Android device users may soon be seeing the last of their woes over short battery life, as tests reveal that the latest version of the mobile OS promises a sharp increase in battery longevity compared to the previous one.
Android news website Greenbot reports on the results of the tests, which were done by an independent German tech website, Computerbase.de. The tests consisted of putting two Nexus 5 phones into standby for a length of time. One of the phones was loaded with stock Android 5.1.1 (Lollipop) while the other had a Developer Preview of Android M running in it. Neither device had a SIM card inserted, and services such as Bluetooth and NFC were disabled, as were ring tones and status LEDs.
The results of the tests exceeded even Google's own projections at the I/O 2015 keynote of twice the standby time than the same phone running Lollipop. Computerbase's results showed that even at the early Developer Preview stage, Android M consumed only 1.5 percent of battery life while on standby for eight hours, while the Lollipop-powered unit lost four percent of battery charge.
The same ratio of time versus battery loss played out when the standby duration was extended to 24, then to 48 hours; Android M lost 4.5 percent to Lollipop's 12 percent for the first full day, and 9 percent to 24 percent on the second day. Computerbase extrapolated the results of the tests, and came at a projected figure of 533 hours for M, and 200 hours standby time for Android Lollipop.
The linchpin for the extended battery life afforded by Android M is the new Doze feature, which cuts down app activity to save battery life depending on whether or not the device is in use. Doze will put the device into a state of hibernation when not in use.
The real-world implications of the added battery life afforded by Android M and Doze are easy to see. Not only are devices more power-hungry due to advanced hardware, but non-removable batteries are quickly becoming standard issue on different devices. The decrease in battery consumption may also lead to less degradation of the battery's charging capacity.
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