Phone batteries lasting or not throughout the day

[PrincessNelly_NJ]

Based on my personal experience, I think the battery issue is 100% caused by the Disney App. I have always used Android phones and if I use the Disney app while I'm in the park and for some reason forget to close it out completely (so its no longer running in the background), my battery would be down to almost 50% within a few hours (normally my battery will last all day in the parks). The Disney App is a HUGE resource hog and will drain the battery on any device you run it on, its constantly polling in the background trying to get system and status updates.

mmm... have you adjust to settings to not allow apps to run in the background?

My fiance and I only use samsung and the only time we've ever had our phone completely die was we hit MK from 8am to 11pm and I was on my phone heavily being a FP+ ninja. But other than that, we always make it back to our room with about 10-15% on average.

 

[correcaminos]

A quick check online suggests that AT&T and Verizon have the best signals on WDW property... not so much Sprint and T-Mobile.

Reality is Verizon really wasn't better than Sprint and was worse in our room (one work and one personal account - comparing same brands too). All phones lost signal now and then in some rides that are covered in concrete. I cannot say that one was really better than another. We've had both providers at Disney many times simultaneously. A couple years we had AT&T and oddly that was the worst which made us chuckle given the sponsorship

Based on my personal experience, I think the battery issue is 100% caused by the Disney App. I have always used Android phones and if I use the Disney app while I'm in the park and for some reason forget to close it out completely (so its no longer running in the background), my battery would be down to almost 50% within a few hours (normally my battery will last all day in the parks). The Disney App is a HUGE resource hog and will drain the battery on any device you run it on, its constantly polling in the background trying to get system and status updates.

It's not quite as bad as it used to be, but yes it does drain the battery more. It also crashes too much for my taste and updates far too often only to have issues after updates.

 

[PurpleDragon]

mmm... have you adjust to settings to not allow apps to run in the background?

Nope, because I have a handful of apps that I want running in the background. I usually just manually close all open apps and clear cache whenever I'm done using the phone for the moment. It has worked pretty well up to this point, usually by the end of the day I'm at about 40% or so (unless I'm using it a lot that day).

 

[PrincessNelly_NJ]

Nope, because I have a handful of apps that I want running in the background. I usually just manually close all open apps and clear cache whenever I'm done using the phone for the moment. It has worked pretty well up to this point, usually by the end of the day I'm at about 40% or so (unless I'm using it a lot that day).

Not sure what phone you have but on my Note 8, I can select individual apps and allow or disallow permission to run in the background. You should double check if you have that option.

 

[PurpleDragon]

Not sure what phone you have but on my Note 8, I can select individual apps and allow or disallow permission to run in the background. You should double check if you have that option.

The way you phrased your previous post made me think you were referring to some hidden setting to stop all programs running in the background.


I know about the individual app settings (I have a Galaxy S8), I disable all the stupid bloatware as well as turn off notifications for about 90% of my apps as soon as I setup the phone. I haven't even installed the Disney app on this phone yet, haven't been back to WDW since I got it.

 

[PrincessNelly_NJ]

The way you phrased your previous post made me think you were referring to some hidden setting to stop all programs running in the background.


I know about the individual app settings (I have a Galaxy S8), I disable all the stupid bloatware as well as turn off notifications for about 90% of my apps as soon as I setup the phone. I haven't even installed the Disney app on this phone yet, haven't been back to WDW since I got it.

I do the same and I've taken a few trips with my Note8 and its held up well even running the Disney app. You should be okay with the S8.

 

[drp4video]

It’s not a issue of profanity...the word “____pack”...was actually outlawed as an unacceptable fashion faux pas by act of the United States Congress in 1990

Good one! lol

My daughter, age 30, told me they are back in style and she even wore one this past May when we went to WDW together! lol

 

[larryz]

Kinda makes you wonder if **** Van **** ever wore a ***** pack...

 

[Chef Mickey]

Get an iPhone X. Amazing battery life, even with heavy use.

