HTC One battery life after update to 4.4.2

[jaybirdhawaii]

Ever since the update to Android 4.4.2 the battery life on my HTC One has gone right down the tubes.  Once the update completed, I do a clean reinstall - deleting everything, and let the update reinstall.  Battery life when I go to bed is in the 80% - when I get up I'm getting a warning that it's hitting 14% and needs to be charged.  There are no phone calls, no text messages, nothing.  So I reinstalled again - again deleting everything - and didn't reinstall any apps.  I even turned off Blinkfeed and "disabled" a bunch of stuff that was automatically loaded.  Battery life still sucks - I wake up in the morning to the warning that the battery has hit 14% and needs to be cabled.

What is going on?  Battery life before the update was okay - now it absolutely sucks.  Anyone else having this problem?

[annaha]

I already did the factory reset. Things are worse after.

[norrco]

OK, So after some troubleshooting with my phone.. I resorted to the factory reset even though I was hoping NOT to have to get to that.. I saved all my photos on my PC and used an SMS backup to my computer as well. They were pretty much the only things I was concerned about losing.

My phone battery performance is much better now than it was after the update to KitKat, especially in stand by. (Screen off).

It does still seem to suck the battery more than it used to when I'm actually using it but at least when the screen is off the battery isn't completely dead when I look at it a few hours later..

Last week before the reset, I also tried a battery manager app, it seemed to work ok but it also took over the brightness settings so the screen was impossible to see because it was so dark all the time.

All in all, I guess the bottom line is the factory reset seemed to get the battery life to an acceptable level again.. Yay!

I'll update again if things seem to change for better or worse..

[humanpuck]

I'm having this exact same issue.  Verizon is sending me a refurbished phone, but I don't understand what that's going to do.  From everything I've read this is clearly a SOFTWARE issue and not a HARDWARE issue.  This is pretty unacceptable if you ask me.  I have a friend with the same phone, he's on t-mobile and when he got KIT KAT he didn't experience any of these issues.  My girlfriend however has Verizon and the HTC One and she's having the EXACT same issue.  Today she's only used her phone to text and she's down to 40% battery life.  This is clearly a fairly widespread issue and I'm anxious to see what you folks at verizon plan to do about it.

[Holacristy]

Nothing

[Watercycle]

If I had to guess why the HTC One's 4.4.2 update is draining peoples battery, I would have to say it's because the phone isn't properly going into deep sleep.  Maybe someone else can confirm this with me?  In settings->power->history the phone says wifi is always on, completely ignoring that I turned wifi off.  Which might explain why the phone also says it is always 'awake.'

My HTC one came with 4.4.2 installed unfortunately so I can't say all too much.  All I have to compare to is my previous HTC DNA which had significantly better battery life despite the smaller battery capacity and larger screen.

Also, I wish bad luck to whoever at Verizon made the decision to lock the Verizon HTC one off from user software development.  With my previous HTC phones I could just use HTCdev to unlock the phone, and solve any wakelock issues or bugs thanks to the more active software developers at XDA Developers... but the one isn't allowed to be unlocked, heaven forbid users update their own software... I suppose we just wait for Verizon software developers to fix our battery life.

[padlnjones]

copied from Android Authority dated march 18, 2014:

Just last month, European HTC One owners began receiving the Android 4.4 KitKat update. However, shortly after release the  update was suddenly pulled by HTC, when customers began reporting a  variety of complaints, including a substantial reduction in battery  life. Fortunately, HTC appears to have fixed the issues, and a new  KitKat based software update is now making its way out across Europe.

The new update, labelled as version 4.19.401.11, comes in at 205MB  and is available OTA. Along with “important” bug fixes and enhancements,  the change log also mentions improvements to the handset’s WiFi  service, specifically support for a wider range of routers. Perhaps this  is was another one of the problems found in the first KitKat update.

