New research tool can improve battery life by 16%

Battery life is among the biggest concerns for smartphone users ever since screens started growing and technology within our cellphones evolved. So far our best solution is providing a larger battery, but until a new type of energy source shows up there are also plenty of software improvements that can be applied.

Did you know about 46% of our smartphone battery dies while the screen is off? This is a surprising number, especially considering the display is usually the most influential battery hog. All things considered, a phone should be able to spend close to zero energy once the phone goes to sleep, but applications keep waking our phones to perform certain processes.

This is a good thing, as background processes are important for keeping us connected. The true issue rises when bugs or incorrect use of wakelocks keep the phone off its sleep mode for extended periods of time. As it turns out, these rogue applications usually make for 28.9 percent of that battery drainage that occurs while the screen is off.

How do we solve this issue? While we can’t completely kill the problem just yet, Purdue University researchers have created a tool dubbed “Hush”. In essence, this software tool learns from your smartphone habits in order to improve your battery life without sacrificing your experience. It handles background processes more efficiently, so to speak.

Hush closes applications that may hurt your battery life while the screen is off, but it won’t kill every (or any) app. It will keep your most frequently used services alive, so that your favorite software always runs at its fullest. Of course, it also allows necessary processes to operate, including a WiFi beacon and cellular paging, which are essential to your communications.

After all is said and done, Purdue researchers have found that their tool can save an average of 15.7% in battery life. This may not sound like a breakthrough discovery, but it will certainly open doors to new software improvements for battery efficiency. Not to mention, you can do a lot with nearly 16% battery!

Hush is now available for download, if you are up for the challenge. The involved Purdue researchers have made the software available on GitHub for free, so have at it. And don’t forget to come back and share your results!