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Samsung Galaxy S4 Battery Drain since 12/09 Update

I recently updated my Samsung Galaxy S4 to the latest firmware update offered by Verizon on 12/09/2014. The name of that update is update_SCH-I545_NG6_to_NK1. As of that update the phone has not been holding a charge. Previously under normal use I could easily get two days before I would be required to charge. Now the phone will barely go 6 hours before I get the warning that the battery is down to 10% and that the phone needs to be immediately charged. I am running very little on this phone and during these times the Android Task Manager will generally display that nothing is running except for perhaps GMail. The battery usage chart shows that the top three processes being Android OS (86%), Android System (4%) and Device idle (3%). The battery use is so great that charging via USB can't even keep up and the battery will continue to run down.

Is Verizon aware of any issues caused by this update? Can the update be reverted?

Comments

Halo_Four

So I've noticed quite a few other posts about the same issue, although a number of them seem to involve the previous NG6 update. To note I can't say that I ever experienced this kind of battery drain or overheating issues with NG6. My phone use is relatively light so I probably never stressed the battery that much. However, the change since NK1 has been staggering. I literally will sit the phone on my desk and within 5-6 hours the battery will be dead, despite the phone not running anything (no applications listed in Task Manager). I will plug it into my computer via USB, which used to be able to charge it within an hour or so, and now the battery level continues to drop.

unknown

I have two S4s, one work and one personal. I had absolutely no issues with the dreaded NG6 on either phone. When NK1 popped up I figured it was fixing issues for the poor phones affected by NG6. I updated without concern.

Now, my work phone (which gets very little use aside from a few voice calls a week) is fine but, my personal phone is experiencing battery drain twice as fast as before. I'm now doing a full charge twice a day. It also seems hotter to the touch randomly throughout the day.

Verizon_Support

Halo_Four,

Sorry to hear about your trouble with battery life. Let's see what we can do about that. For starters, disconnect from your charger, power the phone off and remove the battery http://vz.to/1uY8TpG . While you have it out, check to ensure that there is no swelling or cracking. Also check for signs of corrosion (like a white powedery substance either on the battery or the terminals in the phones that it connects too. If your battery appears to be in good condition reseat it in your phone and replace the cover.

Since there also seems to be a correlation with your last update lets address that as well. Downloaded applications may not be optimized for the new OS version and even though they may technically work, they may cause higher than normal battery drain until the application developers correct whatever issues arise. Having said that, go to the Google PLay Store app. Once the app is open press the menu button and touch My Apps. Make sure any updates are installed as they are likely updates available that will optimize those apps for use on the latest OS. Once that is completed, wipe the cache partition: http://vz.to/1sVy5NK .

Once you have completed that, go to Settings> My Device and make sure Power Saving Mode is On. Charge the phone completely and then use it as you normally would. Let us know if that brings you back to a reasonable battery life on the phone.

BrianP_VZW

Follow Us on Twitter @VZWSupport

HdoubleODeezy

I've been experiencing extreme power drain on my S4 since the NK1 update also.
NEVER had a problem with NG6. I've tried everything I can think of.

I have checked the battery physically, no problems. (though I knew it wouldn't be that because the fast drain started the exact day I updated).

I have reset all my security settings to stock, didn't fix it. ( Tried that twice actually)

Scanned my phone for malware, viruses etc. None.

Deleted a lot of the older apps I had on the phone which I never used.

I installed a second RAM booster / Task killer.to try to help with it, and no help.
Even let it stay on until 0% battery life left and then let it re-charge back to 100% because I thought I had read somewhere that it would recalibrate the battery. Maybe it did but it didn't fix anything.

ONLY thing giving me enough battery life to even use the phone (nevermind go anywhere with it) is disabling a bunch of apps, those being-

Google Maps was draining it a lot even though I never use it, would delete it if it would let me.
ANT Radio Service

ANT+ Plugins

Blurb checkout

Calendar widget

Direct Share Manager

Dual Clock

Eraser (some app that has the same icon as Camera)

HP Print Service Plugin

Isis Wallet

S Memo

S Voice

Samsung Books

Samsung Print Service Plugin

Sensor Service

SNS

Story Album

Talk Back

Travel Wallpaper

& Trip Advisor

It is helping a bit like I said but still is draining badly because of the update.

I took my phone off the charger at 100% 1hr and 37min ago and I am down to 80% battery life.

Please come out with a fix update for this. I didn't know the reason the update came out was to fix problems people were having with NG6. I didn't have any at all with it.

Will continue to check for updates on my phone daily.
Just letting my story about this be seen also.

Thanks,
-T.J.

jjboyd

I actually am having the same problem. I did a factory reset and reloaded everything ... it's still dead by lunch time when before, i would come home from a 8 hour shift and still have about 35% battery life left.

jjboyd

I will say that before the nk1 update i only ever remember seeing something in the battery use called android system ... now there is " android system" AND "android OS" listed ...i don't know if it actually means anything but being that the 2 together take up 50% of my battery use, i thought I'd mention it.

bandclong

I have tried all of the fixes suggested on this post and many others (except restore to factory, which I understand is a waste of time) and STILL have ridiculous battery drain. I think we all agree, the battery life on this phone was kick ass until the last update. . .I was going 2 days on a battery but after doing all the fixes on this thread, my battery went down from 100% to 94% in 1 hour, doing nothing but sending 1 text message. As you can see from the photo, it is all from the Android OS.

Samsung 1 hr.jpg

Does anyone else out there think Verizon does this on purpose, on phones that are a model or 2 old so we will all be chomping at the bit to dump them and pay big bucks for the latest and greatest upgrades? I am not due for a new phone until August so I am just supposed to limp along with this thing until then?

Shame on you, Verizon - this update came out on December 9th, where is our fix? I am guessing we are all waiting for something that isn't coming. I have been putting off switching carriers for YEARS because I have so many friends and family on Verizon but I think everyone else is just going to have to suck it up and I will have to switch to Sprint or AT & T and get their sweet unlimited deals for less money.

jbal

My wife's phone has this issue as well. This morning it was at 100% after being on the charger overnight. I pulled out the charging wire and checked it again after almost 2 hours and it had not been used during that interval but the phone read 78% which is incredible. The battery drain graph also indicates Android OS 87%. Since the phone would normally go 2 days without needing a charge until recently, this is an abnormal situation and seems to be a malfunction and not caused by the user. It seems it very well could be caused by the last update as others suspect.

I talked the wife into the Samsung Galaxy S4 when the contract for her Droid 4 expired and I'm not in a very happy place right now. Therefore, I hope a fix for this is in the VERY near future!

HdoubleODeezy

I actually think the fix will be Android 5.0 "Lollipop".
I ended up caving and getting an S5 because I couldn't deal with the problem at hand anymore.
That is what Verizon wants us to do anyway. THEY WIN. Weird thing is, I factory reset my S4 and started a new google account and gave the phone to my son (with the plan still intact because of the contract that costs an arm and leg to break) and it works PERFECT for him. Ha, odd. Tried factory reset with always putting my google account back on and the problem persisted.
Maybe a temporary fix UNTIL Verizon finally decides to give us Lollipop. Is make a note of which apps you need most and factory reset and create a new google account and when you get the phone set up, only get the essential apps you noted. Then when Lollipop is released factory reset and log back in with your old account and see how it works.

I personally am using my always existing account on the S5 and it works fine with Android 4.4.4 "Kitkat".

I don't know what else to add to this discussion. Wish a Verizon rep would chime in with some info.

-T.J.

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