It's happened to the best of us: You go to use your phone, likely toward the mid-afternoon or early evening, only to discover that it's totally out of power. The aggravation sets in immediately. Why did I Facetime for two hours earlier today? Why didn't I charge it at work? But when it comes to your smartphone and battery performance, there are a number of factors contributing to its decline that you're likely not aware of. Fortunately, the folks over at AVG are, and they've put together a few lists enumerating the app culprits of battery drain. Here are some selections from those lists:
The performance suckers
These apps aren't necessarily the battery-wreckers, but they're the ones that quietly make your Android life miserable – or at least a lot slower. Like when you're trying to send a snap to your friend and the thing keeps failing to send. Here are some of the possible sources of the problem:
- Facebook: This one's obvious. After all, there's basically nothing you can't do on this app. From liking friends' articles to being redirected to a web page to having a video automatically start playing, there are a plethora of functions that Facebook mobile encompasses – and many of them take a healthy bite out of your phone's data. One way to reduce this consumption, however, is to de-select the "autoplay" feature. The method to do that is explained here.
- Instagram: Another expected offender. With almost as much eclectic functionality as Facebook, Instagram for Android is drawn to your data plan like flies to a lamp. But the potentially negative impact of this app can be mitigated thanks to Instagram's installation of data controls, which, like Facebook's features, enable you to turn off auto-play for video content. Of course, since Facebook owns Instagram, it's no wonder the two apps services have similar approaches to data conservation.
The battery drainers
These are the true headache-makers: the kinds of apps that can wreak havoc when left to their own devices (no pun intended).
- magicAPP: Free Calls: Don't get us wrong – there's a lot of inducement to download magicAPP to your smartphone. I mean, just look at that title: "Free Calls." Who can argue that? But nothing is actually free in this world, and magicAPP's operations come at the expense of your phone's battery. If you're a habitual user, you're bound to notice that your battery doesn't last nearly as long as those of people who aren't always leveraging the app.
- Path: A social networking database that encompasses a broad range of functions including photo editing, posting, and socializing with friends, Path eats up a lot of battery for its users.
To combat the battery drainage caused by apps like Facebook and Path requires more than merely adjusting in-app settings. You also need to take a look at your phone's settings to see how your smartphone is interacting with those apps. Say, for instance, you have push notifications enabled for Facebook. In that case, every time activity occurs on Facebook, your phone will notify you – and this, in turn, will eat up data and diminish the battery. To adjust settings optimally, go to Settings >> Notification Center. Once there, go down to the tab that says "Include," and you'll see a listing of all the apps you run as well as which notifications are set to accompany them. If, for Facebook, you have badges, sounds and banners enabled, that's going to call for a whole lot of effort on the part of your phone. Take the strain off your device by modifying these settings.