As mentioned, the update is heading out to various countries in  Europe, although the roll-out process will be gradual, as usual. Also,  carrier branded HTC One’s will have to wait a little longer for their  carriers to get around to fixing up their software. For example the UK software update page still lists the unlocked and various carrier handsets in the  “integration” stage, so it’s not being pushed out to consumers quite yet  over here.

[annaha]

I read that report. I mentioned it to HTC and Verizon. They said, "Well,

Europe has different systems than the US." I did not believe that either.

Just another excuse to not take responsibility for these problems.

[padlnjones]

I really did like the HTC One, until this...

[annaha]

I really liked it, too until the Kit Kat update killed my phone.

[Watercycle]

Beg my pardon if these solutions are not helpful to you, but these two temporary fixes have greatly curbed my 4.4.2's battery drain.  Essentially, these two changes are to ensure your phone can go into what android refers to as 'deep sleep mode' when you are not using the phone.

One:

Disable your wifi (I've never gone over a gigabyte despite 4g connections while watching youtube and using the browser)

Two:

-Settings->Data Usage->(top right dot menu)->check 'Restrict background data' (things like weather will not update automatically anymore)

'Restrict background data' must be unchecked to use the Google play store; however, you won't be using the store much in the first place if your phone is dead.

[annaha]

Even with these "fixes" the battery drains the same. I turned off

background data, WiFi, Bluetooth, I don't use the phone for anything other

than email and phone calls and Facebook Manager. The battery drains faster

than before the update.

[padlnjones]

THIS WORKED FOR ME:

got an email from HTC support, which I will copy. so far, my battery is back to normal.

I totally understand your concern on this matter with the battery drainage of the phone, and I will be more than glad to assist you.

I ask you to please go to All apps > Settings > Battery or Power, and disable Fast boot. Then, please go to All apps > Settings > Developer options, and enable USB debugging. After doing this, please perform a Cache reset. This process will delete unwanted and temporary files from your phone. It will not mess up your personal files. Just follow the instructions on the attached file.

COPY OF ATTACHED FILE:

1. Power the phone off.
2. Press and hold the Volume Down button and then while still holding the Volume down, press the Power button as well.  
3. You will get a menu giving you options such as: Fastboot, Recovery, Clear Storage, and SIMlock
4. Navigate to “Recovery” using volume buttons, then press power to select.

5. The screen will change to display a phone on its back, with the update symbol above it. Momentarily it will change to an image of a phone with a red triangle and exclamation mark.

6. Press and hold volume up then press the power button for about 3seconds. You will see something very similar to the example shown below.
   
   
   
   
    

   • e:can’t open /cache/recovery/command

   • e:/ failed to mount /sdcard (no such file or directory exists)
   • e:/ failed to mount /sdcard (no such file or directory exists)
   • e:/ failed to mount /sdcard (no such file or directory exists)
7. A new screen will give you options like Reboot system now, Wipe Cache partition, and Wipe Data/Factory Reset.

8. Navigate to “Wipe Cache” the volume down button and select with Power.

9. Navigate to “Reboot Phone” with the volume buttons and select with power.

HOPE THIS HELPS ALL Y'ALL (as we say in SC)

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[85angel]

I tried this solution on my HTC One yesterday and thus far it has worked. The battery is lasting longer; the battery is only at 50% after 24 hours in contrast to 4% after 8 hours before the fix. Thanks!

[zerofossilfuel]

@padinjones - I have a two month old HTC One M7 preloaded with Kitkat 4.4.2 that received a "baseband" firmware update on Thursday, June 5. Whereas I was getting the advertised 5 days standby time, losing only 2-3% charge on my nightstand overnight, I suddenly had to charge my phone 2-3 times a day and it would drop 55-60% overnight, EVEN IN AIRPLANE MODE!!!

