4 tips for prolonging your phone’s battery life

Have you ever found yourself with a dead smartphone and no power source? Terrifying, right?

If you’re like me, your smartphone is your lifeline. It tells you where you have to be (and when), pulls up directions to your next meeting, gives you phone numbers for important people in your life, and, most importantly, reminds you of the name of that actress from that movie.

Of course, there are mobile power solutions, but that’s just one more thing to lug around.

Let’s fix the problem at its source. Here are four tips to help prolong your battery life and keep the screen on:

Unplug. Don’t leave your phone constantly plugged in to a power source. Batteries are like muscles and need to be exercised or they lose their strength. Plug in your phone overnight to start the day with a full charge, stay off the charger as long as you can, and only plug it in when the charge dips below the point that makes you uneasy.

Delete old apps. Apps – even the ones you’re not opening anymore – can upload and download data that drains your battery. A regular clean-up exercise – like getting rid of the game you downloaded for your four-year-old in a moment of desperation – extends your battery life.

Disable background processes. Android and iOS devices have settings that limit or disable background data usage. It’s a friendly setting for your mobile phone bill, and it can significantly reduce your phone’s power consumption.

Keep an eye on signal strength. When you have limited “bars”, your phone works harder moving data. If you have a limited signal, put your phone on airplane mode or turn it off until you’re in an area with better signal strength.

Oh, and the actress is Alicia Silverstone in Clueless.

—Byron K. Patrick is the managing director at Network Alliance, a US-based consultancy specialising in information technology services for accounting firms.