Glo Expected Battery Life

File · 10-19-2015, 05:46 PM

Using the Kobo Glo HD, and having some concerns with battery life. Last line of post is most useful.

Purchased and been using the device since August 2015. When I first charged and used it the battery life was exceptionally good. Held a good charge when reading some hours a day for ~3 weeks time.

The settings used were backlight on 0%, wifi off, sleep after 5 minutes, no screen saver no power off. 3.18.0 Firmware.

After charging it for the second time things were considerably different. I maintained settings but the battery drain was exceptionally faster. Now, after reading a few hours the battery is as expected changing 1-3%. Then, placing the device into sleep while not in use. If I return to the device within 12 hours the battery life seems to be good.

However, if I leave the device in Sleep mode for any period of time > 24 hours I see very large battery drain of 30-50% between uses.

robko · 10-19-2015, 10:40 PM

Check and make sure you have automatic syncing off (in settings under "Syncing and updates"). If it is trying to sync and failing for whatever reason it could be eating through battery.

File · 10-20-2015, 04:32 AM

Right I didnt mention that, it was certainly set to off.

Cex · 10-20-2015, 04:40 AM

Has this happened after loading a new book?
Some people reported battery drain when ebooks with errors in TOC are loaded.
It looks like the eReader gets stucks trying to index it and never enter sleep mode.
You can try to remove books and check if it still happens.

oren64 · 10-20-2015, 10:06 AM

How match hours of reading you get with one full charge?

File · 10-20-2015, 03:59 PM

I'll have to report back in a day or two and record the battery level changes and usage time. It may have been related to the indexing of books, I did load new books that were converted with Calibre and may have had TOC errors. Thanks for pointing that out.

Be back in a while.

edit:
Moments later I look at the battery level after having left it charging overnight. I checked today earlier around 6am and recognized that the battery was at 100%. I disconnected it and disabled wifi, pressed the top button to enter sleep, and placed it back in my neoprene pouch.
Now checking ~10 hours later having not used the device in between, the battery is at 81%!!

I'll report back, may want to read a bit.

davidfor · 10-20-2015, 06:24 PM

That sounds like it wasn't actually sleeping all that time. When you pressed the power button, did you actually see the sleep screen before putting it away? And when it was in the pouch where was it? Any chance it might have gone near a magnet that triggered the sleep function?

The latter question comes from some mysterious sleep and wakes that I had for a while with my Glo. I kept picking it up and finding that it would wake up. Or pulling it out of my bag and it was awake. At the time I wasn't using a cover. When I got around to looking at it, I realised that I was putting it down on top of my iPad. And in my bag, I slid it in next to my iPad. The iPad was in a cover with sleep function. What was happening was that I was putting the Glo on the iPad in exactly the right place for the magnet in the iPads cover to trigger the sleep function in the Glo. Mystery solved and I was able to take advantage of this so that I didn't have to manually wake the Glo.

Another thing to do is to restart the Glo. That will restart drivers and the application. If that fixes the power usage, then you can see if it goes bad after a while. If so, there's probably some background process that is having problems and maybe it can be reported to Kobo to fix.

File · 10-21-2015, 05:57 PM

Updating,

Firstly for Davidfor, I was sure it was in sleep mode when I set it down and put it away. I am careful as I slip the pouch on, and when I come back to it, it is still sleeping. I keep it on my desk flat without opportunity for anything to hit the button while it lays.
I will use the restarting the glo idea following the inspection/removal of any books with potential TOC problems.

Oren, sometimes only 4-5 hours in a few sittings. I will have put the device aside for a few days in sleep mode, and return to it asking to Please Charge etc.

Battery history from 10/19/15 to today 10/21/15. Last sync was probably 10/18 and completed with no issues, staying charging and with wifi on for a while so I do not suspect it is a syncing issue. I also have not adjusted the battery or sleep settings, nor added or removed books during this time. Wifi off, backlight off, sleep after 5 minutes, do not turn off automatically.

10/19/15:: ~6pm, ??%, Glo is attached to PC via micro usb to charge overnight.
10/20/15:: ~6am, 100%, Glo still attached to micro usb. I detach the glo from micro usb, put the glo into sleep mode and place the glo on my desk.
10/20/15:: ~4pm, 81%, Glo is sleeping, turned on from sleeping I see battery has decreased. I place the device back into sleeping mode.
10/20/15:: ~10pm, 80%, Glo has decreased very slightly, I read for a while and put it down with 78% battery, and into sleep mode.
10/21/15:: ~10am, 78%, Glo is sleeping, I turn it on to check, then place it back into sleep mode
10/21/15:: ~6pm, 77%, Glo is sleeping, I turn it on to check, then place it back into sleep mode.

