Android
How to Fix Bad Nexus Android 6.0 Battery Life
If you’re running into Nexus Android Marshmallow battery life problems you’re in the right place. Here we’ll show you how to fix bad Android 6.0 or Android 6.0.1 battery life on Nexus 6, Nexus 5, Nexus 7, and more.
On September 29th, Google confirmed plans to roll out the Nexus Android 6.0 Marshmallow update to Nexus users on October 5th. On October 5th, Google kept its promise and started the Android 6.0 Marshmallow release for Nexus 6, Nexus 5, Nexus 7 2013, Nexus 9, and Nexus Player.
In December Google rolled out Android 6.0.1 which brings new features and fixes to Nexus devices. More recently Google rolled out a February security update. That update is still rolling out which also means that we expect complaints about problems to pick up in the days and weeks ahead.
Nexus Android 6.0 problems continue to emerge and they include complaints about bad Nexus Android 6.0.1 battery life. This isn’t surprising.
Abnormal battery drain is a common software problem and it always shows up for Nexus users after an Android update’s release date
Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow battery issues are currently isolated but do we expect them to grow as more people download the Android 6.0 or Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow update on their Nexus smartphone or tablet.
How to Fix Bad Nexus Marshmallow Battery Life
We want to help you solve your bad Nexus Android 6.0 or Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow battery life problems.
This guide delivers help to get better battery life for Google’s Nexus 6, Nexus 6x, Nexus 5x, Nexus 5, Nexus 7 2013, and Nexus 9.
Find Apps Killing Your Battery
If you start noticing weird battery drain on your Nexus phone or tablet, the first thing you’re going to want do is start yelling at Google is check your applications. While it’s easy to blame Google and Android 6.0 for your problems, there’s a chance it’s a rogue app that’s hogging your Nexus’ resources.
The first place you’re going to want to look is the Battery section of your device’s Settings. Android 6.0 Marshmallow comes with a powerful battery usage tool that will allow you to keep track of your apps and services.
The operating system will break down how much battery an app or service is using. Marshmallow’s battery usage tool breaks it down even further than Lollipop and allows you to monitor features like the camera and flashlight.
This will allow you to track down applications that might be using the camera too much. Snapchat is one potential culprit. Keep an eye on what’s draining your battery and how it’s draining your battery and then make adjustments. Disabling permissions inside of an app (camera, location) could help prevent drain.
If you can’t figure it out, you’ll want to try reinstalling the application that’s causing problems. This has worked for us, and many other Android users in the past, and it’s worth a shot if you’ve been able to pinpoint the app causing trouble.
If the app is still acting up after the reinstall, you might need to find an alternative or better yet, alert the developer to the problem.
If you’re confident that it’s an app killing your power but you can’t figure out which one it is, try booting into Safe Mode. Safe Mode will disable third-party applications and that will allow you to narrow your search. Here’s how you boot the boot your Nexus into Safe Mode:
- Ensure your device’s screen is on, then press & hold the Power button.
- Touch & hold the Power off option in the dialog box.
- Touch OK in the following dialog to start safe mode.
(One other note: Use apps like Google Maps and Waze sparingly. They have a tendency to kill your battery life.)
Restart Your Nexus & Do It Regularly
If you haven’t restarted your Nexus smartphone or tablet in awhile, try restarting it to see if that helps. Hold down the power button and then hold it on again to power it back on.
You shouldn’t let your device shut off on its own more than a few times a month. Keep it charged, restart it on occasion, and your battery life could benefit.
Disable Unnecessary Services
If your apps are functioning properly and a simple restart doesn’t do the trick, try disabling unnecessary services on your Nexus phone or tablet. Disabling connections and other services when you aren’t using them could save you some battery life.
We highly recommend shutting off Wi-Fi connectivity, Bluetooth, NFC, GPS, and cellular data when you don’t need them turned on. You can turn those off from the Nexus’ quick settings menu or you can turn them off from regular Settings menu.
If you’re in a poor service area, try flipping on Airplane Mode. Airplane Mode will kill all of your device’s settings but it could prevent drain.
When your phone or tablet is searching hard for a connection, it can suck up a ton of battery life. That’s something to keep in mind if you notice that your device is struggling to gain a connection.
Manage Your Screen
Start managing your display.
Your Nexus features sensors that help it determine the appropriate brightness level. Sometimes the sensors work perfectly, sometimes they don’t.
