Windows Phone 8.1 battery drain


Recommended Posts

Im using a 920 and have noticed increased battery drain also. I suspect that it is due to the fact I am now using facebooks Messenger app, rather than the more lightweight/efficient Messenging app when it still supported fb chat. Generally badly made/intensive apps are pretty obvious to me because my phone gets very hot to the touch. While the Messenger app doesn't get hot, it does get a very obvious level of warm.

Im using a 920 and have noticed increased battery drain also. I suspect that it is due to the fact I am now using facebooks Messenger app, rather than the more lightweight/efficient Messenging app when it still supported fb chat. Generally badly made/intensive apps are pretty obvious to me because my phone gets very hot to the touch. While the Messenger app doesn't get hot, it does get a very obvious level of warm.

The messenger app gets hot? ummmm ;)

The added battery drain, depending on how much it is, could be a mix of the fact that with 8.1 more things can happen/run in the background now and also that we don't have any firmware updates yet so still optimizations with drivers and so on that should put it all back to normal.

 

Battery sense will show you what's using the most, btw,  for you guys who have said that facebook uses a lot, did you update to the newer 8.1.4.4 version that's just for 8.1 or are you using the older 5.x version from 8.0?

I have definitely noticed it on my 920 as well. battery sense shows Music and Podcasts as the culprits and I am not surprised - both are really slow and buggy.

 

The Music app is actually an old beta version,  I'm surprised It hasn't been updated though I have a feeling they're working on a new version for many apps that are specific for 8.1 and had to wait for the OS to be more final first.   It shouldn't be long till we see those though, not with new phones coming in May.

The Music app is actually an old beta version,  I'm surprised It hasn't been updated though I have a feeling they're working on a new version for many apps that are specific for 8.1 and had to wait for the OS to be more final first.   It shouldn't be long till we see those though, not with new phones coming in May.

 

WMPowerUser claim that an update to the Music app is on its way.

WMPowerUser claim that an update to the Music app is on its way.

 

Wouldn't surprise me at all, I'm just shocked that they decided to drop in an old beta of it with 8.1 preview.   I also expect the update to be more of a universal app type deal and to get a update for Windows 8.1 devices to.

Wouldn't surprise me at all, I'm just shocked that they decided to drop in an old beta of it with 8.1 preview.   I also expect the update to be more of a universal app type deal and to get a update for Windows 8.1 devices to.

I don't think the OS team is responsible for these apps anymore since now core apps are seperate from the OS to ensure faster updates and bug fixes. The Skype team develops the Skype app, the Office team Office and the Xbox team writes the Music, Videos and Games app. They all have their own priorities and aren't on the same schedule as the WP team. 

I don't think the OS team is responsible for these apps anymore since now core apps are seperate from the OS to ensure faster updates and bug fixes. The Skype team develops the Skype app, the Office team Office and the Xbox team writes the Music, Videos and Games app. They all have their own priorities and aren't on the same schedule as the WP team. 

 

I'm sure that's the case but my point being that they can't ship a beta build of apps out with the final version of 8.1, specially on new phones.  So while the teams are split I'm sure they all share the same schedule as far as cutoff dates for adding new things and so on. 

starting to notice the drain and i think i have figured out what is going on. Due to how Cortana works it is constantly looking at your location. I am noticing that every time i unlock the device it is looking at the location and then depending on what i am doing it is looking at it as well. however, if you try to turn the location services off. Cortana will pop up and tell you she cannot do anything without location services enabled.

One thing I've noticed about Windows Phone is that every time there is a major update, or if I get a new phone, battery life seems to suck at first. I noticed it on my new 920 and when I set up my wife's 1020.  But then after a few days, battery life seems to dramatically improve. 

 

Microsoft may be doing some use-based optimizations in the background. That, or we just use the phones more when they're new -- getting everything set up and all. I think it's a combination.

 

Short version is the first day my battery life was awful. Yesterday and today it's fine.

 

-Forjo

I did a hard reset and a hard reset today (restoring from the backup) and the battery drain does seem to have improved. Obviously it hasn't been a day yet so haven't fully tested, will fill you in.

 

I'm in the UK where cortana isn't available yet, so don't have a problem there.

 

Also, when I looked at battery saver, none of the apps showed very much use in the foreground. Some of then showed reasonably high use in the foreground (facebook messenger!) but that is to be expected as I was using it.

 

That said I havn't signed into facebook Messenger yet after a reset, so will see how it goes, sign into it, and see if that makes a difference.

starting to notice the drain and i think i have figured out what is going on. Due to how Cortana works it is constantly looking at your location. I am noticing that every time i unlock the device it is looking at the location and then depending on what i am doing it is looking at it as well. however, if you try to turn the location services off. Cortana will pop up and tell you she cannot do anything without location services enabled.

 

I've also noticed location services running each time I turn the phone on but I'm in the UK and don't have Cortana. 

 

Battery Sense says that the two apps using the most battery on my phone are IE and Music.  I always leave IE open but I have only opened Music once and haven't used it because performance is so poor.  However, they both run in the background and I think that's causing my battery drain.

 

No doubt updates will fix these issues over the next few weeks.

