Battery : should I return my phone ?

**Maxioum** · 04-15-2012, 05:05 AM

Hi,

I received my new BB Bold 9900 3 days ago and it's the best BB i hever had in my hands !! But coming from a Bold 9700 and Torch 9800 I'm very disapointed by the battery life...

When i got my phone,first thing i did was wipe the stock os and install 7.1.342 (shrinked) as i really wanted to use Mobile Hotspot ! (This os is not supported by my carrier as i use a French carrier). Then i did a back up of my datas from my torch using desktop manager.

Since then, I'm having a 8 to 9% discharge rate per hour according to tiny meter, with I have to say a small usage of the phone (30min of music a day, 15mn twiiter, 15mn youtube maximum, little browsing, little emails but sms and bbms). With the same usage i had 2 to 3 days of battery with my bold 9700 and torch.
I have no app runing in background (always close them), no app refreshing every 5mn or what so ever, and no strange cpu usage (I checked in the settings to see cpu usage). I've set the backlight settings to the minimum (10%, 10sc). I deleted social feeds as i read it can drain battery. And since I have my phone, i've been doing complete battery cycles (i didnt charge it before it completly dies, and always full charge).

Is that a normal discharge rate on this phone or is there something wrong with mine ?
I still have a week to return the phone for free. Should i try to fix it (new os, change settings...) Or should i wait a bit longer to see if the battery life gets better with time (Ive been using the phone for only 3 days...) ? Should i ask for a new device ?

Thank you far your answers and your help !

**linuxbbm** · 04-15-2012, 05:15 AM

NO i would say use it for about 10 more days to see if the battery life stays the same or gets improved ? and make sure you do some battery pulls after the installation of your OS
I have noticed that OS 7.1.0.267 gives a very good battery life, just wait a few more days and if that's same you should ask for a battery replacement or your phone.

**Maxioum** · 04-15-2012, 08:50 AM

Should I install the .267 version ? I read battery life was the best on 342 but maybe i got it wrong...
Should i wipe, shrink and restore as I did the first time (that's the way i used to do with bold 9700 and torch) or is there a better way to do with the bold 9900 ?

**o4liberty** · 04-15-2012, 09:18 AM

I wouldn't return it if you like it I would wait and see and if needed have the battery replaced. I just ordered a spare battery and charger for mine.

There are the days where one battery won't last and no time to let it charge so a fresh spare battery is the way to go for me.

Sent from my BlackBerry 9930 using Tapatalk

**Alex_Hong** · 04-15-2012, 09:57 AM

perhaps you can try not shrinking the OS. some users were speculating that perhaps the OS is constantly trying to look for the missing .cod files. The amount of drain you have for you usage doesn't seem normal.

I'm on .342 and I have a idle discharge rate of about 1% per hour. Over the weekends on very very light usage, i once got 3 days out of it. Typically 2 days though. With regular usage can easily last 1 1/2 day. My display is on brightness 10 and 20 secs. Battery saving mode always on. I always close my apps too and no refresh as well.

If it still is having very high discharge rate, perhaps it might be a bad battery?

**Mystic205** · 04-15-2012, 10:08 AM

you need to go back to completely(full) carrier stock and not have random apps installed...only then can you get a good feel for battery life... i have .267 and get similar to alex_hong above.

**flybabyroxy** · 04-15-2012, 10:33 AM

I just got the 9930 after usin the 9700 then 9780 and this battery does suck compared to those devices. I deleted battex and Opera Mini Next7 and now I log outta my Photobucket app and I also set BeWeather to update only every 3 hrs now. During a lil over a 6 hour time period yesterday my battery went from 100% to 48% that's the best its been so far. I'm on official 7.1 from Sprint.

**edyb** · 04-15-2012, 10:33 AM

I have the 9810 on Rogers Canada which is still on OS 7.0 "officially", so I went ahead and installed the leaked 7.1.0.342 posted on Crackberry and had no issues.

Battery lasts me usually 2 days on normal usage which includes a few calls, but alot of WiFi usage (browsing, text/BBM) although sometimes if I really do alot it doesn't last until the end of the second day.

By the way, this is same as my battery performance on 7.0.

I did notice a few days ago my phone got VERY hot in my pocket, I was in a building at the time, also had Hookt running (not sure maybe just a coincidence). Looks like signal was ok, not too bad. However if signal is low, I notice the phone heats up and drains battery faster. Could be using more power on the antenna. The battery was not hot, it was the CPU because I took off the back cover and touched the battery and also part of the phone below the battery (behind the keyboard) where I assume is the CPU.

So I uninstalled hookt just in case.

I would start by going back to an original "official" install. Maybe wait for a newer 7.1 leak and don't shrink it, your phone has lots of memory space. See if it works. Then start shrinking it.

Also take a look at your signal and location, and if your phone runs hotter than usual. Try a virgin install with no additional apps.

Hope this helps somewhat.

