Smartphone will work longer — 5 non-obvious settings

Active smartphone owners constantly need a power outlet or a charged power bank. However, there are a few tricks you can do to help your device hold a charge for at least a few hours longer. Of course, you shouldn’t expect miracles — there are no models that work for weeks without being connected to the network. However, if you follow a few simple tips, the battery will be consumed more slowly.

NV tells you about them.

Reduce screen brightness and reduce screen time

Modern smartphones have large displays — even the simplest models can have more than six inches of diagonal. It is the screen that often consumes most of the charge.

Set the display to turn off automatically 30 seconds or 1 minute after the last action. This way, the screen won't stay on when the phone is idle. You can also activate automatic brightness control, which will adjust to the lighting conditions. On a sunny day, the backlight will be more intense, and indoors, it will be dimmed, which will help save battery power.

On many modern devices, you can choose between 60, 90, or 120 Hz refresh rates. Smoother scrolling (90/120 Hz) is mostly important for gaming. If you’re not a gamer, 60 Hz is enough, but it will save you a lot of energy.

Use the power saving mode

You may not need the maximum power of your smartphone when you’re doing your usual daily tasks. So, sometimes it’s a good idea to turn on power saving — especially when you’re not sure if you’ll have enough battery to last the rest of the day.

Power saving mode is available on almost all modern phones, both Android and iOS. It reduces the screen brightness, limits background processes, and slightly "cuts" performance. For example, certain applications won’t update in real time, and notifications will come with a delay or after you open the application. But you’ll get more hours of use without being connected to a charger.

Control background applications

Applications that "hang around" in your smartphone’s memory can use up battery power even when you’re not using them directly.

On Android, you can restrict most applications from running in the background in the settings so that they don’t continuously sync data.

On iOS, you should also pay attention to the function of preventing background updates. Turn it off at least for those services that you can do without constant notifications.

Switch off unnecessary connections — Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and geolocation

Some wireless technologies and modules have a significant impact on battery life:

• Bluetooth — keep it switched on only when you’re using a fitness tracker, smartwatch, or headphones.
• Wi-Fi — if you are leaving the house and do not plan to connect to a wireless network in public places, it is better to switch off Wi-Fi.
• GPS — not everyone needs constant geolocation, so you should only enable it for applications that really need it (for example, maps or delivery).

Reduce the number of notifications

Many games, trading platforms, or establishments automatically send notifications about "everything in the world". Every signal, vibration, or blink of the screen puts a strain on your battery.

Go to the notifications settings section and turn off all unnecessary notifications — get only the most important notifications from messengers or email, and stop other applications from bothering you unnecessarily.

As a reminder, earlier, we told you about 6 features that you should enable on every Android smartphone to improve its performance.

We also wrote that charging your smartphone to 100% can negatively affect the battery and shorten its life. To avoid premature battery wear, you need to follow certain rules.