Both the Play Store and App Store have numerous battery saver apps. A lot of these apps have low ratings while others have higher ratings – some even have close to 5 stars. Does this mean that some battery-saving apps work when some others don’t? Could it be that none of them really work? Let’s take a closer look.
[toc]
Battery saver app – The experiment
Logic dictates that the best way to see if anything works or not is through an experiment. Luckily enough, such an experiment has been conducted by JasonR and his YouTube channel. So how exactly was the experiment conducted and what were the results?
Τhe experiment began with the test subjects – two tablets. One tablet had no battery saver app installed while the other had a battery-saving app installed. The question: Is the tablet with the battery saver app going to last longer?
To find out, Jason loaded both tablets up with a bunch of apps and the experiment began. He played some Minecraft for half an hour on each device. Then, he watched some YouTube videos for about half an hour. After those two tasks, the tablet without the battery-saving app actually had 2% more battery than the other.
Next, he wanted to see if the app can save some battery while the screen is off. He connected his Bluetooth speaker to the tablet and started playing some music. An hour later, he checked the battery level of the tablets. The result? Both devices had the exact same amount of battery power remaining.
The final test was about the ‘Healthy Charge’ feature. ‘Healthy Charge’ is supposed to charge your device at different speeds by using varying charging currents and voltages during
three different charging cycles. Jason put the two tablets side-by-side to see if there’s any difference in charging speed. One hour later, the tablet with the power saver app had charged 1% more battery (45% instead of 44%). Then, he let them charged some more but nothing really changed.
Conclusion of the Experiment
To conclude, battery saver apps don’t do what their name promises. In fact, they almost do nothing. The only real battery-saving features they offer are closing apps adjusting the screen’s brightness, switching networks on and off -you know- all the things you can do without downloading an app.
How to Actually Save Battery
Power-saving apps don’t work but you still want to save some battery. So what can you do? Here’s a list of everything you can do to save some battery and let your smartphone live for a little longer until its next charge:
- Turn brightness levels down
- Close running apps
- Use Lite apps alternatives
- Turn off Wi-Fi and Mobile data / Cellular data
- Disable show notifications
- Enable Battery Safe Mode
- Don’t use your smartphone when you don’t really need it (!)