Tag: iPhone

Battery Drain Too Fast? The Solutions Are In Your Phone

Vibration: Motor runs using more power than speaker, though not too much. 
Turn off by going:

Settings -> Sound -> Vibrate when ringing / Settings -> Language & Keyboard -> Haptic feedback or Vibrate on keypress

Brightness: Brightness level, colorful background, and live wallpaper eat more battery. So tone down the brightness, and switch to a static and black background.

Sleep / Screen Off: The longer the screen is on, the more unnecessary battery it uses. Go to Settings -> Display -> Auto-lock and adjust the time.

The 4 Pillars of Connectivity: Mobile Data, Wi-Fi, GPS, and Bluetooth. Turn these off when not in use.

Outdated Apps: At times, update is made to fix bugs or improve functionality that reduces battery usage. Remember to check reviews before update.

Apps Notifications: Apps keep a level of activity in the background to alert you to notifications. Go to Settings -> Notifications -> Pick apps for which you don’t need notifications.

Background Apps: Some of them are silently running in the background. To really dig them out:

Settings -> Application manager -> Installed -> Tap through to see which one has “Force stop” enabled. Remember to not stop those needed by the system.

Widgets: Turn off those that you don’t need.

For iPhones, go to Home screen -> Widgets -> Edit; 

for Android, tap and hold home screen -> Widgets -> Close existing ones on the screen or drag new ones to the screen.

Temperature: High heat may damage your battery, while extreme cold can accelerate  consumption or even stops it temporarily.

Flight Mode: To really go battery survival mode, turn flight mode on. Handy especially while    you’re sleeping. Although it means you’re not able to receive emergency calls.

The Things That Kill Your Battery1. Vibration

Yes, setting your phone on vibrate mode actually drains more than using ringtone. The reason? The motor uses more power compared to speaker. Not much, but a difference is a difference nonetheless. You can turn off vibration by going to:

Settings -> Sound -> Uncheck Vibrate when ringing, or

Settings -> Language & Keyboard -> Uncheck Haptic / Tactile feedback2. Brightness

Both brightness level and colourful background (don’t forget live wallpaper too) will definitely drain your phone.

So if you feel like your phone needs to go on survival mode, lower your brightness and switch to a darker, static background. Preferably black.3. Sleep / Screen Off

“Depriving” your phone of sleep also counts. Not that it dramatically drains your battery (depends on the above factor), but the longer you keep the screen lit, the more unnecessary battery it uses.

Sounds pretty intuitive to me. Anyway, you can adjust the time-till-screen-off by heading to:

Settings -> Display -> Auto-lock

You can tweak the time to best suit your habit.4. Mobile Data (4G), Wi-Fi, GPS, & Bluetooth

Generally, just turn them off when not in use. But for more in-depth info, look below.

i. Mobile Data (4G):

Under the following 2 conditions, it will drain more than usual: i) there isn’t any 4G coverage in your area, ii) constantly crossing between 3G and 4G coverage area. Additionally, you should also switch to 3G when you simply don’t need the speed. Oh, and it consumes more battery than Wi-Fi.

ii. Wi-Fi:

Although its consumption is less than 4G, maintaining a signal still does. It’s even worse in area without Wi-Fi connection: your device will constantly be on the lookout for a network and thus, uses more power.

iii. GPS:

When location service is on, your phone will frequently ping the satellite, and herein lies the power consumption.

iv. Bluetooth:

Newer Bluetooth tech drains lesser battery. But still, there’s consumption.5. The little things about apps: older versions, notifications, and background operationi. Outdated apps:

Starving your apps of updates means you’re not doing your battery a favor. Usually, the developers of OS and apps will fix bugs and improve functions that may reduce battery consumption.

Be that as it may, be sure to ALWAYS check the reviews first before updating—you may never know what lies ahead.ii. Restless Notifications:

The app stores abound with apps that never rest: they always peek their heads out to alert you of whatever’s happening even after you “closed” them. And we can’t think of a finer example than Facebook.

There’s a remedy to this: customizing the apps’ notifications. 

Settings -> Notifications -> Choose from the list of apps whose notifications aren’t worth your attention.iii. Those Stealthy Background Apps:

There’s a garden variety of apps that will run in the background. Oh, those pesky bunch; they are most worthy of the name “vampire” among all.

The thing is, they are tricky too: clearing the RAM can only weed out some, and a good number of them will just restart again. So in comes the other method: going to Application manager in Settings.

In the running (or active) tab, you might see apps that RAM clear failed to wipe off for good. In here, you can manually close the apps. But it doesn’t stop there. You might be surprised at how many are still up and running.

Head to the installed list and try tapping through them; you will find some can still be “Force stop”. Just make sure you don’t stop those essential ones needed by the system.

