Top tips on making your smartphone battery last longer

We all know the feeling when you look down on your mobile phone and there’s hardly any charge left. To say it’s frustrating is an understatement. Believe it or not, certain activities drain your battery quicker than others. In October 2015, it was reported that Facebook’s iPhone app was not sleeping properly when users returned to the home screen, meaning smartphones were losing energy at alarmingly quick rates. Facebook issued a speedy response, promising to fix the bug. The fact remains, however, that using certain services will drain battery life more rapidly.

Fortunately, there are ways to conserve battery life and delay that agonizing moment when your screen finally blacks out. Here are some top tips:

Identify what’s using up battery life

Fortunately, on smartphones there’s an option to check out which apps are using up your battery charge. Go to your settings page and click on ‘battery’. Here you’ll see a detailed ranking of the apps consuming the most energy. If you spot an app or service which you barely use, then it’s probably sensible to remove it.

Alter display settings

Is it really necessary to have your smartphone gleaming away constantly? Go to your settings page and alter your device’s brightness. You’ll be amazed by the impact such a small change has on your battery life.

Edit social network and email settings

Social network mobile apps like Facebook and Twitter refresh automatically. It’s a handy feature, but not entirely necessary – and it uses up a large amount of your battery life. By setting your apps to update manually, you’ll extend battery life. All this means is you’ll have to hit the refresh button to update your social network home screen or email messages. It’s a small sacrifice to make for extending battery life.

Make the most of power saving options

The iOS 9 update features a power saving option when your battery life goes below 20%. When you’re nearing the point of no return, your iPhone should warn you and display an invitation to switch into power saving mode. Don’t let such a handy feature go unused.

If you’re an Android user, you can activate power saving mode by going to ‘settings’ and tapping ‘battery’. Here you’ll find a variety of options to control the way your phone operates.

Limit Bluetooth, GPS and Wi-Fi

Consider whether you need all these services at once, since they are big battery suckers. In iOS, you can switch these services on and off instantly by swiping upwards and bringing up the control center. Android users can simply swipe down on their home screen.

Use top-up charging

Don’t wait for your phone to die – if there’s a charger available, then use it, even if for only five minutes! Top-up charging is the most effective way to prolong battery life, and you can always buy an external charger that you can connect when you most need.

Multitasking – battery drainer or saver?

Most smartphones come with a multitasking option. Despite assurances that leaving apps open in the background does not drain your battery faster, some people prefer to swipe away apps which aren’t in use. Of course, apps like music streaming services will drain your battery if they’re left playing in the background, and you can solve the problem by just stopping the music playback.

There are a number of tricks you can play to stretch out your battery life – and they’re all quick and simple. If you’re somebody who finds they’re using up battery charge too rapidly, then just take a few seconds to alter some settings.