Simple tweaks to prevent your phone’s battery from running out quickly every day

You plug your phone in overnight, but by lunchtime, it’s already starting to drain its charge. Sound familiar? Hidden background features, sneaky settings, and apps you’ve forgotten exist can drain your battery faster than you think. The good news is that a few quick tweaks can help your device stay active all day long, without sacrificing performance or comfort.

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1) Turn off background app refresh

Prevent apps from consuming power when you are not using them. Even when you’re not actively scrolling or tapping, many apps continue to run in the background, fetching updates, updating data, and sending notifications. It’s convenient, but it drains your battery faster than you realize.

iPhone

• Go to Settings.
• handle general.
• Click Update apps in the background.
• handle Update apps in the background once again.
• He chooses onor choose Wifi To reduce data usage and battery drain.
• You can also stop updating for Individual applications If you still want to play some of them.

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for android

SSettings may vary depending on the manufacturer of your Android phone.

• It opens Settings.
• handle battery (Or battery and device care, power management, or similar).
• He chooses Background usage limits, App battery managementor Battery optimization, The wording depends on your device.
• Choose apps you rarely use, and set them to work Restricted or enhancedor Put unused applications to sleep.
• To let Android manage this automatically, turn it on Adaptive battery (found below Settings › battery › Adaptive battery).

Pro Tip: Keep essential apps, like messaging, navigation, or weather, active so they can update in real time. Restricting background activity for apps you don’t open often can extend battery life by several hours per day.

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2) Disable Always On Display

That sleek clock on your screen may look great, but it’s constantly consuming power. Always-On Display keeps your screen partially lit, even when you’re not touching it, to display the time, notifications, or widgets. Over time, this builds up, especially overnight.

For iPhone (14 Pro and later)

• Go to Settings.
• handle Display and brightness.
• Click Always on display.
• Switch on next to Always on display To prevent your phone from lighting up when it is locked.

for android

SSettings may vary depending on the manufacturer of your Android phone.

• It opens Settings.
• handle Screen lock (Sometimes called “Lock Screen & Security,” “Lock Screen & AOD,” “Display & Lock,” etc.).
• research Always On Display (AOD) (Or similar, such as “Always show time and info,” “Ambient display,” and “Always on when locked”).
• Switch on To completely disable AOD, or Choose an alternative mode (eg: “tap to show” / “display on tap” so that the AOD only appears when the screen is tapped) if available.
• (optional) Some devices allow AOD to be scheduled or limited to when notifications are present. If you want more control, explore the sub-options under AOD setting.

Turning off Always-On Display can extend the life of your backup battery by up to 10 to 15%.

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3) Limit access to the site

GPS is one of the biggest hidden battery drainers. From ride-sharing to retail, apps that track your location in the background can quietly drain your phone’s power even when you’re not using them. Adjusting permissions keeps your phone secure and efficient.

iPhone

• Go to Settings.
• handle Privacy and security.
• Click Location services.
• Click on each one Application individually And change always to While using the application or never.
• Now, scroll to the bottom and click System services.
• handle Important sitesthen swap it on To prevent your iPhone from storing detailed location and travel history. (You can also press “Clear history” Here to clear previous entries.)

for android

SSettings may vary depending on the manufacturer of your Android phone.

• It opens Settings.
• handle location (Or sometimes Privacy and Security → Website).
• handle Application permissions (or App location permissions, Location permissions for apps).
• He chooses Applicationthen choose the appropriate permission, such as “Allow only while using the app” (or “Allow only when in use”) or “Don’t allow” (or “deny”).
• On the same screen (for this app), you may see a toggle switch for “Use precise location”. If the app doesn’t need GPS accuracy, switch on To allow it to use only an approximate location.

Apps like Maps and Weather need access to it, but most don’t. Tightening this setting not only boosts battery life, but also improves your privacy by limiting background tracking.

