Battery Saving Tips: Samsung Galaxy S5, Note 3

One of the many great things about Samsung Galaxy smartphones like the S5 and the Note 3 is that they are pretty good at lasting through a full workday without needing a charge. But even high-end devices like these may need a quick boost on those particularly heavy use days.

There are a few commonly-known ways to extend the battery life of a phone, like turning off Wi-Fi/Bluetooth when they’re not being used, and dimming the backlight. But the latest Galaxy phones have additional features to further stretch daily operating time.

Power saving mode. Activating this mode can do a number of things to optimize battery time. With the S5, you can stop apps from continuously running in the background; limit usability options, like quick access to recent apps and backlighting on the back button; and make the screen greyscale. In the Note 3, you can limit system resources; decrease screen brightness and turn off haptic feedback (the vibrations when depressing keys). Get here by going to Settings > Power Saving > Power Saving Mode, and adjust accordingly. You can also turn this on from Quick Settings in the S5, which is accessed by swiping down with two fingers from the top status bar.

Ultra power saving mode. This mode on the S5 turns colours grey, limits access to default apps (and other user-selected ones), turns off mobile data when the screen is off and automatically deactivates Wi-Fi and Bluetooth if you’ve forgotten to do so. Once in this mode, all you’ll see on the home screen are icons for phone, messages and Internet, plus whatever apps you choose to continue running (tap “+” to add apps to the list). You’ll also see remaining battery on the bottom of the screen, and estimated standby time. Go to Settings > Power Saving > Ultra Power Saving Mode; or select U.power saving from the Quick Settings screen.

Sleep mode. Simply press the power button on either device to turn off the screen and conserve battery.

Tweak app settings. By default, the phones are set to automatically update apps whenever a new version becomes available. Turn this off by going to Settings > Auto App Updates. And consider manually checking for updates every night or week instead, when your phone is plugged into a power source.

The bottom line
Use the tips provided here to help extend the life of your S5 and Note 3, and you’ll find that they’ll last a little bit longer without you feeling as though you’re missing out on any features and functions.

Does you have any additional tips to add? Tell us via the comment form below.