Despite the advancements and enhancements we've seen with Android phones over the years, battery life is still somewhat of an Achilles heel for these smartphones. While its understandable that the apps and services in our devices will slowly trickle out our battery juice till it runs out, it seems like some just punch a hole and drain it all out at once.Google Maps is one of the most common battery hogging app on any Android phone. Aside from being an essential application, it comes pre-installed on every Android device.Its a fact that Maps is a resource intensive software, making use of huge amounts of processing power, data and battery, just to render its services. From looking for your location, showing new maps and its actively running in the background, how can you ensure that Google Maps is no longer eating up all your battery?

Switch off GPS

GPS is one of the major battery hogs in your phone. Having your GPS turned on will stream out your battery juice so fast you won't believe. Here you basically have two options, either your have it turned off entirely or have it restricted to only certain apps that require it to be functional.To turn it off, pull down the notification shade,and you'll see the GPS icon. Simply tap on it to enable or disable. You can also go into your device Settings, navigate to the Location options and have it turned off.

Turn off Google Access Location

If switching off GPS doesn't help, you can choose to kill the location features completely. The only consequence of this action is that the apps or services that require this type of information to work properly will be affected, but  if that doesn't seem like an issue to you, you can proceed.Just go to your Settings >> Location and toggle it off.

Clear Google Maps' cache and data

One of the ways most apps are able to function and provide their services efficiently, is because of the data locally stored as app cache. This saved data omits the need of having your phone load up similar information from the internet every time its required.To clear your Google Maps' cache and data, just head over to your device's Settings, scroll to the Apps section and tap on it. On the page that follows, find the Google Maps app and tap on it to bring up the App info page. Here you'll see options to clear the cache as well as data, simply tap on one at a time and you're done.

Downgrade Google Maps

It is hard to tell but has Google Maps become even more battery draining than before? According to online reports, it apparently has. Even though this is yet to be confirmed and it is likely you'll end up with an older version of Google Maps, this option is still worth a try to see if it will be your battery life saver. Just know that an older version of Maps won't be as reliable as the current version you are using.To downgrade your Google Maps, go to Settings >> Apps >> Google Maps, tap on the Uninstall updates option within the App info page.

Disable Google Maps

If all the above options fail, and you are really sure that Google Maps is the major battery killer on your device, then you may need to apply an extreme measure, like disabling Google Maps. Disabling Google Maps is sort of like making it seize to 'actively' exist on your phone. Since its a stock application and can't be deleted, this is would be the next best option. It will still be installed on your phone, it just won't be active. Disabling it will make the functionality disappear, along with the icon for turning it on. The apps and services that rely on the Maps' services will also be unable to function.If you are ready to take this step, go to Settings  >> Apps >> Google Maps, simply tap the Disable option and Google Maps will be no more.Have you tried any of the options mentioned above? How did they work for you? Let us know in the comments.

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How to prevent Google Maps from draining out your battery

How to prevent Google Maps from draining out your battery

How to prevent Google Maps from draining out your battery

What's my model number?

There are several ways to locate your model number:

Option 1
On your device, go to Settings, then "About device" and scroll down to "Model number"
Option 2
Often times you can view the model number inside the device, by removing the battery
Option 3
Using Samsung's model/serial number location tool

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