Battery life after update to Gingerbread on Samsung Fascinate - Problem and FIX

[Fred_Chopin_II]

After I did the OTA update to Gingerbread, the battery life really sucked.  The phone used to go all day on a single charge.  Now it died in about 2 hours. 

When I looked at Settings|About Phone|Battery Use, I was surprised to see that the main contributor was not the "Display" as you would expect but "Android OS".  I downloaded an app called OS monitor and discovered that "event/0" was the process that was keeping the CPU at about 30%, rather than the usual < 1% when idle.  So I figured an event handler was continually running, waiting for something to happen and burning CPU.  After some experimentation, I discovered that it was an app I had called Voice Alerts, which worked great on Froyo.  It reads SMS messages, and I guess needs to check to see if one has arrived so it can read it out for you. 

But the upgrade must have screwed it up somehow, and it was stuck in some loop frantically checking for SMS messages I guess.  Removing that fixed the problem.  I have not checked to see if reinstalling it will make it work. 

I also found that turning off "Autorotate" helped reduce the ongoing CPU.  Same idea: you have something running incessantly checking the phone state.

So ... if you have weird battery problems after the update to Gingerbread, don't do a factory reset, condition the battery, or any of the other "fixes" you might find on the forums.  Try looking for something that is an event handler.

BTW you'll find a huge number of similar battery problems associated with event/0 and "suspend" also, but I did not have suspend as a problem.

Hope this saves some of you some time.  I wish I'd known it earlier!

[Wildman]

I am sorry to tell you this that if you are having issues with a 3rd party application since the update, this isn't surprising because not all apps are compatible with all OS...  You might want to try uninstalling the app and install it again and if the issue stays then I would contact the developer for a solution..

Another thing that I need to point out, it is usually wise to do a hard reset before doing and major update of the OS because issues usually come from old settings from the previous software and also from incompatible 3rd party apps that was installed already... 

Just something to consider...

[NuDroidUsrr]

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Wildman wrote:

I am sorry to tell you this that if you are having issues with a 3rd party application since the update, this isn't surprising because not all apps are compatible with all OS...  You might want to try uninstalling the app and install it again and if the issue stays then I would contact the developer for a solution..

Another thing that I need to point out, it is usually wise to do a hard reset before doing and major update of the OS because issues usually come from old settings from the previous software and also from incompatible 3rd party apps that was installed already... 

Just something to consider...

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  The other thing to do would be to do the upgrade, and if you experience problems, back up your data and then do a factory reset AFTER your update, rather than before. I have heard from a bunch of people that have not had a problem or have had minor problems after the upgrade, that a factory reset would not be warranted. However, if you are having some serious or constant problems, I would do it in a heart beat to try and clear things up.

[Fred_Chopin_II]

You're right in general - factory reset is a prudent thing to do, but there is no need to do it usually.  I posted my experience with this because I did not want to go through the major hassle of a factory reset, and I'll bet there are many others who would also like to avoid the reset. The battery problem is something that occurs frequently on upgrading Android, but it is easy to fix if you know how. 

By the way, the battery life and speed is now OUTSTANDING.  Quadrant score went from ~ 800 to ~ 1295.

[calebgl]

I have the same issue...how exactly did you fix this though?

[meld1986]

Yes please, how did you fix it? I have the same issue

[JohnB_VZW]

I understand your concern with the battery life on your Fascinate.

Many applications and widgets use a connection to the Internet. It is recommended to review the applications and widgets being used to ensure the proper balance between battery life and device usage. Additionally, it is recommended to turn off any unnecessary running services such as additional wireless radios (WiFi, Bluetooth, and Satellite GPS). Keep in mind the tone notification uses less power than the vibrate notification. Adjusting display settings such as: screen brightness, timeout, etc. can also effect battery life.

Below I have provided some helpful tips to help with the battery life for your device.

Stop running applications:

1. From the home screen, select Applications.

2. Select Settings.

3. Select Applications.

4. Select Running services.

5. Select a service.

6. Select Stop.

Turning off/on Bluetooth settings:

1. From the home screen, select and hold the status bar (located at the top).

2. Drag the window shade down.

3. Select Bluetooth. Enabled when a green indicator is present.

I hope you finds these tips helpful.

[Fred_Chopin_II]

I fixed it by identifying which app had some weird conflict with Gingerbread, and was using up all the CPU and thus the battery power.  I used the app called OS Monitor, and when you run it you can see the Processes that are active on the phone and their load.  I saw that one app had a very high load, because it was stuck in some loop constantly monitoring the phone.  In my case it was an app called Voice Alerts, but I am sure others could exhibit the problem.  Once I could see what was the culprit, I removed it and the problem went away.  Now the battery life is fantastic.

There are other general things one can do to improve battery life (use a black background, don't sync email every 5 minutes, turn off GPS, autorotate when you don't need them), but runaway apps are going to be the major factor that give ridiculously low battery life.

Hope this helps you.

[longplaypg]

Thanks for introducing me to OS monitor... I have not totally found a misbehaving app on my phone that is not stock So far my phone runs the battery down fast after using the stock email program to 3 exchange servers using push mode. Today I am testing a manual mode to see how the battery does. All other settings are stock factory except ringtone, notifications, and all vibration turned off.

I did see a lot of bad items in the logging and might research some of these.

[stonent]

After about 3 or 4 pulls, I'm getting 1500+ on Quadrant.

[NuDroidUsrr]

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stonent wrote:

After about 3 or 4 pulls, I'm getting 1500+ on Quadrant.

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  What app are you using to get the Quadrant scrore?