Try shutting auto brightness off. To make this happen, go into Settings > Display and flip off Adaptive Brightness. You’ll need to manually adjust your screen’s brightness but that is very easy to do via the toggle in the Quick Settings pull down menu.
You can always switch Adaptive Brightness back on if you don’t want to deal with manually adjusting the brightness of the screen.
Try Using Another Launcher
You could also try using another launch. The Google Play Store is full of choices though the Nova Launcher is probably our favorite. Give it, or another launcher, a shot. You might notice some improvements. You can always go back if you don’t think it’s having a big effect on your battery life.
Clear Your Cache Partition
If none of those work, you can take some more drastic steps towards fixing your bad Nexus Android 6.0 or Android 6.0.1 battery life. One of those steps is clearing the cache partition.
This has had a positive effect for many Nexus users in the past and it’s worth a shot if a fast fix doesn’t work. Here’s how to clear your cache partition:
- Press and hold Power and Volume Down buttons simultaneously until you see something other than Google on the screen.
- You should see a large arrow at the top of the screen.
- Tap Volume Down repeatedly until you see Recovery in the arrow. Then tap the Power button.
- You should see an android on his back, chest open with a red triangle and exclamation mark.
- While holding Power button tap Volume Up once then release Power.
- You should now see a list of items at top of screen.
- Tap Volume Down until the item to erase or wipe the cache partition is highlighted. Then tap Power button to initiate.
- Status messages will appear at the bottom of the screen. Be patient because it can take 10-15 minutes to complete. When done restart the Nexus.
It’s an involved process so you should set aside some time to get it complete.
Downgrade to Another Version of Android
If that doesn’t work, you could try downgrading to another version of Android. We recently put together some instructions on how to do this and it could help you if your Android Marshmallow battery life leaves something to be desired.
Factory Reset Your Nexus
If nothing works, you can try factory resetting your Nexus. This will wipe everything from your phone or tablet so it should only be used in dire circumstances after a backup of your precious files and data has been made.
Google’s put together an extensive guide that outlines the proper way to factor reset Nexus smartphones and tablets. We recommend heading over there to take a look at the information before you take the plunge and factory reset your Nexus.
Other Resources
If nothing works, you can contact Google about a potential replacement. If you’re under warranty, you might be able to get the company to send you a new device.
Before you do that though, try tracking down another fix. Google’s Nexus Help Forums are a great place to start and there are tons of helpful users on XDA-Developers. Take a look at those if none of these tips and fixes work.
Your Nexus Android 6.0 Marshmallow Release Date | |||||||||||
 | |||||||||||
Today is the first Android 6.0 Marshmallow release date for Nexus users. But unless you install it manually, there's a very good chance you won't see the update arrive for your Nexus 5, Nexus 6, Nexus 9, Nexus 7, or Nexus Player. While it would be nice if Google rolled out Android 6.0 to everyone at the same time, that's not how Google roll outs work. Predicting your exact Nexus Android 6.0 release date is going to be close to impossible. So is predicting your Android 6.0 Marshmallow release time. Android updates can appear at all hours of the day. We've gotten prompts at 8:30AM and we've gotten them at 11PM. Updates roll out randomly in stages and Google's already confirmed Android 6.0 will follow standard procedure. If you're not familiar with Google's Nexus Android roll out process, here's a Google engineer describing the roll out process in great detail. You're going to need to remain patient and check your device a couple of times a day. Google's Android roll outs typically take a few weeks so it could be a few days or even a few weeks before you see the prompt for Android 6.0. | |||||||||||
| |||||||||||
mcwong
10/13/2015 at 4:12 am
Updated my nexus 5 few days ago, battery life on stand by last for 3 to 4 days on full charge. No noticeable battery drain, in fact battery life has never been better!
Valery
05/17/2016 at 7:38 am
what version of android you use?
thank you.
Nexus 5 owner
10/14/2015 at 1:55 am
Updated my nexus5 a few days ago to android marshmallow. Battery life is drastically reduced.
With light use i can only get 6 hours of my device now.
Seems the biggest energy drainer is the android system itself..
Hoping google will fix this fast!
Stefan
12/03/2015 at 1:01 am
Just wait until next load cycle. I also had the problems with massive battery drain in few hours only after recharging my Nexus 7 tablet. I killed all apps (have only very few of them in regular use anyhow), deleted all cache *and* data contents, restarted the tablet and got the usual 7 day capacity back – until I recharged the tablet just yesterday to 100% again. Today in the morning, after 14 hours, where the tablet was in sleep mode only overnight, I was surprised to see the battery at 30% level with remaining time calculated for a few hours only! WTF?