For now I'll leave the glo in sleep mode, I'll check again this evening and then make some adjustments to account for possible TOC problems with added books. I know there were a few I had converted from PDF, and even RTF document type, then added, that could be to blame. I'll attach it to charge overnight at that point, and do some inspection the following days.

davidfor · 10-21-2015, 07:15 PM

Firstly, a bad ToC can only affect the device if the book gets opened. That might include when it is process after sideloaded. It might also include when the cover is generated to display on the home page or the library lists. If you restart the device and do your tests, the condition of the books will not come into it.

And something to try is to touch the screen after the disconnect. I sometimes see that my devices don't auto-sleep after disconnecting and unplugging from the PC. I don't have a real pattern, but I do feel that if I use it after the disconnect, it will sleep when I put it down.

oren64 · 10-22-2015, 03:44 AM

I am still not sure if the problem is with the device or the battery.

After you finish to updating and the and the battery is empty, charge the device for 6 hours and leave it in power-off for few days, and see if battery the level drop.

File · 10-22-2015, 09:10 PM

Typed up a post but had a browser error and lost it!

The quick run-down,

Charged glo overnight.
Removed potentially problematic books.
Sync'd (took only a few seconds)
disconnected glo from PC
100% battery life at this time.
Used paper clip to induce a device restart
read for 1.5~ hours (now 12 noon)
100% battery life following the reading
placed glo into sleep mode.
Returned to glo now, 9pm and woke the device from sleep mode.
100% battery life.
placed glo into sleep mode for the night

It appears the combination of removing books, and inducing a restart may have fixed the underlying issues. Not realizing that over weeks after having the glo go through a few syncs, adding and removing books, perhaps the 3.18 update initially as well, that it could use a restart!

Will check back tomorrow and in a few days for general updates. Things look good. Wanted to say thank you for giving your attention, and that I respect the mobileread community all the more for it.

davidfor · 10-22-2015, 10:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by File

Used paper clip to induce a device restart

Don't do that. That doesn't give the device a chance to save the database or any other open files. It's the same as hitting the reset button on a PC. Use the power switch to turn it off and then back on.

As to the rest, it's about what I expected, but it would have been interesting to do without removing the books first.

File · 10-24-2015, 10:26 AM

davidfor, I actually used the holding power button method but wasnt 100% certain it had reset since things went quickly. I then used the paperclip to be sure.

On 10/23/15 10am, 98% battery life. I put the device back to sleep, and did not open it again until today 10/24/15 10am, 63% )= Perhaps I'll remove all the books I had added even those I thought would not raise issue. Device was in sleep the entire period, disconnected, no wifi etc etc.

The sleep mode background is set to show the book cover, but not fullscreen. That has been the setting the whole time throughout the thread.

Additionally what would be the need to touch the screen after setting it to sleep? That was mentioned a few posts ago.

robko · 10-24-2015, 11:23 AM

Have you done a full FACTORY RESET (as opposed to a pin reset) on it yet (didn't see you had scanning back through the thread)? It really sounds like something is corrupted and continuing to run/suck power. This will wipe everything on your device and you will need to reload your books.

File · 10-24-2015, 11:39 AM

Its on the agenda of things to try, I considered it but wanted to see about these other choices first. I wouldn't really lose a great deal of statistics since its only from the end of August I've had the device.

10-19-2015, 05:46 PM	#1
File Member Posts: 20 Karma: 13132 Join Date: Feb 2007	Expected Battery Life Using the Kobo Glo HD, and having some concerns with battery life. Last line of post is most useful. Purchased and been using the device since August 2015. When I first charged and used it the battery life was exceptionally good. Held a good charge when reading some hours a day for ~3 weeks time. The settings used were backlight on 0%, wifi off, sleep after 5 minutes, no screen saver no power off. 3.18.0 Firmware. After charging it for the second time things were considerably different. I maintained settings but the battery drain was exceptionally faster. Now, after reading a few hours the battery is as expected changing 1-3%. Then, placing the device into sleep while not in use. If I return to the device within 12 hours the battery life seems to be good. However, if I leave the device in Sleep mode for any period of time > 24 hours I see very large battery drain of 30-50% between uses. Last edited by File; 10-19-2015 at 05:47 PM. Reason: firmware

10-20-2015, 10:06 AM	#5
oren64 I need a chapter break Posts: 4,042 Karma: 56058267 Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: Israel Device: Kobo Glo	How match hours of reading you get with one full charge? Last edited by oren64; 10-20-2015 at 01:56 PM.

