A recent analysis by Ookla Speedtest Intelligence has shed light on the impact of 5G networks on smartphone battery life. The study shows that users accessing 5G networks experience higher battery drain compared to those using 4G-LTE, with the drain ranging between 6% and 11% depending on the System on Chip (SoC) in their devices.
Among Android SoCs, Qualcomm's Snapdragon emerges as the most efficient. The latest flagship SoC from Qualcomm, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, demonstrates the lowest battery drain among all SoCs in the analysis, recording 31% for users on 5G and 25% on 4G-LTE.
The study also highlights the improvements in battery performance observed in newer flagship SoCs. While the disparity in battery drain between 4G-LTE and 5G does not seem to be narrowing over time, generations of SoCs from Qualcomm, MediaTek, Samsung, and Google showcase enhanced battery efficiency compared to their predecessors. For instance, MediaTek's latest flagship SoC, the Dimensity 9200, exhibits a battery drain of 34% when using 5G, whereas its previous generation, the Dimensity 9000, recorded a 45% drain.
Read More - 5G Smartphone Shipments Make a Record: Report
For smartphone users concerned about the impact of 5G on battery life, upgrading their devices could be a solution. In some cases, upgrading to the latest flagship smartphone equipped with the latest SoC and enabling 5G service can deliver comparable battery performance to using 4G-LTE. For example, Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 registers a battery drain of 31% when using 5G, only slightly higher than the previous generation Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, which records a 32% drain on 4G-LTE.
The battery is something that users must consider carefully when they go out to purchase their next device. It is not a secret that 5G consumes more battery. Thus, you want a phone with a chipset that is very efficient in handling battery drain. For now, it looks like Qualcomm chips are the best in handling battery drain when connected to the 5G networks.
