Ever wonder if 3G access is a battery hog? Well, according to Wirelessinfo.com, users can extend the battery life of the new 3G Nokia N95 (the real 3G N95, not the one that doesn't run on 3G) by downshifting to EDGE.
In this test, the new N95 lasted an impressive 9 hours 14 minutes.
This contrasts with the 6 hours and 12 minutes that the same phone lasted browsing over a 3G data connection. This shows what a drain 3G data connections can be: they may be faster, but they have a huge impact on battery life. In this case, the battery life is extended by nearly 50 percent by using the slower (but less power hungry) EDGE connection. This is definitely worth remembering if you are only sending email or browsing very occasionally; both of these can be achieved on EDGE connections, and the battery will last longer.
How much longer depends on how much emailing and browsing you do, but there will definitely be a difference, and we would strongly recommend switching to EDGE if you are looking to extend the battery life.
So much for extra bandwidth. If EDGE can give you over three hours of extra battery, you have to wonder if the data speeds of HSPDA are worth it.
Then again, given how slow EDGE is, you might actually spend that extra three hours, you know, waiting on your applications and Web pages to load.
Personally, I always opt to use 3G whenever its available. I have no patience for EDGE or CDMA2000 1xRTT data speeds.
How about you? Would you intentionally give up 3G access just to save battery life?
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