# Disappointing battery charge life when reading



## omnibus34 (May 25, 2011)

I'm nearly finished with a novel of average length by Michael Connelly (the Reversal) At about half brightness it's probably taking about 3 charge cycles.  I know it's hard to quantify how many page turns make up a charge since unlike my prior e-ink Kindle used zero power except during those page turns.

Is there any rule-of-thumb to determine battery charge life?


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Not on the Fire that I've seen.  I plug it in when it's low -- usually every other day or so.  But those who use it more probably have to charge it more.  Definitely charge it more than any of my eInk kindles.


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## Shastastan (Oct 28, 2009)

Same here.  I think games cause a faster drain.

Sent from my Kindle Fire using Tapatalk


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## sparklemotion (Jan 13, 2011)

You can try the bad ass battery meter for the fire to give you some idea what kind of battery life you're getting. It's definitely not an exact science, but it becomes more accurate over time the more you use the fire.

http://www.amazon.com/Badass-Battery-Monitor-Kindle-Fire/dp/B006TH5I28/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1329934042&sr=8-2

I use my fire a lot, so I charge it every night before bed. It's not a big deal for me to plug it in every night so I don't mind at all. That said, reading doesn't take nearly as much of my battery compared to playing games.


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## Rook (Sep 6, 2011)

I've also noticed that games drain the battery quickly, and I've always had the screen turned all the way down and generally keep the wifi off. 

I had an email app that also ran constantly and drained about 4% per day even when I wasn't using the kindle at all, so it's definitely worth getting the badass battery app to take a look at what's going on in there.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

I use my Fire a lot for several things, and I charge it every day.  Not a big deal, I charge it at night while I'm sleeping.  I also have a couple of other e-ink Kindles I can switch to.  Good reason to have more than one Kindle.  

Betsy


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## CegAbq (Mar 17, 2009)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> Good reason to have more than one Kindle.
> 
> Betsy


Oh yay - a better reason than gadget


Spoiler



sluttiness


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## sparklemotion (Jan 13, 2011)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> Good reason to have more than one Kindle.


That is my thinking too.


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## n4uau (Nov 26, 2011)

omnibus34 said:


> I know it's hard to quantify how many page turns make up a charge since unlike my prior e-ink Kindle used zero power except during those page turns.
> 
> Is there any rule-of-thumb to determine battery charge life?


I believe only e-ink kindles use power just on page turns. Fire uses power whenever running; backlight, wifi are big users of power. So you get longest life at low backlight and wifi off. I charge my fire daily.


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## Bob327 (Nov 17, 2011)

I never really turn My Fire completely off (just let it sleep) and I always have the WiFi turned on..

I use it quite a lot for reading a few magazines and newspapers CNN and the BBC news etc...  but I have no games ..

I've never had any problems with battery life.. I have it next to my bed and charge it every night while I and the my Kindle are sleeping...

Now my smart phone is a completely different story..even with an extended battery I have to 'work" at not over using the phone IF I expect to go a full day...

Bob G.


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## Tippy (Dec 8, 2008)

I had hoped for a longer battery charge.  Like the rest of you I charge my Fire at night.


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## insanity! (Feb 23, 2012)

When I first got my Fire I couldn't believe the battery drainage.  A few tips I learned:  

Get an app killer - I use Advanced Task Killer Free.  This will stop apps from running in the background.  
BadA** Battery Monitor is great.  It will show you where your battery life is going and give you recommendations on how to improve it.

In regard to your background lighting - I have mine turned almost all the way down and it is still plenty bright enough.  I especially find it easier if I use the beige background w/black lettering when reading.

I usually recharge when the battery is around 30%.  I've read that you should drain the battery completely and do a full recharge at least once a month, but I've yet to do this.


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## JimC1946 (Aug 6, 2009)

Ann in Arlington said:


> Definitely charge it more than any of my eInk kindles.


And that's the tradeoff in battery life between a backlit-screen device and an e-ink device. It's just something we have to live with.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

CegAbq said:


> Oh yay - a better reason than gadget
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> ...


 

Well, there's that, too....

But it's true, with the synching of current reading between devices, if the battery goes low on one device, I just switch to another one. With me here in San Diego, I have two eInk Kindles, my Fire and my iPad. I've been here three weeks and read six books so far....and I've read on all four devices.

Betsy


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## n4uau (Nov 26, 2011)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> With me here in San Diego, I have two eInk Kindles, my Fire and my iPad. I've been here three weeks and read six books so far....and I've read on all four devices. Betsy


Wow Betsy you must have a separate suitcase just for your electronic toys when you travel


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

n4uau said:


> Wow Betsy you must have a separate suitcase just for your electronic toys when you travel


No. . .just her purse. . . .which is smaller than the extra suitcase she used to have to use to carry her desktop computer and all her books.


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## n4uau (Nov 26, 2011)

Ann in Arlington said:


> No. . .just her purse. . . .which is smaller than the extra suitcase she used to have to use to carry her desktop computer and all her books.


touché


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## dori chatelain (Dec 31, 2011)

I charge my fire every night. I have a charger by the bed. and then there are times I have to charge it late afternoon early evening. I have the harass battery meter. Love this.app. it tells you how much battery each app uses and all the other stuff as well.  I have only turned off wiring ones time and that was when I was at the court house the other day. 
I figure if I am going to use and enjoy my fire then I will have to charge. no big problem.

sent from the BRIGHTEST FIRE EVER!


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## Shastastan (Oct 28, 2009)

insanity! said:


> When I first got my Fire I couldn't believe the battery drainage. A few tips I learned:
> 
> Get an app killer - I use Advanced Task Killer Free. This will stop apps from running in the background.
> BadA** Battery Monitor is great. It will show you where your battery life is going and give you recommendations on how to improve it.
> ...


Great Post! Many Thanks! I'm going to do all of your suggestions. Really appreciate you helping us out.


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