Before purchasing a gadget, every user asks themselves the question: what phone has the best battery life? Autonomy indicates how long a smartphone can operate on a single charge. Buyers often pay attention to this characteristic because nobody wants to be dependent on electrical outlets. There is a misconception that the larger the battery capacity, the longer the gadget will last. However, the duration of "life" on a single charge depends on various factors. Let's examine how manufacturers achieve high performance.

About mAh and features of different brands

Milliampere-hour (mAh) is the unit used to denote battery capacity. It shows the maximum amount of current supplied to the gadget per hour for operation. Consumption varies based on usage conditions and modes. To increase autonomy, brands use certain "features":

  • Energy-efficient Cores: This is a popular method employed by Apple. iPhones are not equipped with high-capacity batteries, yet they hold a charge well. Thanks to a power efficiency processor, energy is conserved, and the load is evenly distributed, requiring fewer resources to accomplish tasks.
  • LED, AMOLED, OLED Displays technology: Such screens are saviors of autonomy. Black pixels do not emit light; the diodes simply turn off. This achieves the display of a rich dark shade while saving energy. A life hack: enabling a dark theme, removing bright images from the wallpaper, and reducing screen saturation can significantly extend the gadget's battery life.
  • Software: Several programs require minimal energy, while others demand much more. If your phone's processor struggles with high loads, it will consume more energy. Most manufacturers install efficient hardware to ensure that the core functionality does not drain a lot of battery.

Remember that autonomy depends not only on the battery, software, manufacturer, and phone capabilities but also on the method and conditions of usage.

How the testing went

What cell phone has the best battery life? To live up to this proud title, it definitely should be a model that withstands a workday, meaning no less than half a day.

In the battery test, gadgets were subjected to the same tasks—web browsing while connected to 5G and watching video clips. Additionally, the phones were placed under identical conditions, setting their screen brightness at 150 cd/m².

The rating turned out as follows.

Sony Xperia 10 IV

Sony Xperia 10 IV

This model demonstrated the longest battery life — under the specified conditions, smartphone endurance reached almost 25 hours, which is more than a day. This is an excellent indicator, considering contemporary working conditions.

It is staffed with a capacious 5000 mAh battery and supports a maximum charging speed of 30 W. Among other advantages, it features water resistance with an IP68 rating and a quality 6-inch OLED screen.

The model falls into the mid-range price category and doesn't boast any extraordinary features, but it offers the best autonomy available today.

Oppo A78 5G

Oppo A78 5G

This is a compromise option since the phone belongs to the budget models. It features rather weak cameras, and users note the average build quality of the plastic body. However, when it comes to the battery, everything is more than excellent.

It has a capacity of 5000 mAh, a charging speed of 33 W, and a total runtime of just over 21 hours. Other advantages include a screen with a 90 Hz refresh rate, good power for its price, and a large amount of RAM.

Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro

Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro

The latest release, which hit the market just a month ago, quickly soared to the top under the query "what phone has better battery life?" The flagship gaming gadget unexpectedly demonstrated excellent autonomy results (almost 19 hours), a feature that gamers will undoubtedly appreciate. However, it should be noted that battery discharge will be faster in games. But the result is still impressive: in tests, the gadget endured 8 hours and 10 minutes of battles.

The phone boasts outstanding specifications: an AMOLED screen with a 165 Hz refresh rate, the latest Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip, 16 or 24 GB of RAM (wow!), up to 1 TB of storage, a triple camera, and IP68 protection. The battery capacity stands at 5500 mAh, there is support for fast charging at 65 W.

Realme 9 Pro

Realme 9 Pro

This is another mid-range long-lasting gadget. In combination with hardware features, the device demonstrates good results — 18.5 hours in tests. In practice, of course, the autonomy will be individual for each person.

The presence of a 33 W power adapter is pleasing — the device can practically charge from zero to a hundred in about an hour. The careful attention of realme UI to the battery cannot be ignored: when you put the phone on charge overnight, it automatically optimizes the charging speed to prevent the device from overheating.

And there's also a high refresh rate of 120 Hz, a pleasant design, good software optimization and accurate biometrics.

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

The latest gadget, just introduced, immediately soared to the top. It features a 5000 mAh with 45-watt wired, 15-watt wireless, and 4.5-watt reverse charging. In testing, the model lived for 16 h and 45 min.

Among other flagship features, it's worth mentioning the advanced cameras, built-in stylus, and the latest overclocked Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. The protection is implemented to the highest IP68 standard, and the phone supports many intelligent features, such as a counterpart to ChatGPT — Samsung AI, AI for text processing, speech translation, and image editing.

Comparison table

Phone

Battery life (hours)

Battery capacity

Maximum charging power

Sony Xperia 10 IV

24:52

5000 mAh

30 W

Oppo A78 5G

21:08

5000 mAh

33 W

Asus ROG Phone 8 Pro

18:48

5500 mAh

65 W

Realme 9 Pro

18:30

5000 mAh

33 W

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

16:45

5000 mAh

45 W

 

Conclusion

Now you know what mobile has the best battery life. You can choose a gadget with high autonomy in any price category — from budget models to premium ones.