Omnia battery problems

As I stated, my battery life also pretty much sucks - although, there might be some truth in the full charge discharge cycles. At first my phone lasted no more than a day on standby...now, after about 3 weeks of use, I'm on about day and a half and used Wifi to email, browse a lot, smsd, phoned and it didnt lose too much overnight ... so maybe it does get better? (I must say, I never let it discharge fully tho, when it notifies of low battery, I just plug it in - might cause shorter battery life over long term I guess)
 
Batt Omnia

scuzzy said:
As I stated, my battery life also pretty much sucks - although, there might be some truth in the full charge discharge cycles. At first my phone lasted no more than a day on standby...now, after about 3 weeks of use, I'm on about day and a half and used Wifi to email, browse a lot, smsd, phoned and it didnt lose too much overnight ... so maybe it does get better? (I must say, I never let it discharge fully tho, when it notifies of low battery, I just plug it in - might cause shorter battery life over long term I guess)
Click to expand...

I agree. Some patience I guess we need to have in the beginning... This smartphone Omnia is far the best I've ever seen and worked with! Wow! How smooth everything, the movies, the Gps (exact and quick), easy to adopt ect... The battery is still to "run in" of course. I am actually on my 7th day... and still running on the 3rd charge :)
So I just don't understand why I make a fuss about it. Perhaps because actually everything else on that masterpiece is so perfect that I can't argue. As I finish with my 8th round of discharge & recharge cycle I hope nothing more to add than..., this is "Omnia" :cool:
 
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scuzzy said:
I also experience the same battery problems - no longer than 24 hours. And nope, I dont play with it, it just dies all by itself. Think I got the same bad batch than pjmyburg got.

@pjmyburg - you got yours swapped out yet?
Click to expand...

Hi guys

Thought I should let you guys know - after a few weeks of arguing, Vodacom gave me a brand new Omnia. With the new Omnia I am currently on my third day with just one charge and still have 2 bars left on my battery (out of 5). I did not treat this phone any differently than I did the first one and have really been using it a lot. The firmware version on this phone is the same as my previous Omnia, except that it is a different country's release (BUHH1 instead of JBHH1).

Hope the rest of you having battery problems get yours sorter out as well - this phone's battery is amazing and you shouldn't settle for anything less!

Regards
 
Newby to this thread and to my Omnia ( received it yesterday afternoon from Vodacsomething in CPT). Battery life ... what battery life? ... fully charged at 16h00 and off at about 23h00 and no browsing / mail / WiFi etc ...

Have read through a lot of threads and there talk about ROM downloads and flashing the phone ... I know I shouldn't ask stooopid questions, but I get the feeling these are related to battery life ...

How do I check my Firmware?
 
TomA said:
Newby to this thread and to my Omnia ( received it yesterday afternoon from Vodacsomething in CPT). Battery life ... what battery life? ... fully charged at 16h00 and off at about 23h00 and no browsing / mail / WiFi etc ...

Have read through a lot of threads and there talk about ROM downloads and flashing the phone ... I know I shouldn't ask stooopid questions, but I get the feeling these are related to battery life ...

How do I check my Firmware?
Click to expand...

Hmmm, thats not cool!

You can check your firmware version by going to Start -> Settings -> System -> Version. I don't recommend flashing your ROM as this will most probably void your warranty.

There are a few things to keep in mind in terms of battery usage:

* Some Windows Mobile phones do not disconnect data connections when you close your browser or whatever initiated the connection (the Omnia is guilty of this). This data connection that is kept alive can quickly drain your battery if you don't disconnect it after you're done, but won't cost you money as no data is transfered. To kill it, tap the connection icon at the top and tap disconnect.

* Running programs in the background also uses battery even though you don't see them. Every now and again, open the task manager and end all running processes (once again a Windows Mobile problem). A shortcut to the task manager is to hold the menu button down for a few seconds.

* Turning off Wifi, aGPS, HSDPA and 3G will also extend your battery life. I personaly prefer better battery life over faster data speeds, but that depends on you. Most of these settings should be pretty straight forward to find, but 3G is hidden away pretty good. To switch off 3G go to Start -> Settings -> Personal -> Phone -> More (the last tab on the right) -> Band Selection (Get settings) and then choose GSM 900/1800.

* Also, enable the power saving mode under Start -> Settings -> System -> Battery.

If none of this solves your problem and you still struggle with your battery after a few charge cycles, I recommend you go chat to someone at Vodacom.

Regards
 
Thanks for your reply !

pjmyburg said:
You can check your firmware version by going to Start -> Settings -> System -> Version. I don't recommend flashing your ROM as this will most probably void your warranty.
Click to expand...

Version is i900XXHH1/JBHH1 ... am checking if this is the latest ... but how?

