What is the fastest way to drain battery?

[bamorris2]

I know it's kind of a silly question, but what app or task kills the battery the fastest? I have a MAXX and I want to drain the battery rapidly so that the OS will "calibrate" the battery meter. I've had the screen on 100% brightness, screen always on, for about an hour, and it's only gone down about 4% (currently at 64%). Looking for something that the phone can do by itself without my constant attention.

To clarify, I'm trying to get the battery meter to calibrate. I understand the the lithium batteries do not require conditioning.

 

[RUSHgsxr]

Play a movie or something, usually kills my battery fast

Sent from my ADR6300 using DroidForums

 

[omar908]

Well they say draining the battery is bad for these kinds of phones but i think fastest way is probably streaming from next flix or streaming in 4g in general probably good luck ^_^

Sent from my DROID RAZR using DroidForums

 

[xeene]

Online 3d game will kill it faster then anything else.

 

[Zandar]

Netflix streaming in 4G. Only do this if you have unlimited data, though.

Sliced from my RAZR

 

[SallyC]

I know it's kind of a silly question, but what app or task kills the battery the fastest? I have a MAXX and I want to drain the battery rapidly so that the OS will "calibrate" the battery meter. I've had the screen on 100% brightness, screen always on, for about an hour, and it's only gone down about 4% (currently at 64%). Looking for something that the phone can do by itself without my constant attention.

To clarify, I'm trying to get the battery meter to calibrate. I understand the the lithium batteries do not require conditioning.

Please consider the info in this thread and this thread before you do this. Not only is this unnecessary, it may harm your phone.

 

[DocsDad]

I've had the screen on 100% brightness, screen always on, for about an hour, and it's only gone down about 4% (currently at 64%). Looking for something that the phone can do by itself without my constant attention.

To clarify, I'm trying to get the battery meter to calibrate. I understand the the lithium batteries do not require conditioning.

Sorry, but I read this as "Curses you damn battery, you are too good to me. Why must you make it so hard to drain you?" lol

 

[jsh1120]

Please consider the info in this thread and this thread before you do this. Not only is this unnecessary, it may harm your phone.

Sorry to disagree, Sally, but there is a common confusion about this issue. First, it is absolutely true that draining the battery (down to about 5%) does NOTHING to "train" or "calibrate" the battery. What it DOES do, however, is calibrate the device's battery MONITOR, providing a more accurate estimate of remaining battery life.

What most people don't understand about battery monitors is that they don't actually measure a remaining charge directly. Rather, they measure the current voltage of the battery and compares that to a maximum voltage at a full charge. That ratio provides the "remaining percentage" figure. Over time, the maximum voltage of a battery declines and the profile of the draining process changes. By getting a recent picture of that maximum and discharge profile, the estimate of usage and remaining charge is more accurate.

This is why, for example, Apple recommends that an iPad's lithium ion battery be fully discharged about once a month. (In Apple's case, a "full discharge" occurs with about 5% of battery power remaining.) It does nothing to extend the battery's life cycle. It does, however, improve the estimate of the device's battery monitor.

Note that the OP appears to recognize the distinction here when he/she says, "I'm trying to get the battery meter to calibrate." Unfortunately, these discussions frequently veer off into discussions of calibrating/conditioning/preserving the battery, itself. And I think that is what has happened here.

 

[thaDroidz]

I would also think flashing roms would require an occasional resetting.

4g hotspot to laptop. while streaming a motocast movie via hdmi on your tv. Plus all the above..

You at 0% yet?

----posted maxx'ed out----

 

[ltcalex]

Sorry to disagree, Sally, but there is a common confusion about this issue. First, it is absolutely true that draining the battery (down to about 5%) does NOTHING to "train" or "calibrate" the battery. What it DOES do, however, is calibrate the device's battery MONITOR, providing a more accurate estimate of remaining battery life.

What most people don't understand about battery monitors is that they don't actually measure a remaining charge directly. Rather, they measure the current voltage of the battery and compares that to a maximum voltage at a full charge. That ratio provides the "remaining percentage" figure. Over time, the maximum voltage of a battery declines and the profile of the draining process changes. By getting a recent picture of that maximum and discharge profile, the estimate of usage and remaining charge is more accurate.

