Battery Life Between Band 1 and 2

[WhiteNiteLite]

I've seen this mentioned a few times in various places and the response seems to be mixed, so I wanted to create a dedicated thread just for comparing battery life between the first and second Band.

Are you seeing improved battery life, reduced, or is it about the same? Personally I'm seeing much poorer battery life on my Band 2, even without ever turning on GPS or other battery consuming features.

I was able to get close to two days with my Band 1 with watch mode on. On my Band 2, if I keep watch mode on I go from 100% in the morning to the 20% range by night. Switching watch mode to rotate buys me some more time, but still definitely not on the level of the Band 1. Heck, even sleep tracking uses about the double the power my Band 1 did.

What's your experience been like for those of you that have both Bands?

 

[Nate Silver]

I haven't really paid that much attention to it, since I've always charged mine daily in the morning, but on just casual observation it seems pretty close to the same. Charged my Band 2 this morning, and its at 60 percent now, and that's with an hour activity on the trainer today. Haven't done any gps activities with it yet.

 

[EMitchell]

I've seen this mentioned a few times in various places and the response seems to be mixed, so I wanted to create a dedicated thread just for comparing battery life between the first and second Band.

Are you seeing improved battery life, reduced, or is it about the same? Personally I'm seeing much poorer battery life on my Band 2, even without ever turning on GPS or other battery consuming features.

I was able to get close to two days with my Band 1 with watch mode on. On my Band 2, if I keep watch mode on I go from 100% in the morning to the 20% range by night. Switching watch mode to rotate buys me some more time, but still definitely not on the level of the Band 1. Heck, even sleep tracking uses about the double the power my Band 1 did.

What's your experience been like for those of you that have both Bands?

I'm seeing the same as you. I left my watch mode on for my Band 1, and could get around 2 days on a charge. I set watch mode to ON on my Band 2 and didn't get quite 1 day. I've dropped the display brightness to Low to see if it makes a difference.

 

[driedl]

Battery life seems significantly shorter to me. I went from watch mode with band 1 to rotate with B2 and I'm still finding I need more time on the charger. We did go from 2 batteries to 1 and the screen is bigger but it's still a disappointment.

 

[alphacc82]

I don't have a band 1 so I cant compare it to that, but battery of the band 2 is VERY disappointing and no where close to what is advertised. Its possible for me to get close to 24 hours, but the battery will be practically dead at that point(the red alert that i need to charge). Note, I do not use GPS and I have turned off a lot of notifications. I use it for ~30 minute generic workout and have the watch mode setting on.

I was hoping for something I could charge every other day, but this doesn't seem to be it unfortunately. The only way I could see getting 48 hours is if you turn everything off and only intend to use it as a fitbit(step counter)...

 

[HSolo]

I had several posts and observations on the thread/poll about "Rotate On". In summary, I am seeing the same battery life as I saw with Band 1 (if watch mode is off). See below:

I agree that battery life has been less than expected. On the original Band, I turned watch mode off because it greatly affected my battery life. With it off on the original Band, I would get between 48 and 60 hours between charges. I have the Rotate On with my Band 2, and battery life seems much worse than my original Band. I will try turning the option off in a few days, and see if battery life increases to what I used to experience with my original Band.

I had "rotate on" from when I got the Band 2 on Friday until Monday evening when I charged it and switch the clock off. My observations:
With "Rotate" on, I was getting a little over 24 hours between charges. Since I switched it off, I am going on 38 hours now, and battery is at 45%.....which is about what I was getting with Band 1.
In fairness to my test, I will switch it back on to "Rotate" tonight after a full charge, because modern batteries tend to get better after a few charges, and check my results again.

To report back on my battery usage without "Rotate On" (no watch mode at all). 100% on Monday evening, then normal usage of checking time and emails during the day, tracking sleep, and using the smart alarm......was at 25% same time last night. So 48 hours from fully charged to 25%. That gives me about the same as Band 1 with similar usage (48 to 60 hours between charges).

