting is switched to “While Using.” Look through your battery settings for other apps and that use a lot of energy and delete or disable them if possible.

Shut off Bluetooth.

Using Bluetooth to transmit data requires an enormous amount of battery power. Enable it when necessary and shut it off as soon as you’re done using it. Go to Settings and click on “Bluetooth.”  Move the slider to the “off” position. This will help maintain the best battery life and performance.

Stop your phone from getting email so frequently.

If you get your email on your phone, it’s important to note that the more frequently your device looks for new data, the more it drains your android device's battery too. To adjust the frequency on an Android phone, open the Settings app and click on “Accounts.” On the “Accounts” screen, tap on the three dots icon in the right-hand corner. This will bring up “Auto Sync Data.” Click on “Ok” to disable auto syncing. On an iPhone, open Settings, then click on “Mail” and then “Accounts.” On the “Accounts” screen, click “Fetch New Data” and then select how often your phone should check for email. The longer you go between checks, the better for the life of your phone's battery too.

Turn off notifications.

The more frequently you receive notifications from Facebook, LinkedIn, your favorite chat group background app, etc. the faster your phone battery drains.  That’s because every time your phone goes out to the Internet and discovers a new notification, it may light up your screen, buzz, vibrate, or even play a sound. The whole business of alerting you, which can happen very frequently if you’re unaware of it, drains the battery. Simply go to your phone settings and “Notifications” and turn off those push notifications you really don’t need.

Use location services only when you really need them.

All smartphones have built-in GPS systems. This is great when you need to get to a particular destination, find a gas station, or determine how far you are from a particular spot. But if you leave these services running all the time, they will absolutely drain your phone batteries. Just go into Notifications and turn them off. This will save battery life like crazy. When you need the notifications just turn them back on.

Shut off your phone. Really.

If you’re not going to be using it for a few hours, preserve your battery lifespan by turning the phone completely off.

Phone at 10% or less lithium ion battery? Airplane mode to the rescue.

Switch it into Airplane power saving mode again. Airplane mode is a low power mode that will conserve what’s left of your lithium ion battery and, if you need to send a text or call an Uber, you can always switch airplane mode off.

Turn on low power mode or power saving mode.

To stretch a low battery, turn on battery saver or low power mode. Doing so will help your battery last longer. Certain Android phones come with a battery saver or low power mode. To find out if your phone has one, go to your device manufacturer's support site.

Now that you know how to make your battery last longer, switch to H2O Wireless and make your money last longer, too! 

Extending the life of your battery gives you more freedom and makes it easier and more convenient to stream, browse, connect and communicate than ever before. For even more ease and convenience, say "Yes!" to H2O Wireless. No contracts. No hidden fees. No hassles. $20 a month for unlimited talk, text, & 3GB data and 2GB hotspot!