More on Background Apps:It goes without saying that having more apps running in the background means battery will drop even faster. Whenever you hit home or back out of apps, some will remain mildly active to stay connected to the Internet, alerting you of notifications, and the like. So you can swipe them out or clear RAM to deal with them (though some apps will still restart on its own).However, frequently closing and re-opening apps will result in more battery drain since they need to repeatedly load into the RAM. Hence, you should really consider keeping those apps that you will reuse soon.Another suggestion is to just uninstall those you don’t really need; it’ll save up some space too.

Note: iPhones will automatically close apps that are inactive after a period of time.iv. Vampires in Disguise as Little Fairies (Widgets):

Similarly, having more widgets up will add more load on your battery. If you really need the juice to last, get rid of those you don’t really need.

(iPhone) Go to Home screen -> Swipe till you see widgets -> Scroll down then choose edit -> Add or remove those little fairies to your heart’s content.

(Android) Tap and hold the Home screen -> Tap widgets from the menu that popped out below -> Close the existing one (tap the cross on the widgets already placed on your Home screen) or drag new ones onto the Home screen.

And before we end, some extras for your knowing pleasureTemperature

Exposing your device to extreme ambient (surrounding) temperature isn’t ideal for your battery health. High heat might damage your battery, and the cold might accelerate consumption or if it gets cold enough, stops it entirely.Flight Mode

Getting into flight mode when connectivity isn’t needed, e.g., when you are sleeping, will definitely help in holding the juice. However, that means you’ve shut yourself off from getting any emergency calls.

There you have it: the battery vampires we gathered to help you be a smarter and more conscious smartphone users. As time goes by, we will add more or update the existing ones to ensure you can get the best and updated info as can be.

How to Recover Files From a Broken Phone

Today’s cell phones are filled with photos, videos, contact information, personal information and a host of other data. We often mistakenly assume that this data is completely safe, until one day our phone becomes unusable and it appears to be lost forever.

If you have broken your phone or one of its critical components and are worried that you have lost all the content stored on your device, don’t panic too quickly.

There are actually different ways to recover data from a broken cell phone, whether it is an iPhone or an Android device. Check out the most popular ones in this article.Useful tips for broken phone data recovery

Before taking any of the data recovery steps explained below, there are some things you should know.

First, if your mobile device’s hard drive or SD card was damaged by water or suffered physical damage, the data might not be accessible. However, with basic data recovery tools and techniques, chances are you can recover data from most devices, especially if the storage functions have not been affected.

Before trying anything else, it’s worth checking the iCloud or Google account associated with your cell phone. Automatic backups are always better than data recovery, and most devices automatically back up items like photos, videos and other personal files to a cloud. All you might need to do is go to Google Drive or iCloud using a computer, log in and search for the data you want to recover.

That said, if the data you need has not been backed up automatically, your best option is data recovery using a technique appropriate for the problem plaguing your phone.Different methods of phone data recovery

Not all common phone problems will affect your device in the same way.

For instance, if you’re just having trouble with your screen or home button, finding another way to access the device will usually be enough to recover your data. On the other hand, if your phone is completely unresponsive, you will need to use a computer or a second phone to remotely recover the remaining data. In short, the recovery method you choose should be prioritized based on the problem.Recover data from a broken phone

To recover data from a broken phone with a non-functional screen, you will need to use a second device to extract the data from the SD card or a third-party application.Recover data from an SD card

Android devices such as Samsung, Motorola and Google Pixel cell phones can hold an SD card where music, videos and photos can be saved. However, depending on the version of your Android system and the settings you have chosen, you may even have applications and other data saved.

That may not be everything you want to recover, but it’s often a good start and it only takes four quick steps to recover the data:

1.Remove the SD card – You can usually find your SD card with your SIM card, either in a tray on the side of your device or behind the battery.

2.Insert SD card into another device – You can use a microSD adapter to put your SD card into a laptop or you can transfer it to a new Android device and connect it to a computer with a USB cable.

3.Explore the contents of the SD card – Open Windows File Explorer and find the new drive that contains the data on your SD card.

4.Find the files you need to recover – Search for the folders you need and copy them to your computer for easy access at any time.

Use a third-party application

There are many data recovery applications and software that can help you recover your data. Here are several options:

  • Fone
  • Enigma Recovery
  • DroidKit
  • And many more

However, before you start, keep in mind that the capabilities of these applications are limited and you may lock your phone if the operation is not done correctly. So be careful!

Recover data from a phone with a broken screen

A cracked screen that prevents touch controls from working can render a smartphone basically useless. However, there are ways to get around this and recover your data.

Using software

There are applications that allow you to control your phone through a computer. Once you have control of your damaged phone, you can copy the files to a new safe location.

We recommend the Droid@screen software or the Vysor extension for Chrome. Vysor is convenient because it works for both iPhone and Android devices.

Using a mouse in OTG

If your screen no longer works with touch but still lights up, you may not be able to unlock your phone unless you use an OTG (USB On-The-Go) computer mouse!