 

[JohnD]

Take a portable charger with you. You’ll be glad you did. Leaving a restroom in HS just two weeks ago, I saw a guy patiently (impatiently?) waiting for his phone to charge from a power socket in the restroom. Don’t be that guy.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Get an iPhone X. Amazing battery life, even with heavy use.

I once had a phone that big...it was called an “iPad”

 

[trainplane3]

Pixel XL 2 (former Pixel XL, Nexus 6p, etc) user here. I just run with one of the two (linked below) batteries and a short cable. A battery can fit nicely into my cargo pockets and it's not a pain to get to when I need to use it. The phone does say "charging rapidly" occasionally when using them but I don't think they're 100% onboard with USB C fast charge, so charging speeds can vary. The most I used a battery was to get a 30% bump but I'm sure I would've been fine without it. With a battery, it would easily last me all day in the parks.

I don't turn anything off and I only use 4G in the parks unless I'm backing up a video to Google Photos. I use the WDW app a bit but it can be a trash pile if the data connection isn't perfect.

Anker 6700: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06XS9RMWS/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Anker 10000: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01JIYWUBA/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Cable: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B017IJG27K/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[LUVofDIS]

I have used the iPhone 4, 5, 6S and this year it will be the X and I have never killed the battery in the park. I use the Disney and Touring Plan apps and never change a setting. Now my wife has the same phone(s) and she kills her phone occasionally. She has many more apps than I do. We bring along battery packs we got "free" from Costco when we bought the phones. She has used hers but I have never needed it in WDW.

The X I think will fare even better, it takes me three days to get it to 20%, that is even playing music for a fair part of the day.

Now my wireless headphones, that is a different story, but of course, I don't wear those while at WDW.

 

[RScottyL]

This will sound really douchey and I don't mean to aim it at the original poster (at all). But maybe, if Disney guests put their phones away, the problem would be solved. And we'd connect again and rainbows and bluebirds would float in.

Most of them are using it for taking pictures and videos!

I agree that some are texting or whatever!

 

[RScottyL]

It’s not a issue of profanity...the word “____pack”...was actually outlawed as an unacceptable fashion faux pas by act of the United States Congress in 1990

Actually, In Britain, it is profanity!

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

I have never known a large non-IT company that would be considered good at IT.

But how many ran their hotels on a Vegas stolen, 1986 designed, dos based system?....in 2004?

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Most of them are using it for taking pictures and videos!

I agree that some are texting or whatever!

Agree...

The “why are people on their phones??” Was a legitimate question....
...until they made everyone plan down to the minute - including amusement park rides - from an app.

Of course people are gonna use their phones when it’s mandatory to have it out.

Now they are rolling out in park games and such...who’s to blame for Phone addiction in WDW?

 

[Master Yoda]

But how many ran their hotels on a Vegas stolen, 1986 designed, dos based system?....in 2004?

I am going to go out on a limb and say that it is a non-zero number.

The inventory and invoice system we currently use is DOS based. It was only about 6 or 7 years ago that we stopped using floppies on our component saws and one of those is running on Windows 95.

The sad thing...we are one of the more technologically progressive companies in our field.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

I am going to go out on a limb and say that it is a non-zero number.

The inventory and invoice system we currently use is DOS based. It was only about 6 or 7 years ago that we stopped using floppies on our component saws and one of those is running on Windows 95.

The sad thing...we are one of the more technologically progressive companies in our field.

Lol...F5, 13, tab, tab, space, M, enter, enter, Y, space, enter

(That is an actual command sequence in the disney system now defunct for a supervisor Audit report

 

[dieboy]

tin foil hat; they want you to buy the battery packs they are now vending out in the parks.

Ha.. not tin foil hat; Simple. They don't have the bandwidth for either wifi or cellular repeaters to handle all the guests. Also .. i noticed people are actually on their phones *more* while in the parks than typical, photos, WDW app, all the other apps to gain notoriety via where you are and what your doing. The things listed above will absolutely kill off your battery.

My Galaxy Edge lasts the entire day w/wifi off and medicore photo taking. W/Verizon as the carrier. Some carriers have well .. better coverage at the parks, by design and contracts.