This is why, for example, Apple recommends that an iPad's lithium ion battery be fully discharged about once a month. (In Apple's case, a "full discharge" occurs with about 5% of battery power remaining.) It does nothing to extend the battery's life cycle. It does, however, improve the estimate of the device's battery monitor.

Note that the OP appears to recognize the distinction here when he/she says, "I'm trying to get the battery meter to calibrate." Unfortunately, these discussions frequently veer off into discussions of calibrating/conditioning/preserving the battery, itself. And I think that is what has happened here.

This answer is on point. The question was re: "meter" calibration and nothing else.

 

[bamorris2]

Sorry to disagree, Sally, but there is a common confusion about this issue. First, it is absolutely true that draining the battery (down to about 5%) does NOTHING to "train" or "calibrate" the battery. What it DOES do, however, is calibrate the device's battery MONITOR, providing a more accurate estimate of remaining battery life.

What most people don't understand about battery monitors is that they don't actually measure a remaining charge directly. Rather, they measure the current voltage of the battery and compares that to a maximum voltage at a full charge. That ratio provides the "remaining percentage" figure. Over time, the maximum voltage of a battery declines and the profile of the draining process changes. By getting a recent picture of that maximum and discharge profile, the estimate of usage and remaining charge is more accurate.

This is why, for example, Apple recommends that an iPad's lithium ion battery be fully discharged about once a month. (In Apple's case, a "full discharge" occurs with about 5% of battery power remaining.) It does nothing to extend the battery's life cycle. It does, however, improve the estimate of the device's battery monitor.

Note that the OP appears to recognize the distinction here when he/she says, "I'm trying to get the battery meter to calibrate." Unfortunately, these discussions frequently veer off into discussions of calibrating/conditioning/preserving the battery, itself. And I think that is what has happened here.

Thank you for your reply, and you are 100% accurate in my desired result. I was only talking about the meter calibration, and NOT at all talking about the battery itself.

At any rate, thank you all for your suggestions on how to drain the battery. Unfortunately (LOL), these methods did not work. So far my total up time since battery charge is 1 day, 6 hours...and I'm still sitting at 40% charge. My screen has been on for 6 hours 44 minutes. I streamed some HD videos over 4G, used my phohe as a 4G hotspot for 2 hours, had my daughter play several games, left the screen on full brightness...all to no avail. This is really funny - I'm having a hard time wearing down the battery! I guess it's a good problem to have.

Anyway, I'm just going to let it slowly run down through the day (and maybe into the next day and the next day). LoL

 

[jsh1120]

Thank you for your reply, and you are 100% accurate in my desired result. I was only talking about the meter calibration, and NOT at all talking about the battery itself.

At any rate, thank you all for your suggestions on how to drain the battery. Unfortunately (LOL), these methods did not work. So far my total up time since battery charge is 1 day, 6 hours...and I'm still sitting at 40% charge. My screen has been on for 6 hours 44 minutes. I streamed some HD videos over 4G, used my phohe as a 4G hotspot for 2 hours, had my daughter play several games, left the screen on full brightness...all to no avail. This is really funny - I'm having a hard time wearing down the battery! I guess it's a good problem to have.

Anyway, I'm just going to let it slowly run down through the day (and maybe into the next day and the next day). LoL

You're right. It's a great problem to have. In fact, other than an obsessive need to know what's going on with your phone (and that's not meant as a criticism; I tend to share that OCD behavior), what exactly are you trying to accomplish? I waited to replace my original Droid until the Razr Maxx came along because while I wanted 4G/LTE on a new phone, I wasn't willing to put up with a battery life of little more than half of my Droid. The RM has more than met my requirements. I simply stick it on its charge cable at night and don't worry about it. And the greatest thing about this phone is that if I forget to do so, I can actually make it through a second day without worry.

I do have a curiosity about what chews up battery life but I can't come up with any real world scenarios in which I have to worry about it or take measures to reduce battery drain. If the % remaining figure is wrong (and it may be), this is the first phone I've ever had where I simply don't have to worry about it.

