Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Best ways to save battery life on your iphone 4?

The Game 161

The Game 161

macrumors Nehalem
Original poster
Dec 15, 2010
31,649
20,872
UK
Just wondering what are the best ways go make your iPhone 4 battery last? Turn off locations? Bluetooth? How about enable 3G? Is it best to switch that off when using wifi? Also do you need to keep 3G on when you don't have wifi on?
 
Last edited by a moderator:
The Game 161 said:
Just wondering what are the best ways go make your iPhone 4 battery last? Turn off locations? Bluetooth? How about enable 3G? Is it best to switch that off when using wifi? Also do you need to keep 3G on when you don't have wifi on?
Click to expand...

But just turn off anything you aren't using. If you aren't using wifi, Bluetooth, gps etc etc then turn it off so it isn't running.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
The best is when you keep it connected to the power charger.
Then not using it.
Airplane mode and lowest brightness, location services off.
 
Backlight At the Lowest
Turn off 3G
Turn off Wifi
Turn off Location
Turn off Bluetooth
Auto-Lock 1 Minute

Thats the best set-up my iPhone 3G only had 10% last night and i made it last 5 Hours with like 30 minutes of Usage
 
I don't try to save battery life at all, brightness is always at max and it always lasts a good 24 hours at least. If I know on forehand I need my battery to last longer I'll turn down the brightness and that's it :) .
 
You're asking the wrong question. People are telling you what you want: All the ways to save battery life.

This is not particularly useful advice, though, as turning it all off makes your phone fairly useless. You need to pick and choose what works best for you, but I find that the most common 'best advice' for most folks is simply this:

* Set screen to 50% and turn on auto brightness.
* Turn Wifi on only when you need it, turn it off otherwise.
* Turn off bluetooth unless you use it constantly.

That's about it. I'd suggest leaving everything else on. (3G, GPS, push e-mail, etc.) Yes, you can get better battery life by turning all those things off, but is it worth it? To my mind, no, it's not.
 
Leet Apple said:
Backlight At the Lowest
Turn off 3G
Turn off Wifi
Turn off Location
Turn off Bluetooth
Auto-Lock 1 Minute

Thats the best set-up my iPhone 3G only had 10% last night and i made it last 5 Hours with like 30 minutes of Usage
Click to expand...

Why did you buy the phone? All the above defeats the reason the phone was purchased. Of the above list, I have Bluetooth off, I don't use it. Brightness is at about 70% and I charge my phone every two days.
 
Turn off auto-brightness. Lower screen brightness.

Go into notifications and turn off what you don't need (such as sounds or needless notifications from less-used apps).

Set mail to auto-check less frequently. Turn off bluetooth and wi-fi.

Empty your safari cache now and then.

Turn sound off when not needed.
 
dagored said:
Why did you buy the phone? All the above defeats the reason the phone was purchased. Of the above list, I have Bluetooth off, I don't use it. Brightness is at about 70% and I charge my phone every two days.
Click to expand...
What phone do you use?
 
If you decide to JB, ScreenDimmer is worth the small price. Really helped me with battery life on my 3GS and continues to do well on my I4.
 
Randman said:
Turn off auto-brightness. Lower screen brightness.

Go into notifications and turn off what you don't need (such as sounds or needless notifications from less-used apps).

Set mail to auto-check less frequently. Turn off bluetooth and wi-fi.

Empty your safari cache now and then.

Turn sound off when not needed.
Click to expand...

doesnt that only bring the brightness down in dark rooms, not up above your set amount..?

also, jailbreak + sbsettings.
 
This may sound like a stupid question but when you are out with no wifi do you need to have 3G on to get internet data?

I have now

switched off

locations
all notifications while I'm not using them
switched 3G off when using wifi

so I should see improved battery life?
 
IMO location services doesn't do squat on the iphone4, which is good.

I leave location services on, because it's only used when I allow the app to turn it on.

I noticed no change when having it set to on, or set to off. I have the screen to auto dim, and around 45% brightness.

I always have bluetooth off, and 95% of the time, wifi off. 3G on, and I can get 6-8hours of use, and 48~ hours of standby.
 
vivithemage said:
IMO location services doesn't do squat on the iphone4, which is good.

I leave location services on, because it's only used when I allow the app to turn it on.

