[dmccraw1863]

While I know this should be in the finding and fixes section, I am creating a new thread because I think it would be seen by more people who have probably had this issue and already checked there to no avail. I just did this to my Storm 2 last night so I can't say for certain that it has fixed my problem, but I am highly confident that it did given today's battery depletion rate. To some of you these instructions may seem like they are written for dummies but that is so people with barely any experience can follow them. Hopefully this works for everyone else. Before you begin, make sure you have a couple of hours to spare and do so at your own risk.

After the official update that was offered to me through VZW, I was losing battery power anywhere from 6-11% per hour (#s come from Meterberry) and that was even with all of the tricks to help save power and light use. My theory was that the problem stemmed from something during the back up and restore process during the upgrade. I downgraded then upgraded again. I then reinstalled everything and did a battery pull and charged the phone completely. As of today after being on for almost 14 hours I am still at 42% battery with a decrease of 4.3% per hour and have used it more than the past few days. I do not know why the backup and restore process would cause such a problem if it even did cause it.

To start, you will want to write down all of the Apps you have and even what ringtones you have set for each item. This is a little tedious but so is having to recharge your battery 2-3 times a day. The reason for this is that you are going to wipe everything and will want a reference point when you start reloading everything. You will also have to reassign each ringtone and alert and will need a reference point for that as well. You will also want to connect to DM and back up your contacts. If you have any registration codes to enter then you will want to copy those down as well. I found mine by looking at my application list through the CB Superstar Application (great app!). If you have any memos or tasks write them down, and make sure you back up your calendar somehow (I use google sync and my gmail accounts calendar).

After creating your reference list, go to Options>Security Options>Security Wipe and check "Emails, Contacts, etc." and "User Installed Applications." DO NOT CHECK THE MEDIA CARD BOX! It is not necessary to wipe your media card. You will then write "blackberry" at the bottom to clear your phone.

Now you will need to connect your phone to your computer and open DM. Click on Application Loader and then press Start under Update Software. If you currently are running .607 then you will need to select the box to downgrade to .320 and press Next. You will then follow the instructions to downgrade your system. Note: if your previous OS was a different version you should be able to downgrade to that one but I went from .320 to .607.

After the downgrade is complete you will probably want to perform a battery pull just to be on the safe side but I don't know if it is necessary. You will then upgrade again to .607 but this time you will do it differently. Go back through DM just like before and come to the screen where you select the OS you want to update to and select .607 and hit Next. At the next screen under "Device backup and restore options" hit Settings. Clear the top two boxes that are used for backing up data and check the box that deletes all application data (third one). This and the security wipe are the reasons why you went through the tedious process of creating that list.

Now you just have to follow the instructions during the OS Upgrade and wait. When it has finished, you will need to download all of your applications again and enter your registration codes again. Then you will need to connect to DM and upload your contacts again. For some reason, I had an issue getting my email icon back so I deleted my email account from my phone and went through the email setup wizard again to fix that issue. You are also going to have to change all of your ringtones and alerts back to where you would like them.

Most people say that GPS set to E911 and turning off Bluetooth will save battery. I have tried those before and in my opinion it doesn't save a noticeable amount. While it probably does slow down the drain I feel like it isn't enough to make a large difference and left my GPS on for Weatherbug and leave my Bluetooth on. WiFi, however, did seem like a huge drain on the battery. I only turn that on when I am wanting to use my WiFi connection. It appears to me that when you are actually in a WiFi zone that it isn't a big drain. When you are searching for WiFi it is though so turn it off when you are done.

I apologize for the novel I have just written but hopefully it is detailed enough for even the least tech savvy person to use. Like I said before, it hasn't been a full 24 hours since I did this to my phone but I feel like it did the trick. I will post updates below regarding the drain on my battery again if anyone wants to wait and see how it is working for me before going through such an annoying process.


--------------------------
Battery Updates:
Prior to fixing - 6-7% decrease per hour and sometimes higher

Day 1 ~4%/hr decrease with a little more than normal use.

Ended Day 1 at 4.8%/hr. I couldn't get Slacker to run but my battery was already down to about 30% left so that may be why. Tomorrow will be the best test because it will be fully charged and I will use Slacker for at least an hour (if it works).

Day 2: Well I forgot to take my phone to work and ended up leaving it on the charger all day. It's been off the charger for about 2 hours now and I am draining at 2.7%.

Day 6: It's been about a week and here I am now getting around 2% drop each day. Some days more depending on internet radio usage. During that time it would go up to about 5% but then drop back down to normal. The solution clearly works if you follow it exactly. Only changes in apps was deleting Ubertwitter and downloading Smrtguard but I don't think those changed anything.

[1812dave]

Yours is still draining way faster than mine. Even with using the phone, internet, and messaging, my rate is consistently under 2% per hour. Sounds like you still have issues, unless you are using your phone incessantly for calls, music, etc.

[dmccraw1863]

Mine was something stupidly low this morning like 1% because I left it off the charger last night to see how it did with absolutely no use. Now I have Ubertwitter and Weatherbug updating every 30 min and have used it a little more than normal today. I'm hoping to see it drop to 2-3%/hr on a day of normal use.

