Well lookey here, it’s an Android showdown pitting the hottest Android smartphones out there in a battle royale (with cheese), but it’s not going spec for spec. Instead, LaptopMag has comiled the top Android handsets for a battery life test, and you’ll be surprised who comes out on top.
LaptopMag was fair in their tests, setting all of the phones to the following settings:
First, we download My Settings and Advanced Task Killer, two free apps that are useful regardless.
Then, we open My Settings, and do the following:
Turn screen brightness to 40%, and turn off auto brightness.
Turn off Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS location, cell location, and auto sync.
Deactivate screen timeout; that is, make sure the screen stays on indefinitely.
In the Web browser, we turn off Flash support and plug-ins.
We placed the phone in an area that was receiving at least 4 bars of service.
One of the biggest surprises was how the handsets sporting AMOLED displays performed the worst. The Droid Incredible, Samsung Captivate, and Samsung Vibrant, which all have AMOLED displays were the worst performers over all. When Samsung announced their Super AMOLED displays, they said that the new displays would help battery life extend past what standard AMOLED display could deliver. Sadly, it doesn’t look like Super AMOLED displays helped all that much.
Also to our surprise, the HTC EVO 4G and Epic 4G (which has a Super AMOLED display) brought up the middle of the bunch, with the Epic 4G squeezing out just a couple more minutes than the EVO. We’re not sure if the tests were performed in a 4G area, but it’s interesting how the two 4G phones performed almost exactly the same.
The top three performers were the Dell Streak, the Motorola Droid 2, and the Motorola Droid X, with the Droid X kicking the pants off the rest of the competition. The X lasted a whopping 7 hours and 42 minutes, with the Dell Streak following it with 7 hours and 35 minutes. The Droid 2 performed admirably, and got 7 hours and 7 minutes on a single charge. This test is very surprising in that the top two performers had the biggest screens out of the whole lot, with the exception of the EVO 4G, which we have been all too aware of the battery issues surrounding the device.
So if you’re a power user looking to get the most life out of your next smartphone, grab the Droid X or the Dell Streak. Both sport massive LCD displays and are powerhouses when it comes to their battery life. We’d like to see how some other competitors would perform against these devices.
Now you know the most long-lasting Android devices on the market, does that sway you in any way? Or do you not have a problem with carrying a spare battery?
[Via: LaptopMag]