The procedure is simple and works for Android devices. You need to connect an OTG mouse to your smartphone, enter your password or recreate your unlock pattern.

Next, disconnect the mouse and connect your phone to your computer via a USB cable. Then simply open Windows File Explorer and copy and paste the files and folders you want to recover into a folder on your PC.

Recover data from an iPhone with a broken home button

Considering the importance of the home button on the iPhones that preceded the iPhone X (iPhone 8, iPhone SE, iPhone 7, etc.), it only makes sense that Apple has a built-in way to use their devices even when the button is broken.

This mode is called “assistive touch” and works by giving you a fixed menu with various options. You can add all sorts of custom settings, but a button to access the home screen will be present by default. Activate this mode and your broken home button will no longer be an issue.

Take steps to avoid emergency data recovery

In conclusion, there are several methods and techniques you can try if you ever need to recover important data from a broken or damaged phone.

However, why not do everything in your power to make sure you won’t have this dilemma? You can avoid these data recovery headaches by making backups on a regular basis.

And if you ever decide to replace your damaged phone, you can avoid paying an exorbitant price for a new device by choosing refurbished phones or used cell phones. At Recycell we offer models as recent as a used iPhone 12 so you can quickly replace your phone without breaking the bank or having to use an outdated device!

Why Does My iPhone Brightness Keep Changing or Dimming?

iPhone features that can affect brightness

If you find that your iPhone brightness keeps changing or dimming unexpectedly, don’t panic! It doesn’t necessarily mean that there’s something wrong with your phone. There are a variety of features that can affect screen brightness. It’s a good idea to check them all before jumping to conclusions.Auto-Brightness

Generally, if your iPhone screen keeps dimming, it’s because Auto-Brightness is turned on. This feature automatically adjusts the brightness of your phone screen based on the surrounding lighting.

If you want to stop your phone from dimming automatically due to this feature, go to Settings –> Accessibility –> Display & Text Size and toggle off Auto-Brightness. You’ll see a warning that turning off Auto-Brightness can affect battery life. This is because leaving your phone on maximum brightness all day will drain the battery faster than allowing it to adjust automatically to the ambient light.Night Shift

If your iPhone screen seems dimmer at night, it may be because you have Night Shift turned on. This feature shifts to warmer tones after sunset (using the clock and geolocation of your phone to ascertain when the sun will set) to help you fall asleep.

Go to Settings –> Display & Brightness –> Night Shift. There, you’ll be able to adjust the settings or turn Night Shift off entirely. You can also turn Night Shift on or off from the Control Center if your iPhone is running iOS 11 or later. Open Control Center by swiping down from the upper right-hand corner if your phone has Face ID, or swiping up from the bottom of your screen if not. Simply press and hold the brightness slider in the Control Center to access the Night Shift button.True Tone

True Tone is a feature that automatically adjusts the colour of your phone’s display based on the ambient light, just like Auto-Brightness does for screen brightness. The colour shift may sometimes make your screen appear dimmer. Go to Settings –> Display & Brightness and check to see whether True Tone is on!Low Power Mode

Low Power Mode is a feature that adjusts a variety of settings, including screen brightness, in order to conserve battery life. You can easily check whether your iPhone is in Low Power Mode by taking a look at the battery icon in the top right-hand corner. If it’s yellow, that means that Low Power Mode is on.

Low Power Mode will automatically turn off when your iPhone is charged to 80% or more, but if you’d like to turn it off manually, go to Settings –> Battery and toggle it off.Reduce White Point

Reduce White Point is a feature that lowers the intensity of bright colours on your screen, making the display easier on the eyes. Go to Settings –> Accessibility –> Display & Text Size to access Reduce White Point. If you don’t want to turn it off completely, you can drag the slider further to the left to lessen its effect.Common iPhone problems that can affect screen brightness

If none of the features listed above are causing your screen dimming problem, your iPhone may be experiencing a software or hardware issue. If that’s the case, there are a few simple fixes you can try before taking your phone to a professional for repair. If none of these solutions work, it may be a sign that you need a new phone.Software glitches

Whenever we’re having trouble with a device, the first piece of advice we usually hear is “try turning it off and on again.” While it may seem silly, a simple restart can actually resolve many common phone problems! Your screen brightness issues may be caused by a temporary glitch that can be resolved by restarting your iPhone.

If that doesn’t work, try updating your phone. If a software glitch is the culprit, there may be a fix for it in the latest update.Overheating

iPhones are programmed to dim automatically when they get too hot. This is a built-in feature from Apple that is designed to protect the phone’s internal components and prevent hardware damage, because the brighter a display is, the more heat it generates.

If your phone is getting too hot, it’s important to cool it down and figure out why it’s overheating. Possible causes include running power-intensive apps like mobile games or video players, having too many apps running in the background, downloads and installations and leaving your phone out in the sun. Try putting your phone in a cool place out of the sun, taking off the case and letting it rest for a while. You can even turn it off to try to speed up the cooling process.