Prior to the update my phone wouldn't go below 50% by 3pm, but now I'm sitting at 33%. I attached a screenshot of my battery saver report. It doesn't appear anything is using all that much battery, but nonetheless my drain is severely worse than before the update.

post-22691-0-91836600-1397692974.jpg

This topic is now closed to further replies.
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Posts

    • Same Internet Archive seemed to grab the new version https://web.archive.org/web/20...d/Setup_MakeMKV_v1.18.4.exe
    • Windows 11 KB5094126, KB5093998 bugging out Office apps but it may not be Microsoft's fault by Sayan Sen Microsoft last week released Windows 11 KB5094126 and KB5093998 as the latest Patch Tuesday updates. Following that the company also published the accompanying dynamic updates under KB5094149, KB5095971, and KB5094156. Although the tech giant did not acknowledge any major problems, some users online reported various issues ranging from OneDrive and Dropbox access problems, BitLocker recovery lockouts, to blue screens and BSODs. You can read about them in this dedicated piece. While there is still no confirmation about those problems from Microsoft the company has admitted to another bug which we did not report on. The tech giant has confirmed it has received reports of an issue in which certain third-party applications may be unable to launch Microsoft Office apps or open Office documents after installing the Patch Tuesday. This affects both Windows 11 as well as Windows 10. The company says the problem impacts a subset of applications that rely on OLE (Object Linking and Embedding) automation to communicate with Microsoft Office programs. According to Microsoft, affected scenarios involve third-party software attempting to open Office applications or documents from within their own interface. In such cases, the Office program may fail to launch altogether, or the requested document may not open. Oddly there may not be any error message, which probably makes the issue difficult to diagnose. The bug affects several Office products, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, and other apps in the Microsoft Office suite when they are launched through the affected software. These include tax and accounting software such as CCH Engagement and Workpaper Manager, dental practice management solutions like Dentrix and Softdent, as well as the popular research and reference management tool Zotero. Microsoft adds that other applications using similar Office integration methods could also experience the same problematic behavior. To understand the issue it is important to look at OLE, the Microsoft technology involved. OLE allows different applications to work together and share data, while its Automation feature lets one program control another. Thus this enables third-party software to launch Microsoft Office apps, open documents, and perform tasks automatically without requiring users to switch between programs. Because many accounting, healthcare, research, and business applications rely on OLE automation to interact with Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and other Office apps, any disruption can break those workflows. As a result, affected software may be unable to open Office documents or launch Office applications even though the programs themselves continue to work normally. At the moment the company has not provided a permanent fix though it has confirmed that engineers are actively working on a resolution, which will be delivered through a future Windows update. As such additional details will be shared once more information becomes available. In the meantime, Microsoft recommends a simple workaround for affected users whic is to open the Office application or document directly rather than launching it through the third-party program. For enterprise customers and organizations managing larger deployments, Microsoft says an additional mitigation is available. Admins experiencing the problem on their managed devices are advised to contact Microsoft Support for business to obtain and apply the workaround.
    • It saddens me when cars are such dull colours now. Mine is bright metallic blue and I absolutely adore it for standing out in contrast to that depressing backdrop of traffic.
    • Sparkle 2.20.0 by Razvan Serea Sparkle is a free, open-source Windows optimization tool designed to make your PC faster, cleaner, and more private. With Sparkle, you can easily debloat Windows by removing unnecessary apps and services, disable Microsoft tracking to enhance privacy, and apply performance tweaks to boost speed. Its cleaner removes junk and temporary files, while every change is safe and fully reversible. Sparkle also features a modern, user-friendly interface with automatic updates, making system maintenance simple. Explore over 39 tweaks, from disabling telemetry and hibernation to optimizing network and game settings, all aimed at customizing and enhancing your Windows experience. Sparkle supports Windows 10 and 11. Sparkle 2.20.0 changelog: Debloat Tweak has animated border New homepage loading UI New Tweak Modal (Markdown Supported) Refactored GPU Detection Added Tests with vitest Added foobar2000 to apps Added Localsend to apps Updated Modal Styles Added styles for disabled inputs Added Animated Border to debloat-windows tweak Bumped dependencies Refactor System info logic for speed Tweak info modals now support Markdown Added Clear System info cache to settings Redesigned Home Page Loading UI Changed Some Icons around the app Download: Sparkle 2.20.0 | Portable | ~100.0 MB (Open Source) Links: Sparkle Website | Github | Screenshot Get alerted to all of our Software updates on Twitter at @NeowinSoftware
    • lol it was a typo, fixed! haha imagine an actual 4TB Gen4 NVMe for $40 in 2026
  • Recent Achievements

    • Reacting Well
      Dys Topia earned a badge
      Reacting Well
    • Conversation Starter
      NovaEdgeX earned a badge
      Conversation Starter
    • One Year In
      Console General earned a badge
      One Year In
    • Week One Done
      Twozo Technologies earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • One Month Later
      Twozo Technologies earned a badge
      One Month Later
  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      517
    2. 2
      +Edouard
      184
    3. 3
      PsYcHoKiLLa
      106
    4. 4
      Steven P.
      88
    5. 5
      ATLien_0
      68
  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!