WhatsApp reportedly draining Android phones of life, here’s what you need to know

Android users are up in arms online complaining that one of the most recent WhatsApp updates is draining their phone’s battery life by up to 50 percent in a matter of hours, regardless of active use. These solutions could help.

Some users suggested switching battery optimisation from "Intelligent Control" to "Optimize" for WhatsApp or turning off WhatsApp Web, a sister application for your computer which allows you to use a web-based version of the messenger in your browser. 

Others suggested 'force stopping' the application before going to sleep to prevent overnight battery drain, or restricting background processing while also clearing the cache (though this is a rather extreme and annoying fix for an ongoing issue).

“It's fixed in version 325. Not yet available in the Play Store though, but you can download it from the official site,” Reddit user _sinergie_ posted. 

What's happening?

Users reported alerts on their phone indicating that WhatsApp used battery “While in active use” for some 1.5 hours, despite the fact that they had only opened the application for a negligible amount of time. 

Many have pinned the blame on Whatsapp 2.19.308 with OnePlus users seemingly the hardest hit. There are widespread complaints from irate Android users across the internet, from Google Play Store reviews, to the OnePlus Forum, Twitter and also on Reddit.

In several extreme cases, users complained that the Facebook-owned instant messaging service accounted for almost half of their phone’s power usage.

“Was wondering why my phone was draining quite a bit faster than normal today. 16% battery drain from WhatsApp after only actively using it for less than 5 minutes today,” wrote one OnePlus 7T user.

Furthermore, people have complained of being unable to charge their devices fast enough to keep pace with the intense power consumption, adding that their phones have also begun heating up while they receive constant alerts about high power consumption. 

However, some Xiaomi, Huawei, Samsung Galaxy users seems to be immune from the life-draining update and have questioned what all the fuss is about. 

“S9+ user here who uses WhatsApp extensively. No change in battery life for the past few months whatsoever,” wrote one bewildered user.

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