Samsung Galaxy S4 Google Play Edition battery life tests are done, here are the results

The Samsung Galaxy S4 Google Play Edition was met with a lot of excitement – one of the hottest official pure Android smartphones sent shivers down geeks’ spines. How has ripping out the TouchWiz mods affected the battery life? It brought it down as it turned out in our review.

Now, we know Nexus devices get a lot of jokes about battery life, but this isn’t technically a Nexus phone. Also, it was only the talk time that really changed, everything else seems to be as expected.

The 2,600mAh battery and efficient Snapdragon 600 chipset allowed the Samsung I9505 Galaxy S4 to become one of the top performers in the talk time category with 18 hours. The Galaxy S4 Google Play Edition managed only a little over 12 and a half hours.

That doesn’t sound bad, but even the HTC One with a smaller battery and chipset at a lower clockspeed managed a full hour more. Still, not as bad as the Exynos 5 Octa version of the S4 (I9500), which is an hour and a half behind the S4 GPE.

Talk time

• Huawei Ascend Mate
  25:12
• Motorola RAZR MAXX (ICS)
  21:18
• LG Optimus G Pro
  20:45
• Motorola DROID RAZR MAXX
  20:24
• Motorola RAZR i
  20:07
• BlackBerry Q10
  20:00
• Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3
  19:54
• Sony Xperia SP
  19:49
• Samsung Galaxy S4 (S600)
  18:03
• Samsung Galaxy Note II N7100
  16:57
• Samsung Galaxy S4 Active
  16:40
• Sony Xperia Z
  16:03
• LG Optimus G
  15:30
• Sony Xperia ZL
  15:22
• Nokia Lumia 720
  15:17
• Nokia Lumia 620
  14:17
• Oppo Find 5
  14:17
• Google Nexus 4
  14:17
• HTC One
  13:38
• HTC One X+
  13:31
• Nokia Lumia 520
  13:33
• Samsung Galaxy Grand Duos
  12:45
• Samsung Galaxy S4 GPE
  12:37
• Huawei Ascend P1
  12:30
• Sony Xperia L
  12:30
• HTC Butterfly
  12:18
• Samsung Galaxy Note
  12:14
• Samsung I8530 Galaxy Beam
  11:58
• Samsung Galaxy Premier
  11:30
• Asus Padfone 2
  11:20
• HTC Droid DNA
  11:07
• HTC Windows Phone 8X
  11:07
• Samsung Wave 3 S8600
  11:07
• Samsung I9105 Galaxy S II Plus
  11:06
• HTC Desire X
  11:03
• Samsung Galaxy S4 (Octa)
  11:01
• HTC One X (AT&T, LTE)
  10:35
• Samsung I9300 Galaxy S III
  10:20
• Samsung I9300 Galaxy S III (JB)
  10:15
• Samsung Galaxy Xcover 2
  10:03
• HTC One V
  10:00
• Meizu MX 4-core
  10:00
• Samsung Galaxy Express
  10:00
• HTC One X
  9:57
• HTC One S
  9:42
• Samsung I9103 Galaxy R
  9:40
• HTC Sensation XL
  9:30
• Nokia Lumia 810
  9:05
• Nokia Lumia 710
  9:05
• Acer CloudMobile S500
  9:05
• Motorola Atrix HD
  9:04
• HTC Vivid
  9:02
• Nokia Lumia 920
  8:56
• Nokia Lumia 610
  8:51
• HTC Rhyme
  8:48
• Apple iPhone 5
  8:42
• LG Optimus 3D Max P720
  8:42
• Sony Ericsson Xperia neo V
  8:41
• Meizu MX
  8:39
• Samsung Galaxy S II
  8:35
• Samsung Galaxy S Duos
  8:28
• Nokia Lumia 800
  8:25
• Samsung Galaxy Nexus
  8:23
• Nokia Lumia 510
  8:22
• Samsung Galaxy Fame
  8:21
• BlackBerry Z10
  8:20
• HTC Desire V
  8:20
• Samsung Captivate Glide
  8:20
• Sony Xperia T
  8:15
• HTC Rezound (LTE)
  8:10
• Samsung Galaxy Note (LTE)
  8:02
• LG Optimus Vu
  7:57
• LG Optimus 4X HD
  7:41
• Apple iPhone 4S
  7:41
• Samsung i937 Focus S
  7:25
• HTC Evo 4G LTE (LTE)
  7:21
• Samsung Galaxy S Blaze 4G
  7:14
• Nokia Lumia 820
  7:09
• Sony Xperia acro S
  7:09
• Samsung Rugby Smart I847
  7:09
• Sony Ericsson Xperia Pro
  6:57
• Nokia N9
  6:57
• HTC Radar
  6:53
• Samsung Galaxy Ace Duos
  6:53
• BlackBerry Curve 9380
  6:52
• Sony Xperia E dual
  6:42
• Samsung Galaxy S III mini
  6:22
• Samsung Galaxy Pocket
  5:54
• Nokia Lumia 900 for AT&T (LTE)
  5:53
• Sony Xperia ion LTE
  5:52
• Sony Xperia P
  5:33
• Nokia 808 PureView
  5:16
• LG Nitro HD (LTE)
  5:16
• HTC Titan II (LTE)
  5:10
• BlackBerry Bold 9790
  5:00
• Pantech Burst
  4:46

The other two tests are virtually unchanged – there’s an 11 minute difference in the web browser test and a 2 minute difference in the video playback test, but those are almost not worth mentioning.

