New research shows that 5G consumes more battery on Android or iPhone devices than 4G. That would mean it’s better to get it off your smartphone. Only not everyone agrees.
5G has an enormous amount to offer. The network is a lot faster compared to its predecessor. Moreover, the mobile network can send more data and is much more stable. Still, the service is less pleasant for your Android or iPhone device.
5G consumes more battery than 4G
Researchers at Ookla recently tested modern processors on Android and iPhone devices. They compared Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset with its previous edition, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1. Both processors are used in many smartphones running Google’s operating system.
The researchers found that the Gen 2 is more efficient than the Gen 1 and consumes less power, 31 percent for 5G users and 25 percent for 4G-LTE users. They also found out that 5G mobile networks consume 6 to 11 percent more battery than 4G. So your battery seems to drain faster if your Android or iPhone uses a 5G network.
Why the research can’t be completely trusted
Not everyone is impressed by these tests. Experts doubt that the research was done properly. Mark Jackson of ISP Review found Ookla’s method “very simple.” The researchers tested battery consumption by charging the devices 100 percent in the morning. Then they looked at their battery charge in the afternoon.
But they didn’t take into account important details. Like screen size, brightness and which apps were active. The study also did not look at how much data the Android and iPhone smartphones had downloaded.
Keeping track of your Android smartphone’s battery
Whether you should really turn off 5G on your smartphone is, if Jackson is to be believed, not yet proven. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t do anything about your battery quality. After all, rapid battery drain has plenty of other causes. For example: high resolution, cache data or power-hungry apps.
There’s plenty you can do to reduce your battery drain. And we’re very happy to help you with that. We’ve compiled a list of five apps that keep track of your Android device’s battery. You’ll find them all .