 

[WhiteNiteLite]

I had several posts and observations on the thread/poll about "Rotate On". In summary, I am seeing the same battery life as I saw with Band 1 (if watch mode is off). See below:

I agree that battery life has been less than expected. On the original Band, I turned watch mode off because it greatly affected my battery life. With it off on the original Band, I would get between 48 and 60 hours between charges. I have the Rotate On with my Band 2, and battery life seems much worse than my original Band. I will try turning the option off in a few days, and see if battery life increases to what I used to experience with my original Band.

I had "rotate on" from when I got the Band 2 on Friday until Monday evening when I charged it and switch the clock off. My observations:
With "Rotate" on, I was getting a little over 24 hours between charges. Since I switched it off, I am going on 38 hours now, and battery is at 45%.....which is about what I was getting with Band 1.
In fairness to my test, I will switch it back on to "Rotate" tonight after a full charge, because modern batteries tend to get better after a few charges, and check my results again.

To report back on my battery usage without "Rotate On" (no watch mode at all). 100% on Monday evening, then normal usage of checking time and emails during the day, tracking sleep, and using the smart alarm......was at 25% same time last night. So 48 hours from fully charged to 25%. That gives me about the same as Band 1 with similar usage (48 to 60 hours between charges).

Thanks for that insight. I was afraid that this might be the case. I use my Band also as a watch, so I'd really like the time to always be a glance away. Rotate mode is already a bit frustrating since it's no longer instant, but at least it's hands free. I'd really like to avoid turning watch mode off completely.

It's interesting because I thought that AMOLED screens consume little energy, especially compared to lit TFT screens like what was on the Band 1. Wasn't this also reason why Nokia originally made Glance for their OLED phones only at first, since it could display the time without needing to light the entire screen and drain the battery rapidly? It makes me wonder how the Band 1 was able to keep its screen on all the time and still last almost 2 days, and the Band 2 can barely make it through a single day unless the screen is always off. It makes me wonder if there's something else behind the scenes that's actually sucking the energy?

 

[balefire]

Band 2 has horrible life compared to my Band 1. Same settings. Watch always on. Dim auto set. GPS on.

Band 1 Could easily last 36-48 hrs with average use.
Band 2 can't even last 1 day. Numerous times it has died mid day.

My Band 2 has even died prematurely. When I plugged it in, it immediately said 24%.
My Band 2 went from 100% to 55% in 8 hours overnight sleep.

Thoroughly disappointed.

 

[HSolo]

Thanks for that insight. I was afraid that this might be the case. I use my Band also as a watch, so I'd really like the time to always be a glance away. Rotate mode is already a bit frustrating since it's no longer instant, but at least it's hands free. I'd really like to avoid turning watch mode off completely.

It's interesting because I thought that AMOLED screens consume little energy, especially compared to lit TFT screens like what was on the Band 1. Wasn't this also reason why Nokia originally made Glance for their OLED phones only at first, since it could display the time without needing to light the entire screen and drain the battery rapidly? It makes me wonder how the Band 1 was able to keep its screen on all the time and still last almost 2 days, and the Band 2 can barely make it through a single day unless the screen is always off. It makes me wonder if there's something else behind the scenes that's actually sucking the energy?

I intend running another test with "Rotate On" from Sunday night. I have to wait until then because I have a scheduled run tonight and Sunday, with golf on Saturday, so it wouldn't be an "apples-to-apples" comparison due to GPS usage.

As for "something else behind the scenes that's actually sucking the energy?". The UV on Band 1 was only used / accessed manually by the user. On Band 2, it seems to measure it at all times. Could this be having an extra drain on battery? I spent most of my test from Monday indoors, yet I would have been outside a lot more during my first use of the Band 2 over the weekend. Maybe as soon as any UV is detected, it keeps the sensor constantly active which drains more battery than Band 1's manual UV activation?

 

[poit57]

I used watch mode on the Band 1 and normally charged while in the shower every morning. I normally left the house with it showing 80% charge and could make it through the day and tracking my sleep at night with no issues (if I didn't track run with GPS).

With the Band 2, I'm using the watch mode with rotate on. Not only does the battery seem to drain faster, but it also seems to charge more slowly. I've had to bring the cable with me and charge on my 40+ minute drive to work the last two days, then I throw plug it in again in the evenings to make sure I have enough battery left for sleep tracking.

