Pros/Cons of Always on WiFi from new update.

[Glavata]

Can someone weigh in on some of the pros and cons of this update. From my point of view it will actually save battery to have wifi always on in standby mode, but I could be wrong. Initializing a wifi connection costs more energy than to keep it alive in a standby state. I'm a new WP user so I do not know if before for example, you were listening to online radio and locked the phone, would it eventually switch to cellular data or continue on wifi?

Thanks

 

[James8561]

pros: don't have to wait a few seconds after unlock to have wifi. sometimes i forgot this and eat into my data usage while at home >:[ this fix is VERY welcomed and anticpated.

i think radio will use wifi it if you started listening over wifi

 

[EBynum]

Here's what Microsoft has to say about this on the Windows Phone web site:

"If you want your Wi-Fi connection to stay on even when your screen times out, in Wi-Fi settings, tap Advanced, and then select the Keep Wi-Fi on when the screen times out check box. Your phone can then use a Wi-Fi connection even when the screen is off. This uses battery power, though, so your battery life can be shorter compared to when Wi-Fi turns off when the screen times out."

They're saying keeping Wi-Fi on uses more battery power, so that could be considered a con.

 

[ARVI_SD]

isnt how other platform works (keeping the WIFI live) and still battery performs well?

we need to see how much is the different in keeping the WIFI on vs OFF (approx comparison)

 

[ynight]

For me, i dont have my data on all the time, so when the screen timed out i cant receive notifications on time. With the keep wifi on now it is supposed to slove my problem

 

[ARVI_SD]

for example, you were listening to online radio and locked the phone, would it eventually switch to cellular data or continue on wifi?

Thanks

from what i read and experienced - cellular data will be used when display is turned off. unless its actively downloading any content like podcast, updates, etc the WIFI will turn off and make the current open apps use the data

i may not be 100% right.

 

[ynight]

from what i read and experienced - cellular data will be used when display is turned off. unless its actively downloading any content like podcast, updates, etc the WIFI will turn off and make the current open apps use the data

i may not be 100% right.

you are most likely wrong on this. If there's something running that uses wifi, even after the screen timed out, wifi still is on. It goes off only when there's nothing use it

 

[ARVI_SD]

are you sure if the online radio is streaming and it will continue using WIFI ? (when keep my WiFi is Off)

 

[ynight]

are you sure if the online radio is streaming and it will continue using WIFI ? (when keep my WiFi is Off)

99% sure since I do this on music all the time, never tried radio, but that should be same
Sent from Lumia 920

 

[WPmunkey]

I'm pretty sure the WiFi stays on when it is actively being used but I can't remember. I was hoping this issue would fix the Smartglass issue where the app has to reconnect after waking and it takes forever.

 

[EBynum]

I'm still not sure if I would benefit from keeping Wi-Fi on when the screen times out, especially since Microsoft says it consumes more battery. Anyone else have any thoughts on the pros/cons of keeping Wi-Fi on under the lock screen?

 

[joeynox]

Wouldn't having your lte,3g connection on waste more power than WiFi? When I had an iPhone everyone always said WiFi consumes less power than data connection

 

[GomzyRockz]

I dont think it will consume more battery. Previously, when your phone sleeps, the wifi disconnects and your connection goes back to data, so you are still using data, which does consume battery. Honestly, you dont have to be worried either way, battery will be consumed in idle mode, but very less, because you have an option to close applications in sleep mode.

Regarding the update, it is definitely welcome. It is always better for the use to have control. I have a few friends who dont use data at all. They have a 200 mb data connection, and they switch on the flight mode and use google voice and wifi. So, it was increasingly fustrating to see their wifi being disconnected when the phone sleeps.

As for myself, I use my office wifi, but can use it only after I authenticate from the browser. So every time my phone sleeps, I had to authenticate from the browser everytime.

And as I said, I would prefer that the phone uses my wifi during sleep mode than my data connection.

 

[gravage]

In the past, if you started downloading updates from the market while on wifi and the screen turned off, they would stop, because the wifi connection would drop. There is also the issue of your cellular data being consumed for e-mail, notifications, etc. whenever the screen is off (and thus Wifi).

I don't think it will consume MORE battery because the Wifi will now take the place of LTE when it is on. LTE consumes much more battery. Unless Microsoft didn't code the software to prioritize and disable connections that aren't in use. That's how it works on the iPhone and most Android phones. If Wifi is on, the cellular connection is not being used, so idle battery life is actually better.

 

[TK2011]

Of course having WiFi on all the time will consume more battery if you are not actively transferring data. Think about it, you have an extra WiFi radio actively listening to all the packets in the air constantly! Now, if you ARE transferring data, say streaming music, then yes, WiFi will save battery compared to 3G/LTE which requires more transmit power. Problem is people just leave it enabled all the time even when they are not using data actively. During that time, you are wasting more battery.

There are, however, times when always-on-WiFi is handy. Xbox Smartglass is one example because it's annoying having to reconnect WiFi every time.

 

[anon(5399450)]

I was always able to have my Wi-Fi connection always on, even before the update (and I know this because I was able to get push notifications ALL the time even though I always turn data off when at home). So I can say that in terms of battery usage, it does not do much harm, my record so far was keeping the phone going for 3 days with LIGHT usage, and 1 - 1.5 days with normal (medium) usage.

 

[HM02]

Well, I used Android for two years. I always use Wifi when I 'm at home. Cell data uses more battery than having it on wifi. Because with cell data, you're using service and/or searching for signal.
With Wifi on, it's just..on. Once you're connected to your router, that's that. You don't have to worry about connecting or find a signal. (Unless it's a call or something, but that's a given)
Texts come in through wifi. Notifications, etc.

 

[pjs37]

Well at least its optional in WP8. So we can try it on and off and see the difference.
Sent from my RM-820_nam_att_100 using Board Express

 

[Anthony Meluso]

Where I work I get at best one or two bars of edge service. All my apps would update like every 30 minutes but would fail because it would take too long to update. During this time they are consuming battery for the entire time of their update attempt. On the other hand with Wi-Fi connected these update take about 2 seconds, hence saving battery.

 

[gravage]

Well, I used Android for two years. I always use Wifi when I 'm at home. Cell data uses more battery than having it on wifi. Because with cell data, you're using service and/or searching for signal.
With Wifi on, it's just..on. Once you're connected to your router, that's that. You don't have to worry about connecting or find a signal. (Unless it's a call or something, but that's a given)
Texts come in through wifi. Notifications, etc.

Texts do NOT come through wifi (they can only come through the cellular network), but you're spot on about everything else.

When Wifi has a constant connection, it helps battery life. When it's on and not connected, it adds a little drain. I have been using my Note II for a week with no Wifi access and its has been significantly worse on battery than when I leave Wifi on all the time. It has to rely on the LTE connection and that is much harder on the battery.


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