However, there exists a certain form of frustration that is associated with your device’s battery running out. You would have had a battery that lasted all day but now find yourself having to connect it to a charger in the middle of the day or even waking up in the morning and finding it has used up much of its battery life while at rest. The first reaction in such cases is that the battery is going bad and needs to be replaced. However, not always is this the case.
Before I commit myself to a battery replacement appointment or purchase one, I go through a particular process which takes some time but which normally helps me figure out whether I have an actual issue with my battery or whether my phone is doing too much work. This is what I do.
1. I Check Which Apps Are Using the Most Battery
This is where I begin all the time. Each device will have a power consumption screen on its settings where battery power usage is shown per app. I will check this screen to look for anything unusual.
I am specifically looking for an app that consumes much higher battery power than what it should be considering the amount of use it gets from me. In such a case, the app is most probably doing something else in the background. It might be refreshing itself repeatedly or even stuck in some type of loop due to a bug in the software.
2. I Check Whether the Screen Is Using Too Much Power
The screen is almost always going to be the most power-hungry component of your phone, so it definitely deserves consideration and not just assumptions. Some things to check for:
- Brightness – Is the brightness level set higher than necessary? Does automatic brightness behave weirdly?
- Timeout – Setting the timeout from 30 seconds to 5 minutes will make a huge difference.
- Refresh rate – If the phone has a high refresh rate (90Hz or 120Hz) screen, then that will drain the battery faster than the common 60Hz.
- Always-on display – Very useful, but it will keep the screen on even when it's not.
None of them is anything weird or outlandish; they are just often forgotten because you only set them once.
3. I Think About What Changed Recently
This is one of the more useful steps, because battery drain rarely appears out of nowhere. I ask myself a few questions:
- Did I install a new app recently?
- Did this start right after a software update?
- Did I change any settings around location, Bluetooth, or account syncing?
- Has the phone been running unusually hot lately?
Timing is actually more important than people think. If the drainage coincided with when you got a new application, then chances are that the new application is the culprit, not your battery. If it coincided with an upgrade to your operating system, then it's a whole other story – a story very unlike "my battery's going out."
4. I Check Whether the Phone Is Getting Hot
The relationship between heat generation and battery usage is intimate. Any time you perform any activity on your smartphone, like playing games, using maps or recording videos, there will be heat generation and battery usage.
However, what is not usual is that your phone starts getting hot without doing much, or that it remains hot even when left alone. This is usually an indicator that something in the background process works more intensely than it should or that the battery itself is deteriorating.
5. I Check My Mobile Network and Connectivity
This one tends to get ignored, but it's particularly pertinent if you use mobile data often. A phone trying really hard to maintain a poor cellular connection is going to deplete your battery much faster than one with a good, solid connection; the radio simply works harder to maintain it.
Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and GPS or location services are some other things I look into, as well as a possibly forgotten-on hotspot. All of these could be running, potentially draining your battery without your knowledge.
6. I Check Battery Health or Battery Condition
However, some phones will allow you to get an actual percentage on your battery's health through the settings menu, while other phones make it somewhat more difficult to locate this information, requiring the user to seek out the diagnostic app provided by the phone's manufacturer.
But beyond simply the percentage, there are a few symptoms to keep an eye out for that are signs of a battery nearing its end rather than any problems with the phone itself:
- Visible, substantial decline in battery performance over time
- Phone shutting down unexpectedly despite having some battery remaining
- A short battery life even during times of little battery usage
- Sudden jumps or drops in battery percentage
If any or all of these symptoms occur, then chances are it's a battery problem rather than any of the earlier listed issues.
7. I Check for Software and App Updates
Sure, updates do play a role in this case, but I try not to see them as some kind of solution. In some cases, the update can really solve the problem related to the battery. However, in other cases, the update might be the cause of the issue itself – the latest version of the application or the latest update of the operating system that was not yet optimized for your device.
The smart thing to do is to figure out when exactly the issue started and see if there is any connection between that and some update.
8. I Don't Immediately Install a Battery-Saving App
It’s all too easy to download one of these battery-saving or optimizing apps from the market and leave the task in its hands. Don’t do it. The thing is, there are battery-saving tools built into the Android system itself – adaptive battery, background restrictions for apps, and battery saving modes, among others, and they usually work just fine on their own.
There really is little these apps can offer that isn’t already available to you through your phone’s settings, and to be honest, many of them have background processes of their own that contradict the very purpose of their existence. If you haven’t looked at the battery settings on your phone yet, try it out.
9. When I Would Actually Consider Replacing the Battery
At the end of all of the above, changing the battery begins to make perfect sense, especially after it becomes clear that the issue lies directly with the battery itself, rather than some apps, settings, network problems, or even some software glitches. In other words, battery degradation, shutdowns that occur out of the blue, significantly decreased battery life due to infrequent use, or erratic readings regardless of any changes made.
One more thing to remember – if you have a swollen battery, or the back of the phone starts lifting up, this is something that needs immediate attention as a safety precaution, and not simply a problem with the battery life.
Quick Diagnosis Table
| What I'm noticing | What I would investigate first |
|---|---|
| Battery drops quickly while using one app | That app's battery usage |
| Phone gets hot while doing very little | Background activity or hardware/software issue |
| Battery drains mainly on mobile data | Network signal and mobile-data usage |
| Battery suddenly became worse after installing an app | Recently installed app |
| Phone shuts down with battery remaining | Battery condition |
| Battery has gradually become worse over years | Battery aging |
| Battery drains overnight | Background apps, connectivity, syncing, or battery condition |
Final Thoughts
A fast depletion of your device's battery doesn't necessarily mean you have to replace your battery. This is because most people will want to go for what seems to be the easiest solution. But there are times when the problem can actually be attributed to something else which can be easily fixed such as a runaway application, an active setting, poor signal which works extra hard or software errors brought about by the latest updates.
This is not meant to make you stop from replacing batteries but rather ensure that you only replace them when they are the actual culprit.