The battery settings show almost nothing unusual *except* for mobile services (I have the LTE version, but no SIM card installed). The app or OS function to search for mobile cells is active *all the time* despite the fact that I am not using it and I even have no SIM card installed. I suspect this to be one reason – at least on my Nexus 7 – for battery drain in only a very few hours.
It is too bad that there is no (at least no documented) way to turn off the mobile search function if one has no SIM installed. I did go back to use WiFi only, since mobile bandwidth is a magnitude worser than WiFi in my local network with (also slow, but much better than mobile) ADSL.
Jesse McDonald
07/08/2016 at 6:59 pm
RE: “It is too bad that there is no (at least no documented) way to turn off the mobile search function if one has no SIM installed.”
To disable the cellular connection, put the device in “Airplane Mode”. This will turn off all the radios. After you enable Airplane Mode you can re-enable WiFi and Bluetooth.
Chris Foote
10/15/2015 at 12:55 am
Thanks, your first suggestion of checking app battery usage lead me to find that an app I just use for one widget uses 24% of my battery.
Hussain khan
10/16/2015 at 11:30 am
My aq4501 very poor battery life after updating on marshmallow
Louis
10/15/2015 at 12:23 pm
Battery life is a terrible on my N5 sind I updated to Marshmallow. 5-8h for Standard use, I do not get through a day. Seems WIFI is eating up the battery. Very strange.
You might want to update you article as I do not think that Apple will fix errors: “…of any Android 6.0 bug fix updates that Apple’s got planned”. But it is nice laugh :)
Kyle Ruggles (@kyleruggles)
10/19/2015 at 9:12 am
Wifi is eating up my battery, I checked everything…
Max
10/20/2015 at 7:00 pm
“We want to help you solve your bad Nexus Android 6.0 battery life issues ahead of any Android 6.0 bug fix updates that Apple’s got planned.” – Apple?
Gugu
10/21/2015 at 7:58 pm
Just updated to android 6 on nexus 5. Wi-Fi is using 40% of battery. What the heck Google? Again?
Adam Gordon
10/23/2015 at 8:03 am
LOL@ Gugu.. yeah, I caught that too.. not impressed with this persons write up. XDA did a much better job and explains why people would be having this problem.
Kartik
10/25/2015 at 5:40 am
I upgraded to 6.0 and an unknown app called 10026 is eating a lot of battery. There is no such app in my app list, I also tried reboot. Also phone performance is same, it is not a malware too it seems. Unable to get more details about the process.
Martin
10/26/2015 at 1:45 am
With my NEXUS 5 battary life was reduced after the update to Android 6. Totally battery drain.
Loses 70% of battery over night. The Wifi battery usage is upon 50%.
Nahasca
10/26/2015 at 9:54 am
Upgraded to 6.0 couple of days back. WiFi using 75% of battery. :-). Never had any issues before.
malay pandey
10/31/2015 at 12:40 am
man! tried all your tips… still battery is draining… plss plss help or i have to uninstall 6.0
Shubham ukey
10/31/2015 at 11:58 pm
i have update my android one to marshmallow but there are too much prblms like battery draining,unsupported calling screen……..feeling like sucks with this version of android 6.0
Singh DaAmy
11/07/2015 at 7:45 pm
one the most vunerable update ever .. what can we do now . i think we hav to stay always on charging ??? get me out of there…
Lee
11/07/2015 at 10:03 pm
Why mess around with different settings? Why can’t it just work? Like apple does:)
Salman
11/24/2015 at 7:31 am
Battery is draining very fast after 6.0 its drain at a rate of 3min 1%
Dinesh
12/09/2015 at 12:04 am
Whether wifi is on or off…It is consuming 123% of battery. It is not able to charge also. I switched off my mobile and charging it. Within 4-5hrs, battery shows 15%. I tried with all possibilities but no use. I am frustrated with the update provided by the google services.
antony
12/11/2015 at 10:00 pm
I upgraded to 6.0.1 my mobile automatically switched off and on. Kindly help me how to solve this problem
Robertrsilvia
12/13/2015 at 5:27 am
0=012 my neighbor’s ex-wife makes $68 /hr on the laptop . She has been fired for 6 months but last month her pay was $18404 just working on the laptop for a few hours.
navigate to this site… See More
Steve Jobs is dead lol
12/13/2015 at 8:23 am
Google always gotta fux sh1t up. Bunch of losers.
