Experts at Android-based phone company OnePlus revealed that the trick is best used in emergencies when you really want to save every last drop of juice.
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“Before I even get started, I know some of you may wonder why we even need battery tips… what if you are traveling and forget your charger, or you go out for a long trek and do not have a power supply,” brand ambassador Abhishek wrote in a OnePlus community forum.
“There can be numerous such scenarios and thus it is important to have these tricks handy and use them when the time is just about right!”
Most Android owners are familiar with the “efficient” battery saver mode, which Abhishek says is “arguably the most straightforward method to save your juice”.
But few people know this ‘hidden number’ trick.
What ‘hidden number’?
The so-called ‘hidden number’ relates to the device’s Screen Refresh Rate.
Your phone’s Screen Refresh Rate is the number of times per second the image on the screen refreshes.
For example, a 60Hz display will update the screen 60 times per second.
Depending on what Android phone your have – and how old it is – your Screen Refresh Rate number could land anywhere between 10Hz and 240Hz.
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But most devices’ sit around 60Hz to 90Hz.
According to Abhishek: “In situations when you really wish to save the battery of your device, switching the refresh rate [from 90Hz] to 60Hz might be extremely beneficial.
While some phone’s automatically switch to 60Hz in certain conditions, Abhishek says “keeping it constantly on 60 can give you the extra bump in your battery life as it reduces the load on the hardware”.
How to change Screen Refresh Rate
To change your phone’s Screen Refresh Rate, follow these steps:
Alternatively, if you want to switch have your phone automatically change its Screen Refresh Rate, follow these steps:
Open Settings > Display > Motion Smoothness > click Adaptive to enable variable refresh rates > tap Apply to confirm.
The immediate benefit of this is better battery life.
This is because the display can drop the refresh rate to as low as 10Hz to use less power while showing static content.
The list of phones that can reduce their display’s refresh rate to 10Hz is small, such as the Samsung Galaxy S23+, Google Pixel 7 Pro, and the OnePlus 11.
A high refresh rate is useful while scrolling through lists, playing games optimized for such refresh rates, and watching high frame rate content like Netflix.
But beyond those activities, it makes little sense to constantly refresh a display at 120Hz since it causes battery drain.