 

[bamorris2]

You're right. It's a great problem to have. In fact, other than an obsessive need to know what's going on with your phone (and that's not meant as a criticism; I tend to share that OCD behavior), what exactly are you trying to accomplish? I waited to replace my original Droid until the Razr Maxx came along because while I wanted 4G/LTE on a new phone, I wasn't willing to put up with a battery life of little more than half of my Droid. The RM has more than met my requirements. I simply stick it on its charge cable at night and don't worry about it. And the greatest thing about this phone is that if I forget to do so, I can actually make it through a second day without worry.

I do have a curiosity about what chews up battery life but I can't come up with any real world scenarios in which I have to worry about it or take measures to reduce battery drain. If the % remaining figure is wrong (and it may be), this is the first phone I've ever had where I simply don't have to worry about it.

My only reason for doing this is because my battery meter seems to drop from 100% down to about 85% fairly quickly (first 1-2 hours of very minimal use of the day), but then hangs around 65-85% for a very long time, even during heavy use. That just gives me an inclination that the meter may not be calibrated yet. It's not a big deal at all, and like you said, it's more of an OCD issue than a problem with the phone. If I was "normal", I would just leave it alone and not give a hoot.

 

[FoxKat]

My only reason for doing this is because my battery meter seems to drop from 100% down to about 85% fairly quickly (first 1-2 hours of very minimal use of the day), but then hangs around 65-85% for a very long time, even during heavy use. That just gives me an inclination that the meter may not be calibrated yet. It's not a big deal at all, and like you said, it's more of an OCD issue than a problem with the phone. If I was "normal", I would just leave it alone and not give a hoot.

Sorry to disagree, Sally, but there is a common confusion about this issue. First, it is absolutely true that draining the battery (down to about 5%) does NOTHING to "train" or "calibrate" the battery. What it DOES do, however, is calibrate the device's battery MONITOR, providing a more accurate estimate of remaining battery life.

What most people don't understand about battery monitors is that they don't actually measure a remaining charge directly. Rather, they measure the current voltage of the battery and compares that to a maximum voltage at a full charge. That ratio provides the "remaining percentage" figure. Over time, the maximum voltage of a battery declines and the profile of the draining process changes. By getting a recent picture of that maximum and discharge profile, the estimate of usage and remaining charge is more accurate.

This is why, for example, Apple recommends that an iPad's lithium ion battery be fully discharged about once a month. (In Apple's case, a "full discharge" occurs with about 5% of battery power remaining.) It does nothing to extend the battery's life cycle. It does, however, improve the estimate of the device's battery monitor.

First, defense of Sally, draining the battery ALSO doesn't "train the meter". This MAY be the way APPLE did it, but just because Apple may have done it this way, why assume that every other manufacturer does? Does it say in the Motorola instructions that "lithium ion battery be fully discharged about once a month"? Does the phone say at 5% to place the phone on charge? NO. Does the phone say to place the phone on charge at 15%? YES. So why would anyone want to do something different than the manufacturer of the device says? Because there are some who seem to want to create their own set of rules for anything they own, or simply take one rule for one product and apply it universally across all "similar" products. The truth is, there are worlds of difference between Apple phones and Motorola phones, and we ALL spend an inordinate amount of time trying to convince everyone that our Android phones are better, don't we? If so, then why apply instructions for the "inferior" phone to the "superior" one?

Now, to the subject at hand...

JSH1120 even said himself, "Over time, the maximum voltage of a battery declines and the profile of the draining process changes. By getting a recent picture of that maximum and discharge profile, the estimate of usage and remaining charge is more accurate." This statement is only half right, because although the maximum "capacity" of the battery does change, the minimum allowed voltage doesn't.

The meter does measure voltage and bases the percent of remaining charge on the relative difference between the maximum voltage and the minimum voltage. What people are missing is that the minimum voltage is NOT a measured minimum - meaning it's not some arbitrary voltage that the battery drops to and just stops there so that the meter then says, "the battery is dead", nor is it a level that anything you do in regard to discharging can change. It's a factory preset minimum pegged by the phone manufacturer (usually around 3V), to get the most useable charge each charging cycle out of the battery while also preventing the voltage from dropping so low that the battery's own protection circuitry shuts down the battery (protection mode - around 2.5V - 2.7 - this is preset by the battery manufacturer), rendering it completely unresponsive to the stock charger.

