Axim 51v: battery limit and WiFi, + CPU speeds

white_noize · 03-03-07, 01:25 PM

Hello everyone. Got Axim 51v ROM 012 recently, and apparently it is my first WM5 device.
The main thing I'd like to improve a bit, is a battery consumption and WiFi interaction. It turns off WiFi on 30% battery left.

I am wondering if there is any tweak/registry entry to set another battery limit for WiFi off (say 10%)?

In addition: I am using my Axim with Power: Auto setting, so the CPU speed may peak up to 624 MHz, and drop down to 104. Is it possible to tweak it to peak up and/or to drop down to lower speeds to conserve battery power?

Thanks in advance :)

spunker88 · 03-03-07, 08:08 PM

-On my x50 the wifi wants to turn off at 25%, displays error message about low battery and saving power. But u can ignore the error and use wifi until about 5-10% batt. Then it doesnt give u a choice.

-You can also set the cpu to power saving by going to start, settings, power.

-Turn down your backlight, and enable wifi powersave mode and youll notice significant improvements in batt life.

white_noize · 03-03-07, 11:14 PM

Thanks a lot! I definetely missed standard settings from Settings -> Connections -> Dell Wlan Utility. Now it is in Power Save mode and can go wireless below 25% as well.

As for setting the cpu to power saving - it seems to be constant 202 MHz. I am wondering if it is possible to set cpu speed boundaries for auto mode, for example 104 - 202 (instead of 104 - 624)? Or maybe Power Saving is more efficient than Auto in my case (text editing and some I-net/Mailing)?

aximgeinus · 03-03-07, 11:41 PM

I can use my WiFi all the way down to 1%! Yes, I just said 1%, not 10%! Just uncheck "Disable WLAN to conserve power when battery is low." No more warnings! There are other programs that will give you more control over processor scaling. One (not necessarily the best) is XCPUScalar. I'm sure there's a thread somewhere about this.

Gentle_man27 · 03-04-07, 04:18 PM

Hi,

I've never owned a PDA

but I've looked into getting one for one major prupose. I need it as a WiFi remote for my mediacenter with the help of third party software.

Now the question is - how many hours of battery life can I expect? As you might guess, I'd like to have it on during a whole day or an evening, with no backlight unless tapped on, with minimal CPU load (only NetRemote running), but with WiFi on. Basically minimalistic power usage.

Can it last for aday or two? Or is it just a wishful dream??

Regards.

purcy · 03-04-07, 07:30 PM

Originally Posted by Gentle_man27

Hi,

I've never owned a PDA

but I've looked into getting one for one major prupose. I need it as a WiFi remote for my mediacenter with the help of third party software.

Now the question is - how many hours of battery life can I expect? As you might guess, I'd like to have it on during a whole day or an evening, with no backlight unless tapped on, with minimal CPU load (only NetRemote running), but with WiFi on. Basically minimalistic power usage.

Can it last for aday or two? Or is it just a wishful dream??

Regards.

If you leave it plugged into the AC adapter, I imagine you can leave it on as long as you like.

Gentle_man27 · 03-04-07, 07:51 PM

Purcy... are you kidding me?

I do NOT intend to keep it plugged in during the time when it's going to be running (for a day or an evening - with the requirements I wrote).

Maybe this is my first post - but I'm not that much of a noob... come one, get serious...

aximgeinus · 03-04-07, 10:11 PM

During a 5-minute period with minimal power usage and the backlight on for a 30-second period, it consumed an average of 99 mA and consumed roughly 8 mAh. (Using ACB Power Meter) I would guess this means that a full 1100 mAh battery could last 1100 / 8 = 137.5 periods, x 5 minutes per period / 60 minutes per hour = roughly 11.46 hours! With a seriously deteriorated battery that only can hold 800 mAh it would still last about 8.3 hours, and a 2200 mAh extended battery would last almost 23 hours! Whoa! :jd:

Someone please correct me if this is wrong, after I calculated this it seemed too good to be true!

Also, can someone else verify this on their PDA?

player911 · 03-05-07, 12:06 AM

The axims don't have the best battery life... but they do run for quite a while. I can play Quake Mobile which is the accelerated version for about 2 hours.

The backlight, WiFi, BT and using the graphics accelerator dramatically reduce battery life of course.

I can get about 4-5 hours out my Axim with a standard battery with just the screen on watching a movie or playing non-accelerated games.

You can go for a while (like 8 hours or something) if you turn the screen off and just let it idle (like playing music or running a net service).

Also some programs have memory leaks and eat up battery, commonly known are any real-time status indicator like battery, memory, CPU, etc.

I keep a lean PPC with no added bs running and it runs great.

Box · 03-05-07, 02:13 AM

Originally Posted by Gentle_man27

Purcy... are you kidding me?

I do NOT intend to keep it plugged in during the time when it's going to be running (for a day or an evening - with the requirements I wrote).

Maybe this is my first post - but I'm not that much of a noob... come one, get serious...

I don't see a problem with Purcy's suggestion.

You can leave it plugged in all day.

Ok, you asked about battery life, but you said you were new to PDA, and as such you may not have been aware that it is possible to have it running on AC power all the time.

03-05-07, 05:04 AM

Originally Posted by white_noize

Thanks a lot! I definetely missed standard settings from Settings -> Connections -> Dell Wlan Utility. Now it is in Power Save mode and can go wireless below 25% as well.

As for setting the cpu to power saving - it seems to be constant 202 MHz. I am wondering if it is possible to set cpu speed boundaries for auto mode, for example 104 - 202 (instead of 104 - 624)? Or maybe Power Saving is more efficient than Auto in my case (text editing and some I-net/Mailing)?

That would be a registry tweak question, the combination of powersaving, CPU speed settings, with minimal use not on ac, and utilising full power off from third party app[batt pack pro] allows me more than 78 hours, but I don't see any reason to not run on AC, if you don;t need to be mobile.

spunker88 · 03-05-07, 09:55 AM

Originally Posted by Box

I don't see a problem with Purcy's suggestion.

You can leave it plugged in all day.

Ok, you asked about battery life, but you said you were new to PDA, and as such you may not have been aware that it is possible to have it running on AC power all the time.

I agree, as long as ur using it indoors, there should be a outlet near. Just leave it plugged in. My axim is always on the charger when im at home.

white_noize · 03-05-07, 11:33 PM

Thanks for recommending Batt Pack pro and XCPUScalar. Maybe I'll give'em a try.
I've searched registry for cpu, cpuspeed, processor, power but didn't find anything for setting cpu speed boundaries...

03-06-07, 06:36 AM

Originally Posted by white_noize

Thanks for recommending Batt Pack pro and XCPUScalar. Maybe I'll give'em a try.
I've searched registry for cpu, cpuspeed, processor, power but didn't find anything for setting cpu speed boundaries...

Start/system /settings
power/processor you can manipulate processor speed there.

white_noize · 03-06-07, 10:41 AM

Originally Posted by Pedah

Start/system /settings
power/processor you can manipulate processor speed there.

That's what I did right after the first power-up. :)
It can set 3 fixed speeds and one variable (Auto):
Maximum performance = 624 MHz
Normal = 520 MHz
Power saving = 208 MHz
Auto = 104 - 624 MHz
The point is to tweak Auto mode, say to 74 - 416