Smartphone battery life is a fickle thing, not only between different phone models, but among supposedly identical phones. After nearly two years with an iPhone, I started using my Android-based AT&T Captivate in December. One difference, among otherwise Android awesomeness: pathetic battery life. I installed Serendipity, a custom ROM, and saw some improvement, but I still can’t go from morning until bed time without plugging in the phone. The catch, though, is that other Captivate users who run Serendipity report battery life that is double what I get. Battery life seems to depend on an individual’s usage, the apps installed, and the condition of the battery in the device.
Let us know in the comments what kind of battery life you get. Make sure you let us know what phone you use, how heavily you use your phone, and any tips you’ve come across to increase your battery life.
To get the ball rolling on some tips, here is a very thorough thread from the xdadevelopers forum, for you users of Android custom ROMs, with several tips and links about how to improve battery life. The tips include deleting your battery stats, and doing a “bump charge,” among others. I’m running at about 13 hours now. How about you?
So I’ve had an iPhone for over a year now, a smartphone for at least three, and an iPad since December. I went through my initial app insanity a while back, unable to resist the call of the thousands upon thousands of different apps out there — a feeling that was only amplified by my innate geeky curiousity, and the fact that I write for a tech blog. Hell, I’ve even done about a hundred or so freelance reviews of iOS games in the past year, with all of the purchases reimbursed — talk about having an addiction enabled!
Well, I’m all done with that now. I’m no slave to my devices! Really! I’m not!! Okay, so I might be… but maybe you are too?
I’ve taken stock of the apps that I own, and the ones that have taken up long-term residence on my devices, and I have come to the conclusion that I actually use less than 10% of my library on anything even approaching a regular basis. The rest just sit there, mooching off the storage space on my iPhone and iPad, hanging out in their folders and doing nothing all day. They should get a job or something. Seriously. They should get a job or get out — but they play off my weaknesses, you see. Every time I go in to delete them, I get bombarded with reasons that justify their existences, often using phrases like “just in case” and “but this app is just so cool!”
It’s all lies, though, and I keep falling for it. The only apps I regularly use are Evernote, Springpad, my RSS readers (MobileRSS, Zite, Flipboard), iBooks and Stanza, Facebook/Friendly, Twitter, Producteev, and Card Shark Solitaire (the free version). Of course, I use the stock apps like Mail, Safari, and the like, and I also occasionally use the Google app and Google Maps, but that is a pretty good snapshot of my average usage. I still seem to be unable to let go of the others, though… go figure.
How about you? How many of your apps do you actually use on average? What are they? And do you also suffer from app hangers-on? Have the app stores made us their bitches? Let me know!
Are you a spy, engaged in nefarious business dealings, or an extreme fan of privacy? Maybe you just really liked Mission Impossible or Inspector Gadget? If so, you will probably get a kick out of self-destructing text messages. That’s right, messages where you get to add your own little “time-bomb” that deletes the possibly offending or incriminating text off both your own phone, and that of the receiving party. Never get caught sexting by your significant other again.* Don’t leave a trail of incriminating evidence behind!* Etc. Etc. Etc… You get it, I’m sure.
Read on for more details, opinions, and the meaning of the little *’s.
I understand the need for privacy in personal and business communications. I don’t have a problem with that and I support it wholeheartedly. It just seems to me that the marketing around TigerText and TigerText Pro, the mobile app that gives you the power of the self-destructing message, skirts the sleazy. Oh, they never out and out say “hide your potentially incriminating communications” or “never get caught.” They are very careful about that, in fact, focusing more on privacy protection and the fact that they are a free text and picture messaging service. However, something about the overall tone of their message tickles my increasingly cynical ear — especially when they bandy about quotes from some of their reviewers, like the New York Post, that state“TigerText eliminates the possibility of damaging evidence being left behind.” Maybe it’s just me, but broadcasting that statement as a part of your marketing seems to target a specific audience need.
I suppose, fundamentally, that I have some sort of righteous moral issue with the fact that the need exists in the first place. Somewhere, deep in my airy-fairy soul, there is a little voice whispering, “why can’t we all just be honest and nice, and stuff.” I recognize that the little voice is sadly naive and am actually much more practical in my view of human nature, but the tiny little fellow is persistent and closely related to the last resident (and black sheep) of Pandora’s Box. It also believes in the possibility of unicorns, dragons, and other romantic notions, so take from that what you will.
In any case, TigerText is a good service for getting around texting and picture messaging costs on your smartphone. It works over WiFi, and so can work in poor service areas, and is a fast, easy to use app available for all major smartphone platforms. You can only communicate with other TigerText users, however, so in many ways it is more like an instant messaging service that allows you to add a timed-delete function to your messages.
TigerText is free for personal use, and TigerText pro — the enterprise version — has some nifty features like email notifications and the like. It also has branches that are specific to those needing HIPAA (healthcare and insurance) and SOX (Sarbanes-Oxley Act – national securities investment protections) compliance in their communications. If you want to try it out, go to your smartphone’s app store, or head to this link for personal, and this one for enterprise.
* Notes
A word to the wise: as TigerText themselves point out, this is by no means a bulletproof method of not getting caught. Send sensitive information to others at your own risk — anyone can take a picture of a smartphone screen, either with another camera or the press of a button or two. How much you really trust the person you are sending the message to had best be at the forefront of your mind.
Oh, and also: 40Tech by no means condones cheating on your spouse, conducting nefarious dealings, yadda yadda.
What do you think of TigerText? What would you use it for?
If you’ve ever thought that you had the perfect idea for an app, but just didn’t have the time, the means, or the skills to build and launch your gift to the mobile world (and your wallet), well guess what: there’s an app for that. Now before you begin mentally slaying me for my use of Apple’s now cliche slogan, read on — I’m actually not joking. The app is called FundedApps, and its entire purpose is for you to send in your idea so that they can make it happen for you. If they like your idea, you get £250 upfront, plus 25% of the net profit that the app makes.
Android users can get an automatic refund for a purchased app, by deleting the app from their devices within 15 minutes of purchasing it. This is a far cry from the 24 hour window that was provided to Android users until recently, but easier than the process in Apple’s iOS store. Shoppers in the iOS store can get refunds, too, albeit through a bit of a convoluted process. Read more