"Li-ion should never be discharged too low, and there are several safeguards to prevent this from happening. The equipment cuts off when the battery discharges to about 3.0V/cell, stopping the current flow. If the discharge continues to about 2.70V/cell or lower, the battery’s protection circuit puts the battery into a sleep mode. This renders the pack unserviceable and a recharge with most chargers is not possible. To prevent a battery from falling asleep, apply a partial charge before a long storage period."

​

So draining the battery will ALWAYS result in the phone shutting of at the same voltage threshold. If the meter is reading 5%, even if it's "off" by as much add 25%, then it might actually be at 6% or at 4% charge level, but as the voltage gets closer to the threshold, the error rate decreases, and at the 3V cutoff the meter will always read 0. This will not change how it reacts in the next cycle, no matter if the battery is drained or not.

Now that we've got that misunderstanding out of the way, the battery meter DOES base its percentage of charge on the range of voltages between the discharge "cutoff threshold" as said, and the charge cutoff. The problem for us is that the charging process is regulated less on a set number or percentage of charge, and more a result of how the battery is responding to the charging process.

The way the charging circuit decides the battery is full is to watch the rate of current draw and voltage levels and look for a signature drop that indicates the battery is approaching maximum capacity, about 90% of maximum. Once the battery reaches that level, the charging circuitry drops the charge rate dramatically, and instead charges on a "trickle" rate and continues to charge slowly till it reaches the maximum voltage allowed, to top of the battery and assure a full charge, while preventing it from over-charging. Once the voltage hits the cutoff, charging stops completely.


Note: Lithium Ion batteries can not remain on charge, even trickle charger, or voltages can increase beyond design maximums making it unstable...it can overheat and fail in an explosion and/or fire.

Then as the battery slowly discharges either naturally or due to the phone using current while in a rest state, it monitors the voltage and when it drops to about 90%, it resumes charging until it reaches the threshold level and shuts of again and the process of monitoring begins again. During this process the meter continues to show 100%.

Figure 1: Charge stages of lithium-ion. Li-ion is fully charged when the current drops to a predetermined level or levels out at the end of Stage 2. In lieu of trickle charge, some chargers apply a topping charge when the voltage drops to 4.05V/cell (Stage 4).

​

One big problem with the charging versus the battery meter is a result of how we charge our phones. When the phone is charging while still powered on, it may actually never reach the true "full" mark (maximum capacity as dictated by the maximum voltage determined by the manufacturer and the signature current drop that signals its nearing capacity). This is due to a phenomenon known as "parasitic load", which "fools" the charging circuitry into thinking the battery had reached it's threshold, the maximum capacity which is a number decided by the manufacturer to find a gentle balance between battery longevity and length of power cycle. If the battery never acutally reaches the TRUE maximum "capacity" and instead the charging circuitry decides in error that 85% is actually 100%, then when it reaches "80%", it's really closer to 68%, and when it shows 50%, it's really closer to 42%.

The threshold voltage is decided upon by the PHONE manufacturer to maximize the user experience and still assure the battery will last for a reasonable timeframe (500 cycles, to 80% of initial capacity, for instance), related to the expected life of the phone device (say, 2 years), usually around 4.2V. The manufacturer of the phone can set this number higher or lower at their discretion. If set higher, the battery will last longer with each charge but will die sooner over time due to "stressing" of the battery. If the threshold is set too low, the battery will last longer over time, but will run out sooner while using with each charge. Manufacturers are very careful not to push the voltages too high as at the very least it will shorten the battery's life over time, and at worst could lead to catastrophic failure.

So, it is very likely the reason for the "seemingly" sudden drop once removing it from charge is that the battery may not actually be "at 100%" when removing the phone from the charger. It may actually be at 90% and just ready to trigger the topping off process again. Or it may actually NEVER reach the maximum voltage again simply due to the design of the charging circuitry - which is again dictated by the PHONE manufacturer, but based on recommendations devised between the battery manufacturer and the specs the phone manufacturer put forth for the customization of the battery for that particular phone.