I found your comment below on this post ... The firmware version on this phone is the same as my previous Omnia, except that it is a different country's release (BUHH1 instead of JBHH1).
hmmm ... seems a compelling argument to change it or have it changed ....Only through VodaCare?

pjmyburg said:
Some Windows Mobile phones do not disconnect data connections when you close your browser or whatever initiated the connection (the Omnia is guilty of this). This data connection that is kept alive can quickly drain your battery if you don't disconnect it after you're done, but won't cost you money as no data is transfered. To kill it, tap the connection icon at the top and tap disconnect.
Click to expand...

Yes, I have noticed that each time the phone "wakes up" after clicking on the Power button, the data connection opens up ... have diabled 3G so it's Edge that opens and keeps running .. is there not a default to kill this and open on request?

Else ... what a phone .. i think.
 
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TomA said:
Version is i900XXHH1/JBHH1 ... am checking if this is the latest ... but how?

I found your comment below on this post ... The firmware version on this phone is the same as my previous Omnia, except that it is a different country's release (BUHH1 instead of JBHH1).
hmmm ... seems a compelling argument to change it or have it changed ....Only through VodaCare?
Click to expand...

I am not sure which firmware is the latest, but I have heard differing opinions for each of the firmware versions. Just a note regarding the firmware I mentioned: My PDA firmware is also i900XXHH1/JBHH1, but my Phone firmware is BUHH1, so just check your phone firmware as well (both are specified under version). If needed, Vodacare should be able to flash your ROM for you, but I have heard it can take quite a while.

Regards
 
@TomA - My advice is to go to Vodacare before your 7 day swop out period expires, and just have them check out the battery - I had the same issues and never went, and I'm regretting it.
Although, following all the advice pjmyburg gave on saving the battery life def does help. However, I still only get about a day to day and half...
I think the latest ROM is in the HJ3 singapore ROM which sorts out some known issues - a person can just download and install it via ActiveSync from Samsung's website. I dont know if it voids the warranty though...

But like you said, what a phone ;)
 
Thanks - will give it until Friday and then go past a Vodasomething ...
 
Well ... the phone was charged to full yesterday at about 12:00 noon and sitting on 1 bar right now ... so, not even 24 hours ... all battery saving techniques employed .... 3 bars going to bed and 1 bar this morning ....

I haven't even dared loading the GPS yet .... although itching to ...

:mad:
<grumpy>
 
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TomA said:
Well ... the phone was charged to full yesterday at about 12:00 noon and sitting on 1 bar right now ... so, not even 24 hours ... all battery saving techniques employed .... 3 bars going to bed and 1 bar this morning ....

:mad:
<grumpy>
Click to expand...

sounds like a real battery fault, you should at least get what the specs are saying
 
TomA said:
Well ... the phone was charged to full yesterday at about 12:00 noon and sitting on 1 bar right now ... so, not even 24 hours ... all battery saving techniques employed .... 3 bars going to bed and 1 bar this morning ....

I haven't even dared loading the GPS yet .... although itching to ...

:mad:
<grumpy>
Click to expand...

Something is definitely not right - I think you got one from the same batch as my first Omnia. I took my current Omnia off charge at 22:00 on Tuesday (only the phone's second charge cycle) and now, 36 hours later, the phone is still showing all 5 bars. Admittedly I do use all my power saving tips myself, but I also do use Wifi, GPS and make calls quite frequently.

I would really go speak to Vodacom right about now if I were you. It took me a few weeks to get mine swopped out, but they eventually did.

Hope everything works out!

Regards
 
UPDATE .. got hold of my Vodasomething store who said "Bring the phone back and we'll give you a new one" ... hmmm ... don't want that, just want a new battery... "No Sir, can't do that" ...
:mad:

Called VodaCare in Green Point and spoke to Darryl who was going to 'investigate' the dud battery story with his Product Manager in JNB and get back to me ....

I wait with bated breath ... ( an low battery power )

:confused:
 
I agree, just take the new one while you still can - I am not entirely convinced my problems was with the battery. My old phone felt slower as well, but that could just be my imagination.
 
cool ... will probably do that .... might be worth it ... will give Darryl a chance to get back to me with his and the "Product Managers" comments ...

Let's see - will keep you posted.
 
Got my new phone ... let's see over the weekend ... hold thumbs!
 
Cool! Remember the 16 hour initial charge - its very important for Lithium Ion batteries!

Thumbs are being held...
 
pjmyburg said:
Cool! Remember the 16 hour initial charge - its very important for Lithium Ion batteries!

Thumbs are being held...
Click to expand...


Actually the 16 hour initial charge is a waste of time with a lithium ion battery. In fact the thing that damages lithium ion batteries the most is being held at maximum voltage too long - which is what happens when you give them a 16 hour charge. Just charge it till it's full and use it as normal.
 
UPDATE .... second charge and 24 hours later we're on 4 out of 5 bars ... me thinks that the problem has been sorted with the new phone and new battery ...!

Now I can sit back and enjoy the phone without stressing about when the battery runs out ...

Thanks for the input to all!

:D
 
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