10-20-2015, 03:59 PM	#6
File Member Posts: 20 Karma: 13132 Join Date: Feb 2007	I'll have to report back in a day or two and record the battery level changes and usage time. It may have been related to the indexing of books, I did load new books that were converted with Calibre and may have had TOC errors. Thanks for pointing that out. Be back in a while. edit: Moments later I look at the battery level after having left it charging overnight. I checked today earlier around 6am and recognized that the battery was at 100%. I disconnected it and disabled wifi, pressed the top button to enter sleep, and placed it back in my neoprene pouch. Now checking ~10 hours later having not used the device in between, the battery is at 81%!! I'll report back, may want to read a bit. Last edited by File; 10-20-2015 at 04:02 PM. Reason: New development

10-21-2015, 05:57 PM	#8
File Member Posts: 20 Karma: 13132 Join Date: Feb 2007	Updating, Firstly for Davidfor, I was sure it was in sleep mode when I set it down and put it away. I am careful as I slip the pouch on, and when I come back to it, it is still sleeping. I keep it on my desk flat without opportunity for anything to hit the button while it lays. I will use the restarting the glo idea following the inspection/removal of any books with potential TOC problems. Oren, sometimes only 4-5 hours in a few sittings. I will have put the device aside for a few days in sleep mode, and return to it asking to Please Charge etc. Battery history from 10/19/15 to today 10/21/15. Last sync was probably 10/18 and completed with no issues, staying charging and with wifi on for a while so I do not suspect it is a syncing issue. I also have not adjusted the battery or sleep settings, nor added or removed books during this time. Wifi off, backlight off, sleep after 5 minutes, do not turn off automatically. 10/19/15:: ~6pm, ??%, Glo is attached to PC via micro usb to charge overnight. 10/20/15:: ~6am, 100%, Glo still attached to micro usb. I detach the glo from micro usb, put the glo into sleep mode and place the glo on my desk. 10/20/15:: ~4pm, 81%, Glo is sleeping, turned on from sleeping I see battery has decreased. I place the device back into sleeping mode. 10/20/15:: ~10pm, 80%, Glo has decreased very slightly, I read for a while and put it down with 78% battery, and into sleep mode. 10/21/15:: ~10am, 78%, Glo is sleeping, I turn it on to check, then place it back into sleep mode 10/21/15:: ~6pm, 77%, Glo is sleeping, I turn it on to check, then place it back into sleep mode. For now I'll leave the glo in sleep mode, I'll check again this evening and then make some adjustments to account for possible TOC problems with added books. I know there were a few I had converted from PDF, and even RTF document type, then added, that could be to blame. I'll attach it to charge overnight at that point, and do some inspection the following days. Last edited by File; 10-21-2015 at 06:01 PM.

10-24-2015, 10:26 AM	#13
File Member Posts: 20 Karma: 13132 Join Date: Feb 2007	davidfor, I actually used the holding power button method but wasnt 100% certain it had reset since things went quickly. I then used the paperclip to be sure. On 10/23/15 10am, 98% battery life. I put the device back to sleep, and did not open it again until today 10/24/15 10am, 63% )= Perhaps I'll remove all the books I had added even those I thought would not raise issue. Device was in sleep the entire period, disconnected, no wifi etc etc. The sleep mode background is set to show the book cover, but not fullscreen. That has been the setting the whole time throughout the thread. Additionally what would be the need to touch the screen after setting it to sleep? That was mentioned a few posts ago. Last edited by File; 10-24-2015 at 10:28 AM.

10-19-2015, 10:40 PM	#2
robko Wizard Posts: 2,454 Karma: 5469320 Join Date: Jul 2010 Device: Kobo	Check and make sure you have automatic syncing off (in settings under "Syncing and updates"). If it is trying to sync and failing for whatever reason it could be eating through battery.

10-20-2015, 04:32 AM	#3
File Member Posts: 20 Karma: 13132 Join Date: Feb 2007	Right I didnt mention that, it was certainly set to off.

