This article was published in French in Phonandroid and this is the English version.
Date: 15 December 2021
Smartphones will have to have to provide information about the energy efficiency of their batteries.
We are used to seeing these labels on household appliances indicating the energy efficiency of the good we are about to buy. It will soon be the same for smartphones. This is the technology developed by the French Company SmartViser, which has been selected to measure it.
Credit: Marianne Krohn on Unsplash
SmartViser who is the first company to provide battery life scores for mobile phones batteries has been selected by the European Commission to ensure the energy labelling of smartphones and tablets. These devices will be ranked on a scale from A to E according to the score they receive. This new label will be introduced in 2022 and will become mandatory in 2023. It will enable us to see how well the software is optimised to utilise its battery capacity at best, a capacity that tends to increase year by year.
Indeed, for several years, manufacturers have increased the batteries size to answer our intensive use. While in 2013 the average battery capacity for smartphones was around 3,400mAh, towards the end of 2020, the average battery size is now between 4,000mAh to 5,000mAh.
It is likely, that soon the standard size battery reaches 6,000mAh. This trend seems to be fuelled by two main drivers, one being the consumers demanding better battery life and the other is technology advancements with breakthrough materials, like graphene which is expected to be a game-changer.
A BIGGER BATTERY DOESN'T ALWAYS MEAN LONGER BATTERY LIFE
Increasing the battery size is expected to make a difference in the battery life, but from what we have seen in the last 12 months in ViserMark this is not necessarily always the case. Simply increasing the battery size without further optimisations will not result in optimum battery performance.
In its lab, SmartViser has tested devices with a 5,000mAh battery capacity that last between 3.5 days to very disappointing 1.5 days. The big performance gap has a lot to do with the effort each manufacturer had put in their R&D to search and implement better autonomy for their devices. Chips and operating systems also target to become more energy-efficient, but more effort needs to be made in improving the power management of the device than relying on a larger battery size that utilises more precious metals harming the environment.
So, when you are looking for your next smartphone make sure you check the latest results from ViserMark
SMARTVISER'S SOLUTION, A BENCHMARK IN ENERGY POWER EFFICIENCY
SmartViser the founder of the innovative test automation solution "viSer" is on a mission to highlight the autonomy of smartphone battery energy efficiency and works closely with smartphone manufacturers across the world to improve battery performance.
Back in 2014, SmartViser launched the innovative app "viSer" that helps Smartphone Manufacturers, Mobile Network Operators and Media to test, monitor, benchmark, troubleshoot and measure Quality of Experience in their devices and networks. Thanks to the unique technology the powerful engine of "viSer" makes it possible to test smartphones in the same way that an end user will use them, the reflection of true use.
Thanks to this technology in 2020 the ViserMark was born. It is the first industry label to provide accurate battery life scores and labels to help users make more informed choices when purchasing a new smartphone. Also, it helps smartphone manufacturers identify shortfalls in their battery performance and efficiency in order to improve their quality.
LEARN MORE ABOUT VISERMARK LABELS
ENERGY EFFICIENCY: IS MY SMARTPHONE POWER EFFICIENT?
It simply means maximising the performance of a smartphone while reducing the amount of energy it consumes, with minimal impact on battery life. It is calculated using Battery Life and Battery Capacity. This is expressed in “Leaves" and reflects a rating between 1 being least and 5 being the most power-efficient. The most battery efficient smartphone will provide good battery life and reduce the number of times the battery will need to be charged which harms its longevity.
BATTERY PERFORMANCE: HOW DOES THIS SMARTPHONE COMPARE TO OTHERS?
This performance score ranges from 0 to 100. It reflects the performance of a smartphone based on independent, repeatable and accurate tests. The calculation is made from the results of Lifespan, Energy Efficiency and Battery Charging.
BATTERY LIFE: WHAT IS THE BATTERY LIFE OF THIS MOBILE?
This is expressed in "Days-of-Use" and reflects the time in days that a smartphone can be used from a full charge. The ViserMark Battery Label translates mAH (milliamps/hours), commonly used to measure the energy capacity of a smartphone battery into more meaningful: number of days of actual use.
BATTERY CHARGING TIME: HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO CHARGE THIS SMARTPHONE?
It takes a different amount of time to charge different types and sizes of smartphone batteries. This is expressed in Hours and Minutes.
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