Marquito
12/17/2015 at 3:55 am
Copy and paste article.
Salman
12/18/2015 at 7:05 pm
Replacing battery can help??????
Madhav Biradar
12/25/2015 at 10:00 pm
It could be problem in processor or weak signal strength. It is always better to install battery saver app on your smartphone.
Cherry
01/31/2016 at 10:21 pm
Seriously the company should check all this and give us there final product. This is like dating a model, all looks no brain
Ira
02/06/2016 at 2:24 am
What’s the point of doing all these things suggested in the post. When I have Android 5.1 I never care about such things that much so why should I have an eye on every single app now? Just because I updated it to marshmallow?
The update suppose to give more features not pain.
Judi Barrett
03/15/2016 at 9:48 pm
My Nexus 5 received Andriod update yesterday morning (phone was fully charged) and now I cannot switch on – it’s as if the phone is dead.
Any suggestions?
khaliltazit
03/27/2016 at 5:51 pm
everyone hate this this message ( low battery or connect your mobile to charge ) when we using smart phone and spend a long times surfing in internet and watching video or talking with your friends. the battery loos his power more faster. don’t worry about this anymore i have a good solution . what about to save your battery a log time or double your battery power using battery eco mode or this battery saver . only download and install the app turn on eco mode and you will see the different download link :
https://goo.gl/Z9HSpl
Riza Riza
05/10/2016 at 5:12 am
Is replacing the battery a solution
Faisal Ahsan
05/12/2016 at 11:53 pm
Well, I was planning to wipe my Nexus 5’s Cash/partition for battery draining issue, then I got a security update OTA notification (12 May, UTC+6). After updating its running pretty cool (so far passed 30 hours after update). My phone used to say 23 hrs/1 days remain after a full charge now its showing 2 days….guess thinks are getting better (FYI: After the update I had restarted my phone to get the full performance).
I will give an update on you guys after observing it for 1 week with different uses scenario.
Faisal Ahsan
05/17/2016 at 9:18 pm
UPDATE: I was using the update for now 6 days, but it (battery) back to its natural behavior after 2 days :(. Last night I wiped cache partition on my Nexus 5 (6.0.1), so far passed 14 hours, still looks good. Let see how long will it remain that good. Again I’ll give you an update after a week of observation.
FYI: After wipe cache partition your device will remain (6.0.1), nothing will be lost or change and cache wiping action may take 15-30 minutes (mine took around 20 minutes)
Faisal Ahsan
05/19/2016 at 9:35 pm
UPDATE: Mission Failed, after wipe my cache partition (4 days running), my Nexus 5 haven’t got any progress. Android System still draining my battery as before. Though the 1st day went well but all became same after 2nd day.
Valery
05/20/2016 at 5:57 am
Same to me. Nexus 5X, android 6.0.1, last.
Valery
05/17/2016 at 7:46 am
that would be good, but i got the same two days lifetime in sleep mode. no matter is wifi on or off
issac T
05/19/2016 at 1:34 am
I have a Moto g3 …
How to unlock system ui tuner in 6.0.1 ?
Faisal Ahsan
05/19/2016 at 9:50 pm
Swipe down to open the full notification (Where Brightness, WiFi etc option shows), now tap and hold the setting icon (gear icon) from the top, observe that that gear icon will start Spinning after tap and holding. Release the tap, a notification flash message will appear under the screen. You will find the System UI Tuner in Setting > Swipe down to the bottom, “System UI Tuner” is present under the “About” option.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9D_FoyOM0M
TrickyTree1983
06/14/2016 at 6:38 am
Oddly I had this same issue on Sony Z3 Compact. Tried a few of the suggested method to improve battery life and to increase charge time.
Turning off all battery optimisation actually fixed the long charge time issue for me. So in fact these optimisation techniques appeared to be the source of my pain rather than the solution.
Terrible.
dheenu
07/08/2016 at 4:06 am
Guys don’t do anything just disable the Google chrome app it’s the main problem for battery drain disbale it and install another browser this will solve the issue I tried it works
KnightsTemplar
09/04/2016 at 1:56 pm
disable permissions of apps that drain battery – i disabled google app and google play permissions i.e. location, camera, motion sensor, etc. now my battery is back to normal consumption.
hazman
12/05/2016 at 11:25 pm
Follow this super easy tutorial to increase your android battery by upto 40% and fix the android OS and Android System battery drain bug!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPX74-htB0g