Frustrated by your smartphone dying quickly, even after a full charge? You’re not alone. While battery technology is constantly improving, aggressive app usage can be a significant culprit behind unexpected power drains. To combat this, Google is taking action with a new feature aimed at both developers and users.
Starting now, Android apps flagged for excessive battery consumption will bear a warning label in the Google Play Store. This comes as part of a beta program called “Android vitals,” designed to monitor app performance and highlight potential issues. The specific metric targeted by this initiative is “excessive partial wake locks.” These are essentially instructions an app gives your phone to remain partially active even when the screen is off, allowing it to run background processes.
“Excessive partial wake locks are a heavy contributor to battery drain,” Google stated.
While some apps legitimately need to stay partly awake for tasks like playing music or transferring data, frequent or overly long wake lock usage can significantly impact battery life. To determine what constitutes excessive wake locks, Google has set a threshold:
- User Session Limit: A user session exceeding two cumulative hours of non-exempt wake locks within a 24-hour period is considered excessive.
- App Threshold: If an app triggers this “excessive” status in 5% or more of its user sessions over the past 28 days, it will be flagged.
The warning won’t just appear on Google Play Store listings. App developers will also receive alerts within their Android vitals dashboards. This dual-pronged approach aims to encourage developers to optimize their apps for better battery efficiency. Google warns that continued disregard for these wake lock limits could result in further penalties, including reduced visibility in Google Play Store search results.
This initiative represents a proactive step by Google to address a common user frustration and promote responsible app development practices within the Android ecosystem. By bringing transparency around battery usage and incentivizing developers to improve their apps’ efficiency, Google ultimately aims to create a more seamless and power-conscious experience for Android users.
