How to Extend Your Device’s Battery Life

Nowadays, just about everything we do relies on our electronic devices — smart phones, laptops, tablets, smart watches, etc. These devices are an integral part of our everyday life, enabling us to work, communicate, relax, and take care of ourselves.

They all depend on power to do what they do. There is also nothing more frustrating than when your device dies at the time you need it most.

Prolonging your gadget’s battery life isn’t so much about making it go a full day — it is about getting out of the habit of constant charging which in turn will see you replace it less often. Also the good news is that there are easy-to-implement solutions that make sense and will improve your device’s battery life in the short term and the long term. Here are what I think are the best tips to improve your device’s battery life.

1. Adjust Screen Brightness.

Sure thing: What most affects your phone’s battery life is the screen. The higher you have the brightness the more energy it uses up. Most devices have auto brightness or adaptive brightness features which will change the screen brightness according to your environment. Turn this on and you will see a great improvement in battery life.

If you are in indoor or low-light settings you can reduce the brightness which in turn will save you energy. Many a time we keep the brightness at max which may not be necessary and in the end we are just wasting battery. At the same time you can also reduce eye strain by setting your phone’s brightness lower.

2. Use Power Save mode.

All of today’s latest smartphones, laptops, and also tablets have preloaded battery saving modes. These modes which we see cut down background activity, reduce notifications, and in some cases slow performance a little for the sake of conservation. As they do reduce some features’ access they may at the same time give you greater battery life when you are low.

It is a good idea to put your device in battery saver mode when you are not sure when you will get a chance to charge it. Also some users leave it on all the time if they do not use top performance from their device at all times.

3. Disable What You Don’t Use.

Many of our device’s features which we may not be aware of are what drain the battery while we are not using them. Things like Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GPS, and mobile data all are to blame for this.

If you don’t have Bluetooth in use turn it off. Also, when out of network range, turn off Wi-Fi. As for GPS that is a great battery drain issue which you will see in action if you have apps which are always trying to determine your location. Unless you are using maps or location based services it is a good idea to disable it.

Airplane mode, which disables all wireless connections, is also useful for conserving battery life, especially on long flights or in areas with many networks.

4. Masterflash Your Applications.

There are apps that drain your phone’s battery life. Social media sites, video streaming services, and games are the main culprits. Also when you are not using them they run in the background, checking for updates, sending out notifications or using your location.

Also check out what apps are using the most battery life. In most phones go to the battery settings to do this. You can disable or delete unused apps to reduce background drain. Also you may turn off background data for certain apps or put a limit on background activity to save power.

5. Upgrade Your Software.

Software updates do not only introduce new features — we also see corrections of errors and optimization of code which in turn improves battery performance. Also what is included in these updates are fixes for battery drain issues in applications. By keeping your device’s OS and apps updated you are in fact using the best in class in terms of battery performance improvements.

It doesn’t sound like much but we see that regular updates improve battery life in the long term.

6. Steer clear of extreme temperatures.

Temps also play into battery health, especially with regards to high or very low temperatures. Putting your device on hot surfaces or in the sun may cause permanent damage to the battery. Also, exposure to very low temps may see your device’s performance drop for a while.

If you want your device’s battery to do well, keep it out of very hot and very cold temps. When your phone has heated up after long use or charging go ahead and give it some time to cool down before you use it again.

7. Charge Up.

Most people engage in bad charging habits without realizing it. Leaving your phone on charge overnight or constantly recharging it from empty to full may in fact be causing your battery to age faster.

New batteries do not have to be fully used up before recharging — in fact it is better to keep your battery at 20% to 80% for the most part. It’s better to do many small charges over one full 0% to 100% charge.

It is also recommended that you use original or certified chargers and cables. While low cost and low grade chargers may work they will not provide enough voltage and in the end may damage your battery.

8. Reduce Notifications.

Every time a notification sounds out over your speakers, goes off in your phone, or is presented on screen it uses up some battery. Some of these are beyond your control but many you do. Go into your settings and turn off notifications for the apps you don’t use.

The less that your screen will turn on at a time which is not intended by you, the more battery you’ll get out of your device over the course of a day. It’s a little change, but which does in fact add up especially if you’re a very active user in terms of notifications.

9. Use the dark mode (if available).

In your tablet or phone’s case if it has an OLED or AMOLED screen dark mode will save battery. With those types of screens what they do is light up individual pixels, in fact black pixels are effectively “off” and use very little power. Also, in these displays white is the color that requires more power which is the opposite of how traditional LED screens work.

Dark mode is more than just a trend — it does in fact save power which we see especially when you are heavy device user during the day. If you switch over to dark mode in your operating system and your most used apps we see a rather large battery life improvement.

10. Reduce your widgets, live wallpapers.

Live wallpapers and widgets may be fun but they do tend to drain the battery in terms of constant updates, animations or background processes. Also try reducing the number of widgets on your home screen which in turn helps reduce unnecessary power use.

If you are into customization, then go for static wallpapers and get rid of unused widgets. The more you reduce live elements on the screen the better it is for your battery.

11. Simplify Connection Settings.

Features of 5G and Wi-Fi 6 are fast but they do tend to drain the battery, especially in weak signal areas. In a situation where you have poor 5G coverage try to switch your phone to 4G or LTE which will in turn reduce the time your phone spends searching for a better signal — an action that in itself uses up the battery.

On laptops and desktops turn off Bluetooth and Wi-Fi when not in use to see some small but meaningful changes that add up in battery life.

12. Use offline features.

In as much as you are able to do so use offline versions of apps and services. Before you go out put what you need to on your device from play lists to maps to docs that you will look at when you do not have a good connection. Also avoid streaming everything at the time it is required because it uses up the battery very fast which is a result of your device’s hard work to maintain that good connection.

By going first to the offline options you are also at the same time conserving data and your battery.

Conclusion

Adjusting screen brightness, closing out of unused applications, charge thoughtfully, and set your device’s options correctly. Each action may seem small but in the end they add up to get your device to run longer and your battery health improve over time.

By making these changes a part of your daily routine what you do is you extend your phone or laptop’s battery life which in turn extends the life of the device. That which also means your device will run longer between charges, you’ll have fewer unexpected shutdowns and also may avoid the need to buy into expensive battery replacements in the future.

With focus and care you may get the best out of your device’s battery which in turn will be at your disposal when time is of the essence.