I noticed no change when having it set to on, or set to off. I have the screen to auto dim, and around 45% brightness.

I always have bluetooth off, and 95% of the time, wifi off. 3G on, and I can get 6-8hours of use, and 48~ hours of standby.
Click to expand...

WiFi & Bluetooth are the same as Location Services. When the phone is in standby (screen off) WiFi automatically turns off. Bluetooth goes into standby mode when it's not connected & not looking for a connection.
 
.Shine said:
What phone do you use?
543.jpg
Click to expand...

is this sarcasm? bwahahahaha
 
The Game 161 said:
Just wondering what are the best ways go make your iPhone 4 battery last? Turn off locations? Bluetooth? How about enable 3G? Is it best to switch that off when using wifi? Also do you need to keep 3G on when you don't have wifi on?
Click to expand...

You could try Apple's Support document. I found this in literally 3 seconds and it was literally the first hit in my Google search: http://www.apple.com/batteries/iphone.html

Literally.
 
Turn your screen brightness down, that helps a lot from experience.

Also, Bluetooth is a HUGE power draw if you don't need it on constantly, so switch that off if you can.
 
I'd like to know what to turn off in order to get the GPS (MotionX GPS) to last more than 2 or so hours on a ride or hike. It's so bad I will only use it when I am stuck on a ride, and I have some areas I'd like to explore where I'll need it more.

I turn off wifi and the sound but that's about it. I have a case for my phone on the bike and to see it through the case I sometimes have to turn the brightness up, but I turn it down if I'm hiking.
 
  1. Don't use it, don't even think for any one sec of touching it
  2. Dim that brightness, or better yet, keep that screen off, miss your next call, just don't touch it
  3. Turn off bluetooth and wifi, I don't care if you need it, just do it already.
  4. Don't even think about dialing 911 when you see some child playing basketball on the streets of this busy intersection. Remember, you absolutely must save battery life at all costs!
  5. Turn on airplane mode. Don't even think about turning it off, just ignore the outside world.
 
Dennis187 said:
  1. Don't use it, don't even think for any one sec of touching it
  2. Dim that brightness, or better yet, keep that screen off, miss your next call, just don't touch it
  3. Turn off bluetooth and wifi, I don't care if you need it, just do it already.
  4. Don't even think about dialing 911 when you see some child playing basketball on the streets of this busy intersection. Remember, you absolutely must save battery life at all costs!
  5. Turn on airplane mode. Don't even think about turning it off, just ignore the outside world.
Click to expand...
+1 For your awesomeness.
 
diane143 said:
I'd like to know what to turn off in order to get the GPS (MotionX GPS) to last more than 2 or so hours on a ride or hike.
Click to expand...
The GPS receiver is what's eating your battery. If you need more battery life with GPS and can't plug into a power source then get a battery case.
 
Last edited:
diane143 said:
I'd like to know what to turn off in order to get the GPS (MotionX GPS) to last more than 2 or so hours on a ride or hike. It's so bad I will only use it when I am stuck on a ride, and I have some areas I'd like to explore where I'll need it more.

I turn off wifi and the sound but that's about it. I have a case for my phone on the bike and to see it through the case I sometimes have to turn the brightness up, but I turn it down if I'm hiking.
Click to expand...

GPS is going to eat your battery no matter what you do. Even worse, you're likely in an area where cell reception isn't the greatest- so your phone is also constantly searching for a signal.... which will also make short work of your battery.
 
Turn the brightnesss down to a lower level, turn wifi off when traveling around, turn off bluetooth, Make sure all GPS connection are off when not needed.

Lastly, if you feel you need longer battery consider getting a case which is a battery. The cases I've seen hold just as much charge or slightly more then a fully charged iphone so you get 2x the battery!

Heres a few links:

This is actually just a battery powered charger if you want to in a bag and is cheaper then the case http://www.mophie.com/mophie-Juice-Pack-Boost-p/2026_jpu-boost-2.htm


Here is the "air" case which holds 3/4 of the power needed to fully charge an Iphone. http://www.mophie.com/mophie-juice-pack-air-iPhone-4-4s-battery-case-p/1145_jpa-ip4-blk.htm

And here is the pro version which holds an Iphones full charge: http://www.mophie.com/mophie-juice-pack-plus-iPhone-4-4S-battery-case-p/1160_jpp-ip4-blk.htm
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back