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Voluntary Multi-tasking? Battery DRAINS.
- Thread starter mediaboy
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Multitasking is the problem!?! So sayeth Apple . .
My battery life has diminished over the past week despite this being a relatively new 32G iPhone 4 (purchased August 10, so only 5 weeks old). My phone died within 3 hours after a full overnight charge with minimal use.
Just got off the phone with Apple Care and was told that multi-tasking is the problem. When I looked at the multi-tasking bar, I had over 20 open apps. The Apple Care technician instructed me to cancel out of all the apps running in the background (touch and hold the app until they start to wiggle, then click on the red bar to close).
My phone is charging right now, so I will let you know if this has helped my situation.
My battery life has diminished over the past week despite this being a relatively new 32G iPhone 4 (purchased August 10, so only 5 weeks old). My phone died within 3 hours after a full overnight charge with minimal use.
Just got off the phone with Apple Care and was told that multi-tasking is the problem. When I looked at the multi-tasking bar, I had over 20 open apps. The Apple Care technician instructed me to cancel out of all the apps running in the background (touch and hold the app until they start to wiggle, then click on the red bar to close).
My phone is charging right now, so I will let you know if this has helped my situation.
Had genius bar appointment yesterday and the tech said the same thing, had app multi tasking. She did a scan and battery was great. I said I still wasn't happy. She gave me a new phone.
Marc
After I shut down my phone and did a full cycle charge, it seems to working fine! With my normal usage, my charge lasted about 15 hours! It seems to have worked. . whatever the problem was!
draining . . .
i find most apps do not drain the battery ...
but . . .
Words with Friends def does. need to make sure you turn it off manually after each use or your battery will drain real quick! Even when you are using it you can see the whirly thing in the top left corner of the screen showing that it is checking for newer data.
tip - if you dont want mail draining the battery then go into settings and select to only check it manually
i find most apps do not drain the battery ...
but . . .
Words with Friends def does. need to make sure you turn it off manually after each use or your battery will drain real quick! Even when you are using it you can see the whirly thing in the top left corner of the screen showing that it is checking for newer data.
tip - if you dont want mail draining the battery then go into settings and select to only check it manually
About a week ago I got a 3GS with iOS4 and noticed serious battery problem. It would just die overnight. Up until that moment i was a proud owner of a first generation iPhone 
lol and at first it was the same, but after the first jailbreak and upgrade my battery was the best thing about the phone. It would last for 3 days at least. So you can imagine my surprise when i get a new, better iPhone and have to keep it plugged 24/7. So, i started thinking, what could be the difference between my first iPhone and this one and the first thing that came to my mind was the multitasking and i couldn't figure out if the apps that stay on the multitasking dock are running or just recently used. You say the problem is not multitasking, but i disagree and I'm judging only from my own experience. For example, i noticed that if i open a page in Safari and then exit, the next time i open it it stays exactly on the same page without even reloading it, as if I never left. But if i quit the app from the multitasking dock the next time i open it, it reloads all over again. The Safari example is not the best one because even on the 1st generation iPhones, Safari remembers the last opened page unless you hit the cross. But this is the case with every other app. If i don't close it from the dock it stays open, but if double click the home button and close it, on next launch it starts as just opened. That right there proves the app on the multitasking bar are opened until you deliberately close them. So, i decided to try if closing them would solve my problem and it kinda did. For the past 2 days I've been closing all the apps that could drain battery if they were running in the background (Safari, iPod, WhatsApp and all kinds of messengers etc.) unless I want to multitask of course, and trust me my battery is waaay better. It's not as good as on my previous iPhone, but at least it's not draining overnight. Just thought you should know and I hope this info helps
lol and at first it was the same, but after the first jailbreak and upgrade my battery was the best thing about the phone. It would last for 3 days at least. So you can imagine my surprise when i get a new, better iPhone and have to keep it plugged 24/7. So, i started thinking, what could be the difference between my first iPhone and this one and the first thing that came to my mind was the multitasking and i couldn't figure out if the apps that stay on the multitasking dock are running or just recently used. You say the problem is not multitasking, but i disagree and I'm judging only from my own experience. For example, i noticed that if i open a page in Safari and then exit, the next time i open it it stays exactly on the same page without even reloading it, as if I never left. But if i quit the app from the multitasking dock the next time i open it, it reloads all over again. The Safari example is not the best one because even on the 1st generation iPhones, Safari remembers the last opened page unless you hit the cross. But this is the case with every other app. If i don't close it from the dock it stays open, but if double click the home button and close it, on next launch it starts as just opened. That right there proves the app on the multitasking bar are opened until you deliberately close them. So, i decided to try if closing them would solve my problem and it kinda did. For the past 2 days I've been closing all the apps that could drain battery if they were running in the background (Safari, iPod, WhatsApp and all kinds of messengers etc.) unless I want to multitask of course, and trust me my battery is waaay better. It's not as good as on my previous iPhone, but at least it's not draining overnight. Just thought you should know and I hope this info helps 
So, I just heard today from a friend that closing apps in the multi-tasking bar will improve my battery life. Then I found this thread and read every single post.
