Battery life is often a constant pain point for many modern smartphone users. We’re not asking to go back to the days of Symbian phones and before. Just one full day with a bit of buffer would be great. However, most of our phones don’t even last a day. I’m pleased that with my OnePlus One, battery hasn’t been a concern.
Prior to the One, I used a Samsung Galaxy S4. When it was brand new, I would end the day (about 15 hours) with maybe about 30% – 40% battery remaining. When it had gotten a little old, I could not get by without a mid-day recharge. It was getting really bad.
Things were so different with the OnePlus One. I no longer had to be concerned about battery life. I still look at the battery stats, but it’s more so to be assured that the phone was doing great.
I’ve been collecting some statistics over 15 days, and I’m pleased to share some battery longevity statistics. My usage scenario with the OnePlus One is as follows:
- Wi-Fi is always on. I do get Wi-Fi coverage from time to time.
- Bluetooth is always on. I usually don’t have any Bluetooth gadgets connected though.
- GPS is always on. The GPS does get used from time to time, such as when Facebook and various other apps wants to determine my location. I use Google Maps too.
- Gmail is syncing for two not-very-busy accounts, averaging about 80+ emails a day together. A third account is synced manually. (I usually don’t read the emails on my phone.)
- In terms of screen-on time, I average 69 mins each day. The longest and shortest screen-on times are 103 mins and 35 mins respectively. The screen-on time is probably a good indicator of how much I actively use the phone. It’s mostly reading, photos, and posting, plus the occasional light game.
My average battery drain rate is 2.27% per hour, or 56% per day (extrapolated). In other words, the OnePlus One will not last two days, but it will comfortably last me over one day.
The lowest and highest battery drain rate is 1.75% and 2.93% per hour respectively.
| Mins on Battery | Screen-On Mins | Battery drain %/hr |
|---|---|---|
| 1051 | 81 | 2.28 |
| 1018 | 73 | 2.89 |
| 889 | 35 | 1.75 |
| 1058 | 77 | 2.33 |
| 1751 | 76 | 1.58 |
| 1026 | 98 | 2.87 |
| 1082 | 57 | 2.05 |
| 984 | 73 | 2.26 |
| 1039 | 103 | 2.71 |
| 935 | 49 | 2.25 |
| 882 | 67 | 2.59 |
| 1038 | 68 | 2.14 |
| 880 | 88 | 2.93 |
| 776 | 44 | 1.78 |
| 938 | 43 | 1.73 |
| Avg: 1023 | Avg: 69 | Avg: 2.27 |
I charge the OnePlus One overnight. It’ll be alright to forget to charge the One for one night. I don’t need to panic the next morning, but just need to take note to recharge some time in the day.
Note that the full 24-hour drain rate will certainly be slower, because during my sleep, the phone will be completely idle, and the battery consumption during those sleep hours is really low.
My OnePlus One is still quite new at this time, so the battery ought to perform quite well. We’ll have to see one year later how well it continues to perform then. The 3100mAh capacity does give a little more comfort than the 2600mAh offered by my last Samsung Galaxy S4, and I’m very pleased I’m getting by a full day without having to worry about battery.
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