[Bettermost]

Its got to be some app that's running. I have no issues with battrry drain and 607
Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[1812dave]

Mine was something stupidly low this morning like 1% because I left it off the charger last night to see how it did with absolutely no use. Now I have Ubertwitter and Weatherbug updating every 30 min and have used it a little more than normal today. I'm hoping to see it drop to 2-3%/hr on a day of normal use.

I have weatherbug update every 30 minutes. Even with that and another weather app (which I finally decided was redundant and deleted this weekend), I still got <2%/hr. Of course if I play pandora for many hours, that will reduce battery life quite a lot. I had Pandora running for about 2 hours today and battery discharge rate is roughly 5-6%/hr today. Other days with Pandora, I've gotten better rates, so today is a bit of an anomaly. I don't think I got the battery fully charge.

[EnergyPlus]

I've been carefully monitoring battery use on my S2 with the upgrade. I'm currently of the opinion that there is SOME decrease in battery life, though not life threatening. My previous "average" was pretty consistant with 1.7%/hr. Now, i'm about 1.9%/hr. but, I've noticed that when I've been on a call for say, 20 minutes, that the battery drain was significantly higher (say, 2% - 3%) than I previously experienced with .320. It would be nice if I had thought of this before the upgrade so I could make a call, see what impact it has on a fully charged battery, upgrade, do a few battery pulls, recharge to maximum and then make the same call again. That being said, the odds of me doing it are nil I'll just continue to monitor and see what I can detect.

[wrxnfx#CB]

Upon the first couple of hours after doing my upgrade, I noticed that one of my themes and a couple apps ran much more smoothly and consistently. It turned out that the apps and themes were causing my battery to drain much faster than before .607. So I was able to shutdown the apps which helped slow my battery drain and then switched themes to make it more manageable. Although I don't have Meterberry, I can tell you that initially, my fully charged battery would drain to about half in about a 8 hour period where that usually would have taken more like 14 hours prior to .607.

I'm not 100% sure if this other battery drain issue is related to .607 or not, but it seems as if my battery drains quite significantly after making or receiving phone calls. It might be my imagination, but it sure seems like there is a much more significant drain when making voice calls than when I was on .320. Yes, I only use the VZW official OSs.

[Ronindan]

Mine discharges around 1.5 to 2.5. Just keep an eye on apps such facebook since it is a memory hog.

[marbles67]

I lost 15%in an hour??

[Murphy5111]

I lost 15%in an hour??

I do too when I'm on long phone calls

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[dmccraw1863]

Am I the only one that notices a more rapid decrease in power when the battery gets down pretty low? I feel like when it's under 25% power left it starts to go down fairly quickly.

[dsmith3427]

I ahve found that with .607 the battery is not fully charged even when the light says it is. I shut my phone down when I charge. The green light comes on which used to mean a fully charged battery. Now if I turn the phone on and do option>status the battery is typically around 80% full. Not 100%.

[Rooster]

yep its madness... I'm loosing 17.5% per hour on this build. Nice official release!

[dmccraw1863]

Rooster, try the steps I listed above and see if it works for you. It's tedious but it worked for me so far.

[AverageUSCJoe]

I don't know how some of you are getting 1-2% per hour a day with use. I left it on phone calls only yesterday and did only a little bbming and web surfing, maybe one or 2 phone calls at 1-2 minutes a piece and still ended up with about 4-5% per hour drain. I dont have any third party apps running.

[1812dave]

I don't know how some of you are getting 1-2% per hour a day with use. I left it on phone calls only yesterday and did only a little bbming and web surfing, maybe one or 2 phone calls at 1-2 minutes a piece and still ended up with about 4-5% per hour drain. I dont have any third party apps running.

all i can tell u is I don't run a lot of apps that many crackberry users run. I don't run custom LED apps, or quickpull, or the other utililties they same so fond of. I also dont load themes. I think (but can't prove, as I have no desire to do further testing) that G maps 4.0.1 was draining my battery like crazy. I deleted it because of other issues that have been widely discussed in the past few days. I don't strive or struggle to get my <2% discharge rate. It just "is".

[EnergyPlus]

Ok, Dave...I've figured it out and it's your fault, absolutely and totally. You owe me a huge apology.

After the discussion you and I had about GM in that other thread, I had GM open while I was reviewing what you told me. My landline phone rang and then, I needed to go take a shower and forgot about my cell. When I got back downstairs, I discovered that my battery had suddenly dropped 18%, just from leaving GM open!!!!

LOL..it's your fault!

all i can tell u is I don't run a lot of apps that many crackberry users run. I don't run custom LED apps, or quickpull, or the other utililties they same so fond of. I also dont load themes. I think (but can't prove, as I have no desire to do further testing) that G maps 4.0.1 was draining my battery like crazy. I deleted it because of other issues that have been widely discussed in the past few days. I don't strive or struggle to get my <2% discharge rate. It just "is".

