It’s the early afternoon, and your Android phone is already running on “E.” What’s the deal? A smartphone is supposed to be the hub of your digital life, but it can’t do that very well when the battery has run dry, can it?

You probably shouldn’t wait until your phone has failed you at a critical moment before you figure out what’s destroying your battery life—there’s no better time than now to track down the culprit. If you’re lucky, you might even be able to fix the issue without sacrificing functionality.

Wakelocks and misery

Android has gotten much better at managing background processes in the last few years. Anyone who has used Google’s platform since the early days can tell you how bad things used to be when “task killers” were a necessity. Even though Android as a whole isn’t subject to the same horrible battery life issues, the wrong combination of apps can still break Android’s elegant process management scheme.

Conventional wisdom used to be that you should open the multitasking interface and kill any application you’re not using to save battery life, and unfortunately this superstition still persists. But Android knows how to manage background tasks, and swiping apps out of the multitasking interface only closes the foreground process. If an app is indeed causing issues, it’s usually the background process that’s doing it. This sort of micromanagement will only waste time.

Solving the case

It might not be immediately obvious that a phone is in wakelock for long periods. By all appearances, the screen is off and it seems to be asleep like it should be. One clue that something is going wrong is excess heat generation. When the CPU is cranked up instead of in deep sleep, the device might be noticeably warmer than usual when you pick it up. You’ll need to do a little detective work, though, and that’s where the apps come in handy.

One quick and easy way to watch for a phone that won’t sleep is to use an app like System Monitor to track CPU clock speed. This app breaks down CPU activity as a percentage. Unless you’ve been using the device almost constantly, ”Deep Sleep” should be the largest part of the chart. If not, you’ve probably got a misbehaving app or system process.

You’ll have to dig a little deeper in order to sort out the exact cause of your shortened battery life. The best app for this is BetterBatteryStats. The developer posts free beta builds on the XDA forums, but it’s also for sale in Google Play. Rooted users see more information in the app, but you can still get some data on wakelocks with almost all devices.

Just give the app a few hours to calibrate, and then filter for Kernel Wakelocks and Since unplugged. If you see a process up near the top of that list with a lot of wakelock time, that’s the guilty party. Kernel wakelocks are system processes like suspend_backoff or wlan. BBS BetterBatteryStats sometimes includes links to more information about wakelocks with some ideas for fixing them. Otherwise, you can search for information on the exact system process and find a likely solution. Often, a reboot will knock some sense into your phone and clear this up.

More often than not, the root of your problem will be some app you installed. The easiest way to deal with the issue is to leave the offending app or game uninstalled, but maybe you actually want to use the app despite its battery sucking behavior. In that case, you need a way to end the process safely. Android has a built-in way of hibernating processes, and you can easily trigger it with an app called Greenify.

Simply use Greenify to identify the problematic apps, and hit the hibernate button after you’re done using them. Greenify works best with root access—it can handle all this in the background. For non-rooted devices, you can use the in-app button or a widget to manually trigger the hibernation routine.

Going through this process might seem like a hassle, but it’s preferable to having a phone that can’t hold a charge. It can also save you from disabling useful features like GPS or background sync in the name of eking a bit more life out of your device.

Keyboards can become dirty after periods of extended use, especially if users commonly eat or smoke near the computer. If a keyboard becomes dirty enough, its performance can be affected. Common problems include dead or stuck keys and repeated characters during typing. Note that the tips and Q&A for cleaning keyboard.

Community Q&A

1.Will popping the keys off and putting them back on make them stick when I try to type?

No, you can easily put them back into place. They will not stick or fall off if you put them back on in the tracks correctly.

2.How do I repair a key that has worn away?

You could either order a replacement key, or use a correction mistake pen to write the letter on the key and cover with clear nail polish to protect it.

3.How can I clean the laptop, not the keys?

That’s easy, you can get a duster and easily get in between the keys, but you may need to get your hands dirty.

Tips

1.Consider leaving the space bar in place. It is the hardest to get back on and easiest to break.