Pro Tip: Leaving basic features like Find My iPhone or Emergency Calls & SOS enabled under System Services ensures that your phone can still help locate you or protect you if you get lost, even with other location options turned off.

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4) Turn off “Raise to wake” and tap to wake

Have you ever noticed that your screen lights up when you simply pick up your phone? Those quick flashes add up. Every time your screen is activated, even for a second, it consumes battery power. Turning off these motion-activated features can reduce unnecessary screen alerts.

iPhone

• Go to Settings.
• handle Display and brightness.
• Off Lift to wake up.

for android

SSettings may vary depending on the manufacturer of your Android phone.

• It opens Settings.
• handle an offer (or Screen lock and securityor advanced features, Depending on your device).
• research Lift/lift to wake up, Click to wake upor Double tap to wake up (Sometimes found under Gestures or Motion Settings).
• role on “Lift/Raise to wake” and “Tap/double tap to wake” (or choose Disable whichever is active).
• If you want a simpler way to wake up your phone only when you intend to, count on Power button alert (It is the default setting on almost all phones).

5) Review your battery usage and discover the culprits

If your phone is dying faster than usual, a battery usage tool can reveal the exact cause. You’ll see which apps are using the most power, whether on screen or in the background, so you can take appropriate action.

iPhone

• Go to Settings.
• Click on the battery.
• Scroll to view Battery usage graph A list of applications and system processes that use energy.
• Search for any Featured items (Indicates unusually high usage.)
• Click on Application or process To view more details about its usage and background activity.
• If you notice that an app is constantly draining power in the background, consider this Limit background activity or Uninstall it If it is not needed.

for android

SSettings may vary depending on the manufacturer of your Android phone.

• It opens Settings.
• handle battery (or Battery and device care, Power and battery(depending on your device).
• handle Battery usage or Battery usage by app (or similar).
• Search the list of apps and sort or filter by them Use the application or screen time, If available, to identify major battery consumers.
• Click A High-drain applicationthen choose something like Restrict background usage, to improveor Do not allow background activity (Depending on the options your phone offers).

Common causes of battery drain include social media apps, streaming apps, location-based apps, and apps with heavy background refresh behavior. Reviewing this every few weeks can help catch new drains early.

Bonus: Check battery health

If your phone is still draining quickly after these repairs, the battery may be old. Both iPhone and Android devices offer built-in diagnostics to check battery health and capacity.

iPhone

• Go to Settings.
• handle battery.
• handle Battery health and charging (In some older versions, it may simply be “Battery Status”).
• On the battery health screen, look at Maximum capacity percentage. This tells you how your battery’s current capacity compares to what it was when it was new.
• If the ratio Much less than ~80%It may be a good time to replace the battery to restore performance and capacity. (Apple notes that the batteries are designed to retain about 80% of their original capacity over 500 full charge cycles under ideal conditions.)

for android

SSettings may vary depending on the manufacturer of your Android phone.

• Go to Settings.
• Click on the battery (Or “Battery & Device Care,” and “Power & Battery,” depending on your phone).
• Look for an option called Battery health, Battery capacity, Battery status or Battery information. Note: This may not appear on all phones.
• If the built-in health indicator is not available, you can Open the hidden test menu By calling *#*#4636#*#* in the phone application. If Battery Information appears, you may see statistics such as status, capacity, or number of cycles.
• If the battery status or capacity is displayed as follows “reduced” or Much less than expectedConsider replacing the battery for better performance and longer life.

Replacing an old battery can significantly improve performance and service life, often more than any software modification.

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Key takeaways for Kurt

With a few quick tweaks, your phone can finally keep up with your needs throughout the day. Adjusting settings, limiting background activity, and checking battery health really make a difference. You’ll spend less time worrying about low battery and more time actually using your phone. Be proactive, and your device will still have power when you need it most.

Do you have a tip you’d like to share and/or other everyday tech challenges you’d like help solving? Let us know by writing to us at Cyberguy.com.

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