Last night, something weird happened. I plugged the cable into my HTPC in the living room to charge while I watched TV. I thought it was showing that it was charging, but when I was ready to go to bed, the Band was completely dead. The HTPC has the same internal components as my productivity PC where I usually charge the Band, so all I can think is that I mistakenly plugged the cable into a front panel USB port that was not connected to the motherboard.

 

[WhiteNiteLite]

As for "something else behind the scenes that's actually sucking the energy?". The UV on Band 1 was only used / accessed manually by the user. On Band 2, it seems to measure it at all times. Could this be having an extra drain on battery? I spent most of my test from Monday indoors, yet I would have been outside a lot more during my first use of the Band 2 over the weekend. Maybe as soon as any UV is detected, it keeps the sensor constantly active which drains more battery than Band 1's manual UV activation?

That is a good point. Plus come to think of it, there is also the barometer that's probably always running as well which probably causes a hit on the battery. But I suppose we need to spend more time looking at our usage scenarios to truly see if there's something specific that's the culprit or not. Please keep us posted on how things go this weekend!

 

[HSolo]

That is a good point. Plus come to think of it, there is also the barometer that's probably always running as well which probably causes a hit on the battery. But I suppose we need to spend more time looking at our usage scenarios to truly see if there's something specific that's the culprit or not. Please keep us posted on how things go this weekend!

I certainly will. I wasn't intending to post a "between tests" result, but figured I would since I used some GPS last night which I didn't on the last test, and results have been similar. 100% charged at about 9pm Wednesday night. Used it without any watch mode, normal email and text message checking, and occasional hitting power button to see time. Two sleeps and two alarms, and one hour of GPS for a run last night (no GPS on previous test). Currently at 40%. So from 100% to 40% in 36 hours with normal usage, no watch, and one hour GPS run. Similar to my experiences with Band 1. I will go back to "Rotate On" from Sunday evening and report on usage.

 

[uselessrobot]

I got a low battery warning after roughly 36 hours of use. I had the Band set to Rotate On, used GPS for about 45 minutes, received about 20-30 texts and occasionally tinkered with it. It's clearly better than the first gen where similar use would result in a low battery warning by the end of the first day (so under 18 hours).

I've since turned off Rotate On because I found it to be way too sensitive. It's not quite as bad at my desk, but the clock was constantly turning on while I was driving.

 

[dcoaster]

For those with poor battery life, what size band do you have? There is a possibility that the small band has a smaller battery than medium/large.

 

[DroidUser42]

This is disappointing. I still have the B1 and use it with watch mode on. I recharge every day and it's around 50-60% when I connect it to the charger. If B2 can't last 24 hours, forget it. That negates all the advantages of the 2.

 

[poit57]

I don't know if the complete battery drain 2 nights ago helped, but I finished yesterday with a well-charged battery. By the time I left for work after placing my Band 2 on the charger this morning for about 15 minutes, I had 99% charge. Nearing the end of my work day 9 hours later, it looks like I still have about 3/4 of the battery remaining. The first two days of usage, I was closer to 1/4 charge at this point in the day.

 

[DroidUser42]

I've heard that batteries may need a full exercise to calibrate the charge controller and that they can get better after the first few cycles. Maybe this is just "break in" issues.

 

[majortom1981]

I have the band 2.I did a run/walk and forgot to shut it off. It lasted 5 hours and 20 minutes on GPS before powering off. I think that's an hour more then the first band.

 

[balefire]

For those with poor battery life, what size band do you have? There is a possibility that the small band has a smaller battery than medium/large.

I have a small.
Any way to verify a battery size differences?

 

[anon(8555314)]

I think my battery performance has gone up after the first 4-5 days. I also replaced the UV tile on my band a few days ago, because let's face it, in Wisconsin we need all the daylight exposure we can get for the next 5 months.

Two examples, did a full charge and went on a 2:15 gps bike ride and had 58% left when I got back. Second example, charged this morning while in the shower. It wasn't 100% after charging. Not sure how much, but I'd guess 80-90%. I wore it for 12.5 hours and now have 70%. I also used it three times for 40 min of GPS bike rids and a full day of usage, and never ran out at the end of the day.

To those getting less than a full day, try experimenting with different tiles swapped out, esp uv, and see if it makes any difference.