2.You can take a picture of the keyboard with a digital camera before you start pulling the keys off so that you know where they go when you’re putting them back on.

3.Laptop keyboards are a bit different. It is not usually necessary to remove keys from a laptop in order to clean it.

4.The keys on a laptop can be difficult to replace, especially keys like the space bar and the Enter key, which have a separate support under them that needs to be installed along with the key. Also, removing laptop keys may damage them and they may break or become impossible to replace.

5.Some people actually wash the keyboard in a dishwasher. Don’t attempt to clean a keyboard that way unless you’re willing to risk losing the keyboard. If you do put a keyboard through the dishwasher, make sure the keyboard is completely dry before using it. This should definitely be avoided with wireless keyboards.

6.You can remove all of the keys from your keyboard, put them in a little closed bag

and wash them with your clothes in the washing machine. Clean the keyboard skeleton with your vacuum cleaner and a wet rag.

7.An alternative to compressed air is to use an electric hair dryer with the blower on high. It matters little if the heat is on or off. It’s great for dusting, too.

8.You can put the keys in a lunch bag with water, liquid soap and shake it. This will strip the keys of the oils that make them feel greasy and makes exfoliation of the keys unnecessary if you do this often enough!

9.Remove the keys in small groups to avoid losing keys or forgetting where keys go.

A common question we tend to hear all the time is “Why does my laptop battery run down so fast?” Below we present a fairly detailed explanation for this and provide a step-by-step guide you can follow to help you control the situation. We can use the “battery calibration” method to make the best notebook battery power . Here are two ways to correct laptop battery.

First. Standard correction method: laptop battery calibration function.

Many brands of laptops in the which have integrated battery calibration procedures, the general English saying is called “Battery Calibration”, that is, “battery power proofreading.” Directly into the will be able to complete the battery calibration operation.

1, Boot, press F2 after entering the boot screen to enter the menu; by left and right arrow keys, select to enter the power menu.

2, Into the power menu, you can see the “Start Battery Calibration” option, select it and press the Enter key to execute.

3, Then the screen will turn blue, and English tips, request the laptop’s power adapter plugged into the battery. When the battery is full, the screen prompts the user to disconnect the power adapter. After the laptop began to continue to discharge the battery, until the battery is exhausted.

4, This process takes some time, and other batteries automatically shut down, and then connect the power adapter to charge the battery, but do not boot. After charging is completed, the battery calibration process is completed.

Second, Manual correction method: Let the laptop boot naturally discharged.

Some notebooks in the can not find how to find the battery calibration options. Is not such a laptop can not be battery calibrated it? Through some of our manual settings, so books in the normal discharge until the automatic shutdown.

1, Notebook in the operating system, enter the “power options.” Select “Always on” for “Power Schemes” and set “Shut Down Monitor”, “Shut Down Hard Drive” to the minimum time, and system standby to “Never”.

2, In the “Power Options” “alarm”, cancel all alarm options, the purpose is to let the battery completely depleted until the shutdown.

3, After setting, close all applications, turn off WIFI, unplug the power adapter, battery powered. Do not do anything until the battery is exhausted and shut down automatically. After the discharge is complete, connect the power adapter, the battery is full, then completed a battery calibration.

Third,In addition, if it is Windows7 users, or power management software is not good settings, you can enter the laptop’s BIOS, the laptop has been open, at the same time to unplug the external power supply, waiting for the notebook to run out of power automatically shut down.

If you give the laptop battery calibration battery life is not yet obvious, it may be caused by the aging of the battery itself, if the notebook battery life is normal, it is not recommended to use the battery calibration.

When your iPhone’s battery is depleted, it can’t charge fast enough. Being stuck without your phone often means being stranded without social contact, your map, your music library and your video game collection among other things.

The iPhone doesn’t have quick charging technology built-in like some Androids do, but there are a few things you can do to make your iPhone charge slightly faster. The less your iPhone is doing, the faster it’s battery will recharge. This is why many believe switching your phone into Airplane Mode helps it charge more quickly, since this cuts off the phone’s ability to connect to the Internet and fetch information. If you still want to receive texts and calls while charging, there are some other settings you can change to make your iPhone charge faster. Turning off Wi-Fi, lowering the screen brightness, and disabling app notifications can help.

