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iPod touch Do You Really Get 7 Hours of Video Playback

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yustas

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Dec 11, 2009
555
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Apple claims that on the 4G Touch you can get "up to 7 hours" of video playback when fully charged. Do you guys see anything close to 7 hours? The reason I ask is because I am maybe getting 3 or 4 hours (all default setting, except the WiFi is off) and nothing runs on the background, only playing Angry Birds. It runs for maybe 4 hours tops (if that), then I get a warning that the battery is at 20%, but if I continue playing it shuts down in about 20 minutes, so I am not even sure if the 20% warning is correct.

What am I missing? Should I disable something in the settings to get more time out of the battery, or...?

Thanks.
 
Well, what kind of settings do you have? Brightness? Push or Fetch email? notifications?
 
Typically, when any manufacturer tells you how much the battery can last up to, it is not based on default settings but rather minimum settings.

This means that the battery has to be fully charged, no applications running (which means no games), lowest brightness, all the wifi, bluetooth, location services off, sound set to the lowest and so on.

So if it last 4 to 5 hours for movies at full charge, it would certainly be good under typical settings.
 
yustas said:
The reason I ask is because I am maybe getting 3 or 4 hours (all default setting, except the WiFi is off) and nothing runs on the background, only playing Angry Birds.
Click to expand...

Playing Angry Birds does not equal watching video. Video is decoded using a special low power chip, and games use the main CPU.

From Apple's website:
Testing conducted by Apple in August 2010 using preproduction hardware and software. The playlist contained 358 unique audio tracks consisting of content imported from CDs using iTunes (128-Kbps AAC) and content purchased from the iTunes Store (256-Kbps AAC); video content was purchased from the iTunes Store. iPod units were associated to a Wi-Fi network and Auto-Brightness was turned off; all other settings were default. Battery tests are conducted with specific iPod units; actual results may vary. Rechargeable batteries have a limited number of charge cycles and may eventually need to be replaced (see www.apple.ca/support/ipod/service/battery). Battery life and number of charge cycles vary by use and settings. See www.apple.ca/batteries for more information.
Click to expand...

In Apple's tests, Wi-Fi is ON and brightness is at 50% (default).
 
Warbitrary said:
In Apple's tests, Wi-Fi is ON and brightness is at 50% (default).
Click to expand...

Shouldn't I get a bit more out of the battery when Wi-Fi is off and not on? Does the Touch work like a computer? I mean, does it really have the CPU and a separate chip for video decoding. I thought it is all handled by one chip.
 
SoraLimit said:
Well, what kind of settings do you have? Brightness? Push or Fetch email? notifications?
Click to expand...

Default settings, Wi-Fi is off, so e-mail push is not working. Nothing is running on the background, just playing one game (Angry Birds).
 
Video

I am confused how video works on the iPod touch. By video is an example, watching a movie or youtube clips? I usually have to touch the screen to make sure the display does not get dim.
 
Video playtime is not the same as gameplay time. Playing a game eats up alot more battery than watching a video because it is more cpu intensive.
 
ObiWannabe said:
Video playtime is not the same as gameplay time. Playing a game eats up alot more battery than watching a video because it is more cpu intensive.
Click to expand...

I am not saying it is not, but how do you know this? Both need to read the hard drive and display something on the screen. Because video has to be decoded, it seems that it would be more demanding on the battery than playing a little game.
 
Angry Birds is a notorious battery killer. I used to destroy the battery on my iPhone 4 playing Angry Birds. My new iPod touch holds up a little better to the onslaught though.
 
Here's a quote directly from apple's website on ways to save battery life.

"Minimize use of third-party applications: Excessive use of applications on iPod touch, such as games that prevent the screen from dimming or shutting off, can reduce battery life." http://www.apple.com/batteries/ipods.html

Now I am not an expert on how ipod apps work so take this with a grain of salt. But just think about it for a second. When you play a game, the ipod has to take the constant input of your fingers when you pinch, swipe, tap, etc. And at the same time it has to calculate the physics as your throwing the birds and knocking stuff over. And it has to figure out when you've won or lost and record how many stars you got. I'm sure there's even more going on than that, but you get the idea. Now compare that to just playing a video. It seems common sense to me.
 
yustas said:
I am not saying it is not, but how do you know this? Both need to read the hard drive and display something on the screen. Because video has to be decoded, it seems that it would be more demanding on the battery than playing a little game.
Click to expand...

your thread title says "video playback". BUT, you are talking about a GAME. games are battery-killers; video isn't nearly as taxing.
 
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