By the way, OS 7.1 is a nice upgrade from 7.0, besides the hotspot feature it fixed a lot of annoying bugs like java null errors and stuff with olympia module. Maybe it was just because I installed fresh, but so far it is smooth and stable!

Sent from my BlackBerry 9810 using Crackberry Tapatalk Forum app

**albee 1** · 04-15-2012, 10:51 AM

Is your gps on? I got huge drains w/gps on while streaming.

**Maxioum** · 04-15-2012, 11:03 AM

Thank you for all your answers!
I always have gps on, i'll try to turn it off when i dont use it and see.

Again thank you for your help. I'm going to continue full battery cycles during a few days, if it doesnt improve i'll wipe and install a not-shrinked os (.267 apparently)

It is so disapointing to see the battery life differences from one phone to another!... I hope i'll manage to make it last 2 days, and then i'll be completely happy with my new phone

**edyb** · 04-15-2012, 11:07 AM

I would look for the 342 version to install.

Also in options settings find battery saving mode and change threshold to a higher number... like 30 or 40% so it will throttle back sooner.

I have GPS on all the time, but only the 5 standard apps running (home icon, phone, messages, messenger and browser) when using the blackberry key to show running apps. I close everything else.

Sent from my BlackBerry 9810 using Crackberry Tapatalk Forum app

**tagumcity** · 04-15-2012, 11:33 AM

My 9930 is at 35 % at 24 hours. I've had wifi turned off, but have not put any further effort into "trimming" battery consumption. I've had the 9930 less than a week, so sometime in the future I will see how far I can push the 9930's battery. I ordered a 2nd OEM battery and now I'm kind of 2nd guessing why. BB is top notch across the board.

**Maxioum** · 04-15-2012, 01:45 PM

I just realize, the .267 is for the 9930 only right ? I can't install it on my 9900 ?

**linuxbbm** · 04-15-2012, 02:22 PM

Originally Posted by Maxioum

Should I install the .267 version ? I read battery life was the best on 342 but maybe i got it wrong...
Should i wipe, shrink and restore as I did the first time (that's the way i used to do with bold 9700 and torch) or is there a better way to do with the bold 9900 ?

YES, try to install .267 i have noticed it gives the best battery life so far, and .342 is about 10 to 15% less than on .267 but it also depends on how you use it.

**Maxioum** · 04-16-2012, 01:21 AM

Originally Posted by linux.bbm

YES, try to install .267 i have noticed it gives the best battery life so far, and .342 is about 10 to 15% less than on .267 but it also depends on how you use it.

Where can i get this os ? I can only find the 9930 version on the forum...

**PiotrJot** · 04-16-2012, 09:51 AM

Originally Posted by Maxioum

Where can i get this os ? I can only find the 9930 version on the forum...

Have a look here: Leaked OS 7.1.0.267 for BlackBerry Bold 9900 Findings and Fixes

...although for me the .342 is the best OS so far...

**Maxioum** · 04-16-2012, 12:21 PM

Originally Posted by PiotrJot

Have a look here: Leaked OS 7.1.0.267 for BlackBerry Bold 9900 Findings and Fixes

...although for me the .342 is the best OS so far...

I installed .267. For the moment i'm having a 5.2% discharge rate, but it hasnt been a day that i use it. Lets see a bit longer.
Its seems to be better but still high right ? The period I have to get a refund is expiring soon so I have to make my mind fast but I have no way to compare...

**sicilianoo** · 04-18-2012, 05:34 AM

i had the same problems like you have.. and i resend it twice.. first time they gave me a completly new phone and the second time a new battery.. after 4.5 hours battery was dead.. and now i have 7.1.318 and it works perfectly.. battery is much much better.. but i still have a second battery in case i cant charge my phone

**Maxioum** · 04-18-2012, 02:13 PM

Well, I've been using .267 for a few days now.
Battery analyzer gives me a 2.9% discharge rate, but I think it's being very optimistic !
Tinymeter gives me a 6% rate, which I think is more accurate.

Should I satisfy myself with that or try another os ? (or get a refund)

**yourmobile** · 04-18-2012, 02:30 PM

The battery life on this device is poor, that's what it comes down to.

It being their flagship model, I'd be pretty embarrassed that the 9700 has better battery life if I was the designer of this phone.

As far as tips go:

I've noticed I get lower discharge rates if I switch to 2G.

Sent from my BlackBerry 9900 using Tapatalk

**pcgizmo** · 04-18-2012, 04:03 PM

Originally Posted by yourmobile

The battery life on this device is poor, that's what it comes down to.

It being their flagship model, I'd be pretty embarrassed that the 9700 has better battery life if I was the designer of this phone.

As far as tips go:

I've noticed I get lower discharge rates if I switch to 2G.

Sent from my BlackBerry 9900 using Tapatalk

Isn't the 99xx's processor twice as fast as 9700's? 99xx's screen is a healthy step up as well. Im' thinking those two differences will have an impact on battery life