The Octa-powered S4 is an hour behind in both tests and the HTC One trades victories – it wins web browsing, but loses in video playback.

Web browsing

• HTC One
  9:58
• Apple iPhone 5
  9:56
• Motorola RAZR MAXX (ICS)
  9:12
• Apple iPad mini
  9:05
• Samsung Galaxy Note II N7100
  8:48
• BlackBerry Q10
  8:42
• Nokia Lumia 810
  8:20
• Asus Padfone 2
  8:20
• Huawei Ascend Mate
  8:17
• Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3
  8:17
• Nokia Lumia 610
  8:01
• HTC One X+
  7:56
• Sony Xperia E dual
  7:42
• Samsung Galaxy S III mini
  7:38
• Nokia Lumia 720
  7:37
• Samsung Galaxy S4 Active
  7:35
• Samsung Galaxy S4 (S600)
  7:24
• Motorola DROID RAZR MAXX
  7:23
• HTC Radar
  7:17
• Nokia Lumia 520
  7:15
• Samsung Galaxy S4 GPE
  7:13
• Samsung Galaxy Grand Duos
  7:09
• Samsung Galaxy Express
  7:09
• Motorola RAZR i
  7:06
• Samsung Galaxy S4 (Octa)
  6:58
• Apple iPhone 4S
  6:56
• HTC One V
  6:49
• LG Optimus G Pro
  6:40
• Samsung I9105 Galaxy S II Plus
  6:40
• Sony Xperia L
  6:40
• HTC Droid DNA
  6:40
• Samsung Galaxy Premier
  6:40
• Motorola Atrix HD
  6:40
• BlackBerry Curve 9380
  6:40
• Sony Xperia Z
  6:37
• Samsung Galaxy Xcover 2
  6:35
• BlackBerry Z10
  6:27
• Samsung I9300 Galaxy S III (JB)
  6:27
• HTC Butterfly
  6:24
• Sony Xperia SP
  6:18
• Samsung i937 Focus S
  6:15
• Nokia Lumia 510
  6:13
• Sony Xperia ZL
  6:04
• HTC Windows Phone 8X
  6:01
• Sony Xperia ion LTE
  5:56
• Samsung Galaxy Fame
  5:55
• Samsung Rugby Smart I847
  5:53
• Pantech Burst
  5:51
• Samsung Galaxy S Blaze 4G
  5:45
• HTC Desire V
  5:44
• HTC Evo 4G LTE
  5:41
• Nokia Lumia 920
  5:40
• Samsung Wave 3 S8600
  5:34
• Oppo Find 5
  5:33
• Sony Xperia T
  5:33
• Samsung Captivate Glide
  5:33
• Samsung I8530 Galaxy Beam
  5:28
• Samsung Galaxy Note LTE
  5:24
• Samsung Galaxy S Duos
  5:23
• HTC Sensation XL
  5:20
• Meizu MX 4-core
  5:19
• Samsung I9300 Galaxy S III
  5:17
• Sony Xperia acro S
  5:16
• HTC Rezound
  5:16
• HTC Desire X
  5:16
• LG Optimus G
  5:15
• HTC Rhyme
  5:08
• Samsung I9103 Galaxy R
  5:07
• HTC One X (AT&T)
  5:03
• Sony Ericsson Xperia Pro
  4:50
• LG Optimus Vu
  4:49
• HTC Vivid
  4:46
• Samsung Galaxy Ace Duos
  4:45
• Meizu MX
  4:35
• Google Nexus 4
  4:34
• Nokia N9
  4:33
• Acer CloudMobile S500
  4:32
• Nokia Lumia 820
  4:24
• Samsung Galaxy S II
  4:24
• Sony Ericsson Xperia neo V
  4:20
• HTC One X
  4:18
• Nokia 808 PureView
  4:14
• LG Optimus 3D Max P720
  4:10
• Nokia Lumia 900 for AT&T
  4:10
• Nokia Lumia 800
  4:07
• HTC Titan II (LTE)
  4:05
• HTC One S
  4:03
• BlackBerry Bold 9790
  4:02
• LG Nitro HD
  4:00
• LG Optimus 4X HD
  3:59
• Sony Xperia P
  3:59
• Nokia Lumia 710
  3:51
• Nokia Lumia 620
  3:50
• Samsung Galaxy Pocket
  3:47
• Samsung Galaxy Note
  3:35
• Huawei Ascend P1
  3:23
• Samsung Galaxy Nexus
  3:01

