Carrier Does 4G Use More Battery Than 3G?

[Helmsley]

I live in an area where 3G and 4G are equally strong.

Does 4G use more battery? I have read a bit of information online and views seem to differ.

Some suggest 4G does use more power, but the speed versus 3G means pages take less time to load, therefore resulting in lower consumption overall.

I will test it on my iPhone 8 Plus but I just wondered if anyone has any knowledge / experiences?

 

[akash.nu]

I don’t think battery life will be an issue either way if you carry an iPhone 8 Plus.

 

[darngooddesign]

I remember the same kind of discussion when the iPhone 3G was released.

 

[Helmsley]

When I'm on WiFi, battery life is amazing. On 4G, even in a strong signal area, not so much.

 

[C DM]

When I'm on WiFi, battery life is amazing. On 4G, even in a strong signal area, not so much.

That's fairly normal as a mobile signal generally requires more power.

 

[eyoungren]

Never mind, I was thinking something else…

 

[goobot]

I dont think it does anymore.

 

[Mcmeowmers]

LTE definitely drained my iPhone faster than 3G.

 

[acorntoy]

Yes, but it has a MASSIVE twist.

4G uses more power, but because it can load the data faster, it uses less power than having the 3g try to load data, and load...,it’s active for much less time.

This was proven through many test when the iPhone 5 was released. Prefer 4G over 3G if your aim is battery.