When I called Verizon to complain they seemingly could not get that phone out of my hands fast enough and fedexed a warranty replacement for Saturday AM delivery. To add insult to injury, the phone they sent me was not new and it was DEFECTIVE! Would not read the SIM card! When I called AGAIN to complain they had me try a master reset on my phone. After a day's worth of reloading and configuring all my apps that still did not solve my problem.

YOUR SOLUTION WORKS! Thank you so much for sharing what the (removed) at Verizon cannot seem to figure out. HEY VERIZON, ARE YOU READING THIS???

>>Profanity removed as required by the Verizon Wireless Terms of Service<<

Edited by:  Verizon Moderator

[vzw_customer_support]

zerofossilfuel Yes, we are reading your concern and want to make sure you have a phone that works. We're sorry that you have had so many issues with the HTC and that we missed providing you with the steps to fix your phone problem. We are glad that you were able to use our community forum for support. Please let us know if you have any additional questions or concerns about your device. 

Sheritah_vzw
Follow us on Twitter
@VZWSupport

[zerofossilfuel]

Then perhaps your tech support can start sharing valid solutions now instead of trying to mask a non-hardware problem by being triggered happy to send out refurbished hardware? I will be very curious to see and track how Verizon handles similar future complaints. We are watching..............

[kaylaartist]

HI.  this sounds great and following your istructions I do ok until.....#5.  I do not get that image automatically.  I get that image when I hold down the volume up button and press power, at which time, the phone merely turns on again.  I cannot get the cache commands.

Can you help?  thanks.

[zerofossilfuel]

All I can tell you is it's very tricky to get to the screen with the red triangle. When you hit "Recovery" the phone seems to power down and the screen goes blank for what seems an eternity. Be patient. Once you get there, press and hold volume up, then press and also hold power for 3 seconds until the home/back buttons flash, release power first then volume up does get you to the screen where you can wipe the cache. It's the last selection at the bottom of the list. I did it for my nephew's HTC One M7 and his battery life is back to good as new.

Wiping the cache must clear out the NSA trojans they plant, until the next "feature enhancement upgrade". Battery drain as they're eavesdropping is the one thing they can't hide.

[Hvbasswltrv]

I have had the HTC One smart phone from Verizon since December 2013 - loved the phone and features - until mandatory update kitkat 4.4.2 was downloaded. This has ruined my phone to the point that I do not want it anymore. I have had several chats with verizon tech support. The issues are: battery life has gone from 24 to 36 hours with normal use.  Now the battery life is about 5 hours at best - with little to no use.  Also, during normal use the phone gets hot - really hot after about 3 minutes. I have tried every fix that verizon has suggested and also every fix that I found on their chat board, from people that have experienced the exact same issues.  Still no resolution. Verizon has sent me a new replacement HTC One, and as soon as I was done going through the set up, it downloaded the kitkat 4.4.2 upgrade and started having the same exact issues.  I chatted with verizon tech support again about this and pleaded with them to let me have a different phone. I even said that I would gladly accept a down grade to something like a non smart flip phone - just so I could have a phone that works! Verizon's response - they are sending another HTC One replacement phone.  I have been with Verizon wireless now for about 5 years.  So now I am shopping for a new provider - I hear that T-Mobile will even pay your early termination fee up to $650.  Can you tell that I am more than a little frustrated? Very unusual for me. It takes a lot to get me to this level of frustration.  I asked if there was any way to block the MANDATORY upgrade to kitkat 4.4.2 and was told that "no, there is no way to block it".  So now I am being forced to find another provider, which I'm sure will cost me a ton of money.

[zerofossilfuel]

You do not indicate whether or not you tried to "Wipe" the cache using the instructions found in this thread. I have performed this wipe for a couple of family members as well with a 100% success rate. Follow the steps. It works.

Verizon's answer is always to just replace the device under HTC's warranty making life miserable for you and for HTC. I am documenting Verizon's response to this complaint as evidence for attorneys general throughout the US. The fix is simple but they're either unwilling or too stupid to share it with you.