Video playback

• Motorola RAZR MAXX (ICS)
  16:35
• Motorola DROID RAZR MAXX
  14:17
• Apple iPad mini
  12:51
• Samsung Galaxy Premier
  12:51
• Samsung Galaxy S4 GPE
  12:32
• Samsung Galaxy S4 (S600)
  12:30
• Huawei Ascend Mate
  12:18
• Samsung Galaxy S4 (Octa)
  11:29
• Samsung Galaxy Note II N7100
  11:27
• BlackBerry Q10
  11:15
• Apple iPhone 5
  10:12
• HTC One
  10:02
• Samsung I9300 Galaxy S III
  10:01
• Samsung Galaxy Express
  10:00
• Samsung I9105 Galaxy S II Plus
  10:00
• Nokia 808 PureView
  9:53
• Samsung I8530 Galaxy Beam
  9:42
• Samsung Rugby Smart I847
  9:34
• HTC One S
  9:28
• Samsung I9300 Galaxy S III (JB)
  9:27
• Apple iPhone 4S
  9:24
• HTC Evo 4G LTE
  9:07
• BlackBerry Z10
  8:44
• LG Optimus G Pro
  8:40
• Nokia N9
  8:40
• Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3
  8:34
• HTC Butterfly
  8:28
• Samsung Galaxy Note
  8:25
• Samsung Galaxy Grand Duos
  8:11
• HTC One X+
  8:11
• Motorola RAZR i
  8:11
• Samsung Galaxy S II
  8:00
• Samsung i937 Focus S
  7:55
• Samsung Wave 3 S8600
  7:52
• Samsung Galaxy S III mini
  7:46
• Sony Ericsson Xperia neo V
  7:45
• Asus Padfone 2
  7:38
• Huawei Ascend P1
  7:38
• Samsung Galaxy S Blaze 4G
  7:33
• HTC Droid DNA
  7:30
• Samsung Galaxy Note LTE
  7:30
• Samsung Galaxy Xcover 2
  7:30
• Sony Xperia SP
  7:27
• Nokia Lumia 610
  7:23
• LG Optimus G
  7:16
• Samsung Galaxy S4 Active
  7:03
• Nokia Lumia 720
  6:43
• Meizu MX 4-core
  6:33
• Nokia Lumia 620
  6:32
• HTC Windows Phone 8X
  6:27
• Sony Xperia E dual
  6:27
• Nokia Lumia 810
  6:27
• HTC Desire V
  6:26
• HTC One X (AT&T)
  6:26
• Nokia Lumia 820
  6:25
• Samsung Galaxy Ace Duos
  6:25
• Nokia Lumia 510
  6:23
• LG Optimus Vu
  6:23
• Samsung I9103 Galaxy R
  6:21
• Nokia Lumia 920
  6:19
• HTC Sensation XL
  6:12
• Samsung Galaxy Pocket
  6:06
• Samsung Captivate Glide
  6:04
• Sony Xperia ion LTE
  6:03
• Samsung Galaxy Nexus
  6:02
• Sony Xperia T
  6:01
• Motorola Atrix HD
  6:01
• HTC Vivid
  6:00
• HTC Radar
  5:54
• Nokia Lumia 800
  5:52
• Nokia Lumia 520
  5:50
• HTC Titan II
  5:50
• BlackBerry Bold 9790
  5:47
• HTC One X
  5:45
• Sony Ericsson Xperia Pro
  5:44
• Sony Xperia Z
  5:39
• Sony Xperia acro S
  5:38
• HTC Desire X
  5:38
• Pantech Burst
  5:38
• Sony Xperia ZL
  5:28
• Meizu MX
  5:27
• HTC Rhyme
  5:23
• HTC One V
  5:20
• Acer CloudMobile S500
  5:18
• Oppo Find 5
  5:18
• Nokia Lumia 900 for AT&T
  5:18
• BlackBerry Curve 9380
  5:09
• HTC Rezound
  5:03
• Samsung Galaxy Fame
  5:02
• Google Nexus 4
  4:55
• Sony Xperia L
  4:44
• Samsung Galaxy S Duos
  4:30
• Sony Xperia P
  4:30
• LG Nitro HD
  4:17
• LG Optimus 4X HD
  4:14
• LG Optimus 3D Max P720
  3:28
• Nokia Lumia 710
  3:27

We ran the test several times and we have to say we experienced some issues with big drains overnight. Aside from those, standby power draw appears to be only slightly higher than on the TouchWiz version. It’s possible that some related issue is affecting talk time too.

Endurance went down from 69 hours for the I9505 to 63 hours for the Samsung Galaxy S4 Google Play Edition. That’s almost entirely due to the worse call performance, so unless you’re a long-winded talker you shouldn’t see much of a difference.

Plus, 6 hours is a good deal ahead of competitors like the HTC One (48 hours) and the Nexus 4 (32 hours, nearly 50% less).