10-20-2015, 04:40 AM	#4
Cex Enthusiast Posts: 29 Karma: 13132 Join Date: Jul 2015 Location: Spain Device: Glo; Glo HD; PW2; Voyage	Has this happened after loading a new book? Some people reported battery drain when ebooks with errors in TOC are loaded. It looks like the eReader gets stucks trying to index it and never enter sleep mode. You can try to remove books and check if it still happens.

10-20-2015, 06:24 PM	#7
davidfor Grand Sorcerer Posts: 24,907 Karma: 47303748 Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Sydney, Australia Device: Kobo:Touch,Glo, AuraH2O, GloHD,AuraONE, ClaraHD, Libra H2O; tolinoepos	That sounds like it wasn't actually sleeping all that time. When you pressed the power button, did you actually see the sleep screen before putting it away? And when it was in the pouch where was it? Any chance it might have gone near a magnet that triggered the sleep function? The latter question comes from some mysterious sleep and wakes that I had for a while with my Glo. I kept picking it up and finding that it would wake up. Or pulling it out of my bag and it was awake. At the time I wasn't using a cover. When I got around to looking at it, I realised that I was putting it down on top of my iPad. And in my bag, I slid it in next to my iPad. The iPad was in a cover with sleep function. What was happening was that I was putting the Glo on the iPad in exactly the right place for the magnet in the iPads cover to trigger the sleep function in the Glo. Mystery solved and I was able to take advantage of this so that I didn't have to manually wake the Glo. Another thing to do is to restart the Glo. That will restart drivers and the application. If that fixes the power usage, then you can see if it goes bad after a while. If so, there's probably some background process that is having problems and maybe it can be reported to Kobo to fix.

10-21-2015, 07:15 PM	#9
davidfor Grand Sorcerer Posts: 24,907 Karma: 47303748 Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Sydney, Australia Device: Kobo:Touch,Glo, AuraH2O, GloHD,AuraONE, ClaraHD, Libra H2O; tolinoepos	Firstly, a bad ToC can only affect the device if the book gets opened. That might include when it is process after sideloaded. It might also include when the cover is generated to display on the home page or the library lists. If you restart the device and do your tests, the condition of the books will not come into it. And something to try is to touch the screen after the disconnect. I sometimes see that my devices don't auto-sleep after disconnecting and unplugging from the PC. I don't have a real pattern, but I do feel that if I use it after the disconnect, it will sleep when I put it down.

10-22-2015, 03:44 AM	#10
oren64 I need a chapter break Posts: 4,042 Karma: 56058267 Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: Israel Device: Kobo Glo	I am still not sure if the problem is with the device or the battery. After you finish to updating and the and the battery is empty, charge the device for 6 hours and leave it in power-off for few days, and see if battery the level drop.

10-22-2015, 09:10 PM	#11
File Member Posts: 20 Karma: 13132 Join Date: Feb 2007	Typed up a post but had a browser error and lost it! The quick run-down, Charged glo overnight. Removed potentially problematic books. Sync'd (took only a few seconds) disconnected glo from PC 100% battery life at this time. Used paper clip to induce a device restart read for 1.5~ hours (now 12 noon) 100% battery life following the reading placed glo into sleep mode. Returned to glo now, 9pm and woke the device from sleep mode. 100% battery life. placed glo into sleep mode for the night It appears the combination of removing books, and inducing a restart may have fixed the underlying issues. Not realizing that over weeks after having the glo go through a few syncs, adding and removing books, perhaps the 3.18 update initially as well, that it could use a restart! Will check back tomorrow and in a few days for general updates. Things look good. Wanted to say thank you for giving your attention, and that I respect the mobileread community all the more for it.

10-24-2015, 11:23 AM	#14
robko Wizard Posts: 2,454 Karma: 5469320 Join Date: Jul 2010 Device: Kobo	Have you done a full FACTORY RESET (as opposed to a pin reset) on it yet (didn't see you had scanning back through the thread)? It really sounds like something is corrupted and continuing to run/suck power. This will wipe everything on your device and you will need to reload your books.

10-24-2015, 11:39 AM	#15
File Member Posts: 20 Karma: 13132 Join Date: Feb 2007	Its on the agenda of things to try, I considered it but wanted to see about these other choices first. I wouldn't really lose a great deal of statistics since its only from the end of August I've had the device.

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