"Li-ion cannot absorb overcharge, and when fully charged the charge current must be cut off. A continuous trickle charge would cause plating of metallic lithium, and this could compromise safety. To minimize stress, keep the lithium-ion battery at the 4.20V/cell peak voltage as short a time as possible.
​

Once the charge is terminated, the battery voltage begins to drop, and this eases the voltage stress. Over time, the open-circuit voltage will settle to between 3.60 and 3.90V/cell. Note that a Li-ion battery that received a fully saturated charge will keep the higher voltage longer than one that was fast-charged and terminated at the voltage threshold without a saturation charge.

If a lithium-ion battery must be left in the charger for operational readiness, some chargers apply a brief topping charge to compensate for the small self-discharge the battery and its protective circuit consume. The charger may kick in when the open-circuit voltage drops to 4.05V/cell and turn off again at a high 4.20V/cell. Chargers made for operational readiness, or standby mode, often let the battery voltage drop to 4.00V/cell and recharge to only 4.05V/cell instead of the full 4.20V/cell. This reduces voltage-related stress and prolongs battery life."

​

To assure your battery has attained a full charge and that 100% means "100%", charge the phone fully while POWERED OFF! This allows the charging circuitry to monitor the battery, and NOTHING BUT the battery for the signature changes in voltages and current draw, so that it can be accurate in its decision to stop the charging process.

"A portable device must be turned off during charge. This allows the battery to reach the set threshold voltage unhindered, and enables terminating charge on low current. A parasitic load confuses the charger by depressing the battery voltage and preventing the current in the saturation stage to drop low. A battery may be fully charged, but the prevailing conditions prompt a continued charge. This causes undue battery stress and compromises safety."

​

Will this cause you to miss that all-important 4:00am text or phone call, well...yeah, but what is more important to you?
On the other hand, does it really matter if the phone says the remaining charge is 5% and it's really 4% OR 6%? To go a step further, does it matter whether it's at 20% or at 25% or 15% (using the same 25% error rate)? I admit, knowing whether it's at 100% or at 75% (or 90%) right off the charger is a big deal, but if you're concerned for the accuracy of the meter simply to know, rather than to gauge your next needed charge, then you are letting the battery dictate your life rather than proximity to a charging source and you have far bigger problems than a meter that's out of calibration.

So, for solutions to the dilemma for us all...

"Li-ion does not need to be fully charged, as is the case with lead acid, nor is it desirable to do so. In fact, it is better not to fully charge, because high voltages stresses the battery. Choosing a lower voltage threshold, or eliminating the saturation charge altogether, prolongs battery life but this reduces the runtime. Since the consumer market promotes maximum runtime, these chargers go for maximum capacity rather than extended service life. Lithium-ion does not need to be fully charged; a partial charge is better.
Similar to a mechanical device that wears out faster with heavy use, so also does the depth of discharge (DoD) determine the cycle count. The smaller the depth of discharge, the longer the battery will last. If at all possible, avoid frequent full discharges and charge more often between uses. If full discharges cannot be avoided, try utilizing a larger battery. Partial discharge on Li-ion is fine; there is no memory and the battery does not need periodic full discharge cycles."
​

​

So charging more often, doing shorter charging cycles, such as when you get to 50%, and you're near a charging source, plug in for 10 or 15 minutes or longer, then when you must move from that source, you may already be at 75%.

"A portable device should be turned off while charging. This allows the battery to reach the threshold voltage unhindered and reflects the correct saturation current responsible to terminate the charge. A parasitic load confuses the charger."
​

The second solution will assure the meter is properly calibrated to what is a "FULL" charge for that battery in that point in its life, and when the voltage reaches the threshold for cutoff, the meter will then know what the range is. If you really need to know what the full range is, then a full charge is required, but it MUST be a FULL CHARGE, and that means while the power is OFF. Also a full discharge isn't absolutely necessary, since the charging circuitry already knows what voltage a full discharge is. If after a full charge it says to plug the phone in at 15%, you can be relatively sure it's not at 30%, and also relatively sure its not at 5%. It may be at 20% though not likely, but does it really matter all that much?

Sources for some of the information...http://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/charging_lithium_ion_batteries and other related articles from the same site.

Sources for other information range from RC sites to Wikipedia, to my own testing *(which I then verify with the above sources)*.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using DroidForums

 

[SallyC]

Amen, FoxKat.