[TMcWms]

I had this same problem after the Gingerbread update.  I've never had an issue maintaining battery charge before, but it did happen to me yesterday.

That was the first time since the update that I used the AC adapter to charge it.  Before the update, I left it on the charger even after getting to 100%.  Yesterday, I did the same and then unplugged it before I went out for lunch.  Immediately after unplugging, however, the battery level dropped to 37%!

So I recharged with the AC adapter.  Once it hit full charge, I immediately unplugged it.  It did drop to 98% but otherwise, the battery usage proceeded as usual.

At home, I charged it with the USB cable connected to my laptop (my usual practice).  Once it hit 100%, I kept it plugged.  I took it off a few hours later, and it stayed at 100%.  I repeated this at work just now--took off the AC part of the cable and charged it using the USB connection.  I left it plugged for an hour after the full charge, then took it off.  It stayed at 100%.

I think the update has caused the phone to immediately switch off AC when it's at 100% and start using the battery.  And I mean, use the battery HARD, harder than it normally would when it's not plugged to AC.  Charging by USB works as usual.  And frankly, since the update, charging by USB is MUCH quicker than it was before.  It's even quicker (to me) than using the AC adapter.

Just my quick observation on the matter.  Independent corroboration is requested and desired.

~ Tracy

[cjnokr19]

I have to be honest here, I am getting really sick of the Verizon tech's always resorting to a "factory reset" to fix issues like this because the bottom line is, they don't always work, and I do not believe that this battery issue is a problem that can be solved by a factory reset. 

I bought the Fascinate a year ago and it was the best phone I've ever had.  I've absolutely loved it up until I got the Gingerbread update earlier this month.  Not only am I having the same battery life issues after the update that I'm seeing here in these posts, but my GPS had also stopped working right after the upgrade. 

I had a factory reset done at my local store, which didn't work, so Verizon replaced the phone.   I had the same issues with the new phone when I got it last week.  Verizon tech support was no help (they offered to switch me again, to an HTC phone), and they referred me to Samsung Tech support directly if I wanted to troubleshoot some more. Samsung did a reset on the phone through the "backdoor" to actually reinstall the droid 2.3.5 operating system and it did resolve the GPS issue, however I am still having major battery issues. 

My phone comes off the charger in the morning when the "100%" icon shows in my status bar and instantly when I unplug it, it drops to 91% (this i've noticed is pretty standard as I've monitored this over the past week).  I also stream radio.com or tunein radio while im at work with my phone plugged in and ever since the upgrade, my battery is not staying charged while im streaming.  The interesting part is that the "100%" icon is on my status bar, but I will unplug my phone to go to lunch after streaming for about 4 hrs and the battery will be anywhere from 40-60% full (a couple days ago it was only at 10%!!!). 

I called Samsung directly again a couple of nights ago and they actually tried to tell me that the streaming applications were using more energy on the battery than it was taking in.  REALLY????  Does that make sense to anyone??  There is a contstant flow of electricity going into this battery....its just not charging it.  What the tech told me would basically equate to not being able to use a laptop thats plugged in after a few hours because working on it would take up the battery faster than electricity could charge it.  It just doesn't make sense.  So anyway, i had been using a generic charger at work, and my Samsung charger at home.  He suggested I use the Samsung charger when I'm streaming because a generic charger may not be charging the battery as efficiently.  Ok, I can buy that, so I brought my Samsung cord to work and the generic cord home.  Since i'm not using my phone overnight it doesn't matter how long it takes the generic cord to charge the phone, but Tuesday was my first day using the Samsung cord at work.

On Tuesday, I actually thought this idea just might have worked, when I unplugged my phone after streaming for about 4 hrs, it was at the usual 91%.  But yesterday and today, that hope vanished.  When I've unplugged the phone the past 2 days after the same amt of time streaming, my battery was between 70-75%, yes, better than before, but still, this just doesn't make any sense, NOT TO MENTION THAT BEFORE I GOT THIS UPDATE, I NEVER HAD 1 BATTERY CHARGING ISSUE WHILE STREAMING with either charging cord.  I have not changed any apps i've been using, and in fact, I have less apps installed on this phone than I did on the previous one.  I just don't think they should've forced this update onto the Fascinate because either its not compatible with it, or there is a MAJOR software glitch that needs to be repaired. 

After talking with both Verizon and Samsung tech support, i'm being told that they have no reports of any major battery issues after this update, which I find hard to believe so I'm happy to see i'm not the only one experiencing this frustration.  The only fix options that I am being given are use a different streaming app, or that I can send in my phone in for 2 weeks for them to check the software. 

The bottom line is that this update has cause a MAJOR battery problem on this particular device and seems like Verizon and Samsung are either ignoring it, or not doing enough to address it and get it fixed.  As I said, when I got this phone, it was the best phone I've ever had and now i'm getting to the point where I just want to get rid of it becasue I can no longer rely on it working properly since the upgrade.  If anyone has found any other ways that might help with this battery issues, i'd appreciate any suggestions!!

[A_name_noone_else_use]

This is a trickle charge issue that the Verizon EH03 kernel has (they broke it). I have flashed a different kernel I got off the http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1364912 and that fixed the problem.

Warning this I am certain will void any warranty you have on the phone!  I didn't care at this point because Verizon bricked my phone and said too bad (https://community.verizonwireless.com/message/794746#794746)

[wardcst24]

What warranty

They broke it in December of 2011 and will not fix it,

After 3 months of not receiving calls and now this I have put VZW and the fascinate behind me .

I gave and gave and finely I gave up and realized they do not care about customers .

Take me once shame on you

Take me twice shame on me

Never Again Samsung and Verizon