Apple also says removing your iPhone’s case may help it preserve battery life, especially if it’s overheating. If you have an iPad charger readily available, try charging using it to charge your iPhone to speed up battery replenishment.

We’ve all been there: Typing away furiously on our laptop, only to find our battery is quickly approaching zero and there’s not an outlet in sight. In order to resolve an immediate crisis of rapid battery drainage, there are a few things you can do to buy yourself some time before you need to reach for a charger:

Close any unnecessary applications or programs running in the background. Stopping your laptop from multitasking will help conserve battery.
Lower your screen brightness. Keeping your screen too bright is a huge drain on your batteries.
If you’re listening to music, cut it out. Your laptop speakers aren’t very power-efficient at all.
Turn off Wi-Fi and Bluetooth if you don’t need them. They can both drain your battery even if you’re not connected to anything.
Turn on your laptop’s power-saving modes. On Windows machines, click the battery icon in the Windows taskbar, then toggle your battery settings from “Balanced” to “Power Saver.” On a MacBook, you can access the Energy Saver settings by clicking the battery icon in your top toolbar or via System Preferences -> Energy Saver.
Keep your battery healthy. Don’t expose it to extreme temperatures, make sure to leave your laptop out of its case while charging, and only charge your laptop when it has as close to 0% power left as possible.

1.How could a battery drain overnight?

Batteries can do a lot of things while we’re not looking. The most common way a battery will drain overnight is by leaving a light on or a power adapter plugged in, zapping all your battery power while you’re fast asleep.

Your battery can also drain overnight if there are faulty electrical components or wiring. If this might be the case, let us check it out so we can resolve the problem and get you rolling again.

2.What factors will affect the life of my battery?

So, you want to know if your battery will last three years or, better yet, five years, eh? Well, that all depends on your habits, plus the year-round climate in your area. Extreme temperatures kill batteries. A lot of times, waiting until the deep freeze of winter to replace your battery is often too late. The cold weather could pretty much make that heat worn battery dead on arrival. Find your region. Discover the average battery life.

3.What are the warning signs that my alternator is failing?

“If I only knew sooner”. We’ve all been there before. Fortunately, there are various indications and symptoms that your battery may need replacement:

Low battery fluid level: Batteries typically have a part of the casing that’s translucent so you can always keep an eye on your battery’s fluid level. You can also inspect it by removing the red and black caps if they are not sealed.

The swelling, bloating battery case: If your battery casing looks like it ate a very large meal, this could indicate a battery gone bad. You can blame excessive heat for causing your battery case to swell, decreasing your battery life.

Three years battery age is considered an old timer: Your battery can last well beyond three years but, at the very least, have its current condition inspected on a yearly basis when it reaches the three year mark. Battery life cycles range from three-to-five years depending on the battery. However, driving habits, weather and frequent short trips can drastically shorten the actual life of your battery.

Battery life is a perennial problem for phone users. While our handsets have become faster and more powerful over the years, phone batteries often last less than a day under heavy use, or even moderate use after a few months. Most people complain that their phone’s battery doesn’t last long before it dies. This is due to improper usage of the battery after it is bought. On this post I will be showing you how to use your battery in a way that increases its life span.

Most batteries have a guaranteed life span. To ensure longer life span of your battery use the following methods:

Make sure or phone charges to 100%
After that use it till the battery gets exhausted before charging again.
Do not make use of your phone while it is charging, so as to enable it charge properly.
Do not use your phone till it heats up. When it does, close whatever app that’s making it to heat up and allow it to cool down before using it again.
Using the steps above, you give your battery a longer life span. The upgrades we’ve got in phones are major reflections of this growth. They’re getting bigger,

slimmer, light and eventually more smarter. But, the heart of this device is always a concern……

So take care of your batteries!