[1812dave]

Ok, Dave...I've figured it out and it's your fault, absolutely and totally. You owe me a huge apology.

After the discussion you and I had about GM in that other thread, I had GM open while I was reviewing what you told me. My landline phone rang and then, I needed to go take a shower and forgot about my cell. When I got back downstairs, I discovered that my battery had suddenly dropped 18%, just from leaving GM open!!!!

LOL..it's your fault!

I kept finding G maps open when I didn't remember opening it since the previous battery pull. After that happened two or 3 times, I decided enough was enough, and deleted the frickin' thing. I don't need that app at the moment anyway. When they fix it, and if it doesn't keep popping up (maybe something to do with "Latitude", I'll reinstall. for now, I'm fine without it.

[dmccraw1863]

Dave, what apps do you have that are constantly running or refreshing periodically? The ones I have are Weatherbug (every 30 min), Ubertwitter (every 30 min), and Meterberry.

[EnergyPlus]

Mine are MeterBerry, WeatherBerry, SmartGuard and GPS Locator. All of those were installed and running for months on the old OS. I'm beginning to notice a clear difference in battery drain and I am suspecting these apps, though phone calls seem to strongly indicate increased drain. (Google Maps, which I normally do not leave on, just nailed me for a big chunk, in the length of time it took to take a quick shower). Oh, and no, before you ask, I was not using GM to find my shower!!!

Dave, what apps do you have that are constantly running or refreshing periodically? The ones I have are Weatherbug (every 30 min), Ubertwitter (every 30 min), and Meterberry.

[1812dave]

Dave, what apps do you have that are constantly running or refreshing periodically? The ones I have are Weatherbug (every 30 min), Ubertwitter (every 30 min), and Meterberry.

weatherbug (30 min.) I close the app when done viewing it full screen, but it still updates and gives me weather alerts, just like on TV--same sound and red triangle appears on the icon. Got that twice this weekend, for high wind advisory. pretty cool.

other apps I have on my S2 are:

1. Pandora (is there anyone who DOESN'T run Pandora?)
2. Slacker
3. BBM 5.0
4.Kindle
5. Bing
6. Google Sync
7. Poynt
8. FlyCast 2.0
9. Stitcher
10.iheartradio (nearly useless for the time being)
11.Viigo
12. Tether
13. Speedtest
14. Level
15.My Verizon


I removed App World long ago, and Google Maps 4.0.1 within a day of installation.

As u can see, I don't run many of the apps that so many guys here do. Maybe that's why mine runs with a very low drain? That, or blind luck.

[dmccraw1863]

I just got that SmrtGuard program. I can't believe I have never heard of this! It is definitely a must have app for anyone with a phone... blackberry or not. I actually don't use Pandora. I used to but then I started using Slacker and I like that one a lot more since it uses genres to search for music. I'm pretty sure everyone uses Pandora though. I also have Ultimate Lock running all the time. I could never remember to lock my screen and that was one of my biggest gripes when I switched from the iPhone to the S1 (had it for 2 weeks and couldn't deal with not having a signal on AT&Ts horrible network). Started with Storm Slider and then switched to Ultimate Lock when it came out.

[EnergyPlus]

Guess I'm the odd one out. I've never used Pandora or Slacker, nor do I keep music on my phone. I have an iPod for music and XM in my radio and at home. I use a Garmin for GPS and only ever used GM as a backup (I WAS happy with that until Dave ruined my day, lol). I cannot fathom what battery life must be like if you're doing all that streaming and music playing.

[Bood08]

I've just recently Upgraded to the .607, and I seem to be having the same Battery problems as in the .320.....I havent noticed a drastic change, both of them for me arent great, at all.
The phone barely drains any battery while in Idle, because I only have BeWeather going every 30 minutes, but as soon as I start BBM-ing, SMS-ing or calling, it Drains at an alarmingly high rate.
Should I Downgrade back to .320, and then try the Upgrade again, or should I just accept the fact that I have to carry a second Battery in my pocket wherever I go.

[art50]

I know you's guys don't want to hear this but..........get ya a mans size battery in those storms! I purchased the 2600 m/a from crackberry, but I already had one from my storm1. Had to buy the battery for the back door basically. I also have the Mugen power 3300 m/a. Now thats a monster battery, but makes the phone pretty thick. Either one of these will get you thru the day without any problems.

I had to drop back to Seanren's v8 hybrid, so my iHeart radio would play. Living in PA, I like to listen to KFI in Los Angeles, so basically my storm2 is a radio to me, and those little batteries just don't get it done. From 7am to 3pm, my first 2600 is dead. I pop in another 2600 and finish out the day, into the evening hours.

The 2600 m/a battery makes it just a tad thicker, enough where it doesn't fit into any holsters or standard cases. Not a big deal to me, as I went to a saddle shop and had a leather holster custom made to my liking.

This is probably the only reason I took the Droid back to VZW, when it first came out. That little stock battery just didn't make the grade for what I use it for. No matter what OS I ever used, my storm1 and 2 have been battery hogs. Just my 2 cents worth................