But, has there been a definitive answer as to whether this is true?
Or is it still up for debate?
But, has there been a definitive answer as to whether this is true?
Or is it still up for debate?
It's not really multitasking. When you close an app it just saves the last point at which you were at. I never close the apps in my multitasking bar. I have probably over 30 of them in there right now. If you notice, when you open an apps that may not have been opened for a few hours, it completely reboot the app and don't actually save from the last point in which you closed the app. Why? Because the device automatically closes apps that you haven't used in a while.
Thanks...that's what I always thought too. Then I heard today to close them to improve battery and I immediately thought it was B/S. Then I read opinions in here and it's like 50/50.
I wish there was a definitive answer cuz those in each camp seem to really believe their side is right.
I wish there was a definitive answer cuz those in each camp seem to really believe their side is right.
Just go a day without closing the apps and a day with closing them and compare. I'll guarantee if you do the exact same activities with just a normal everyday usage for both days you will notice your battery to be the same.
It does for me. But only if there is alot in the multi-task bar and they are 3rd party apps. Stuff like Settings or Notes won't. Mine can drain 4-5% overnight. I'm one of those who has never updated since I bought it and always reports great battery life. When I do these battery test, it is very accurate where usage doesn't creep up because I am aware of the time I use it and I never include music playing. Right now, I have 8 1/2 hours usage with 18% left. This is mostly Edge browsing using Opera Mini. Edge is a faster drainer than WiFi. Looks like I can reach close to 9.5-10 hours usage and Apple claims those numbers for WiFi browsing. It does drain faster under 20%.
My worst battery life experience is when I was addicted using Shopkick. Brightness levels would go up because it was in the day and a switched on 3G + Location Services is a killer combo. I would get only 5 hours usage. Remember, Apple claims battery life based on conservative/minimal point of view. I try to match their minimal approach and on occasion can go beyond it.
My worst battery life experience is when I was addicted using Shopkick. Brightness levels would go up because it was in the day and a switched on 3G + Location Services is a killer combo. I would get only 5 hours usage. Remember, Apple claims battery life based on conservative/minimal point of view. I try to match their minimal approach and on occasion can go beyond it.
So here's the thing about multitasking and battery drain:
Apps don't run in the background unless they request a specific reason like audio, task completion, and location services. Otherwise they are 'frozen' in the background taking no CPU. RAM always has to be powered, so it makes sense to use it as a cache to speed up switching between apps.
So that seems to say that 3rd party apps can't drain the battery, only that's wrong. Specific apps will request access to location services while in the background more often than they should. This leaves the GPS on, and especially navigation apps can drain your battery in 2-3 hours this way. Speedster was one of the worst early offenders, and TomTom makes you go to Route Options > Clear Route in order to stop it from continuing background navigation.
What I've found is that the main case of battery drain with iOS and multitasking is if an app is asking for constant location updates while it is in the background which causes the GPS to run at pull power, killing your battery.
So how do you figure out if this is the culprit? Well, do you see the location services "arrow" in the status bar while at the home screen? If so, an app in the background is getting GPS data. You can remove out apps in your recently used list one at a time until the arrow goes away. The last one closed is the one causing the problems.
Apps don't run in the background unless they request a specific reason like audio, task completion, and location services. Otherwise they are 'frozen' in the background taking no CPU. RAM always has to be powered, so it makes sense to use it as a cache to speed up switching between apps.
So that seems to say that 3rd party apps can't drain the battery, only that's wrong. Specific apps will request access to location services while in the background more often than they should. This leaves the GPS on, and especially navigation apps can drain your battery in 2-3 hours this way. Speedster was one of the worst early offenders, and TomTom makes you go to Route Options > Clear Route in order to stop it from continuing background navigation.
What I've found is that the main case of battery drain with iOS and multitasking is if an app is asking for constant location updates while it is in the background which causes the GPS to run at pull power, killing your battery.
So how do you figure out if this is the culprit? Well, do you see the location services "arrow" in the status bar while at the home screen? If so, an app in the background is getting GPS data. You can remove out apps in your recently used list one at a time until the arrow goes away. The last one closed is the one causing the problems.