Android: Drains Battery When App Not in Use

[Cdog02mustgt]

I am noticing that even when I have Pandora stopped and cleared (not used) it is still running and using up battery. Only way to fix it is to apply a force stop to it. Anyway to get this to stop?

mod edit: changed title for clarity

[AdamPandora]

@Cdog02mustgt I recommend running through the following troubleshooting steps listed here.

Let us know if you continue to run into issues with this. 

[Cdog02mustgt]

All the steps are reversed of what I need. None of them apply. 

Thanks

[AdamPandora]

@Cdog02mustgt I have contacted our support team, and they will be reaching out to you via email to the email address your Pandora account is registered under.

Please keep an eye out for their message and they will continue to further assist you with this.

Thanks for your patience. 

[Nftypjs]

I have exact same issue. I had 7 hrs of active Pandora supposedly according to battery usage meter. Optimization was off, background unrestricted. Pandora turned on with my alarm and was turned off promptly so not sure how it was running for 7 hrs. My battery has drained exceptionally fast since Android 10 upgrade but only thing showing up in usage that's out of place is Pandora.

[AlyssaPandora]

Thanks for reporting, @Nftypjs.

I've checked in with our support team, and someone will reach out to you via email to gather more info about what's happening.

[Parica0801]

Did you work this out ? If so, how ?

Does Pandora use as much battery as YouTube ?

Been killing too many phones watching too much YouTube , when I only need the music not the videos?

Will listening to Pandora use less battery than YouTube ?

mod edit: format

[AlyssaPandora]

Hi there, @Parica0801. 👋

Thanks so much for posting on the Pandora Community.

Sorry to hear that you may be experiencing battery draining issues.

Let's try running through the standard troubleshooting steps on your Android device while I have a trace enabled on your account.

Feel free to let me know if you continue experiencing this after trying out those steps.

I look forward to hearing back! 🎧

[Jaysonben]

The latest update to the Pandora Android app seems to have made the battery drain when not using the app worse. It is now causing my phone to overheat. Is there any bug report, or possible fix?

mod edit: changed title for clarity

[AlyssaPandora]

Hi there, @Jaysonben. 👋

Thanks for reporting your experience. 

I've enabled a trace on your Pandora account. Are you exiting the app when you're done with your listening session? Or, are you leaving the app paused when you're finished?

In the meantime, let's try running through these steps on your device.

Let me know how it goes. 📲

[Jaysonben]

Hello Alyssa.

I have completed the troubleshooting steps listed.

Typically, Pandora is being launched by Android Auto when I'm driving.  After I complete my drive, I will click into the Pandora app and close out.  Shortly after I do that, I get the player banner back in my notifications and my battery starts to drain quickly.  Since the last update, that has also been accompanied by my phone getting really warm and yesterday I was getting a phone overheat warning.

[AlyssaPandora]

@Jaysonben Thanks for the follow up. I'd like to share this information with our engineering team.

If you continue to have trouble with this today, can you send over a bit more info about your device?

• Model:
• Carrier:
• Android version (Settings > About Phone):
• Build number (Settings > About Phone):
• Android Security Patch Level, if noted on your device (Settings > About Phone):
• Pandora version:
  • Go to Profile, then select Settings. Scroll to the bottom of the screen for the version number.

Are you connected to Wi-Fi or cellular data when this is happening?

Have you identified any other patterns or notable information?

Thanks for your help with this. 🎧

[Jaysonben]

Sure, I will monitor today and update later.

Model: Google Pixel 3a

Carrier: T-Mobile

Android version (Settings > About Phone): 10

Build number (Settings > About Phone): QQ3A.200805.001

Android Security Patch Level, if noted on your device (Settings > About Phone): August 2020

Pandora version: 2007.2 (ANDROID TUNER 2007.2RC10)

I don't usually use my phone for music over Wi-Fi.  The vast majority of the time I am using cellular data.

[AlyssaPandora]

Sounds good @Jaysonben.

Thanks again for your help with this. 

[Jaysonben]

Hello @AlyssaPandora .  I wanted to follow up with some additional information.

It appears that having the Android Auto app on the phone launch Pandora seems to cause the battery drain and overheat issue.  In order to get function to return to normal, I have to exit out of Android Auto, then use the Pandora player notification a couple of times to enter Pandora.  After that, things seem to return to normal till the next time Android Auto launches.

[AlyssaPandora]

@Jaysonben Thanks for the additional information. I've reported your device details and experience to our engineering team.

Thanks for your patience while they look into this. 🎧

[Faeonah]

Hello.  I have seen other posts regarding Pandora running I. The background even when closed, and battery drain issues.  However, iam not seeing any responses resolving the issue.  Please let me know how to fix this.  Thank you.

[nkb811]

If you open your currently running apps (by holding the home button or pressing the three bar list button next to your home button depending on your phone), you should be able to shut it off from there by clicking an x or by swiping it to the side.

However, if that doesn't work, then you can go to all apps, press and hold on the Pandora icon, click App Info, and press Force Stop. That will close the application. You should also be able to see the settings/preferences/permissions for Pandora on this screen, and under one of the options you should be able to prevent the application from running in the background.

[AlyssaPandora]

Great suggestions, @nkb811. 👍 

@Faeonah I would recommend trying out @nkb811's suggestions in the post here.

If you continue to have trouble with the battery draining, please let us know. 🎧

[eboucher]

after installing the app, i watched my battery drain from 82% down to 15% in a matter of 10-20 minutes.

after closing the app and performing a forced stop, i fully charged the device.

after unplugging the device, the battery charge went from 100% down to 5% in about 10 minutes.

after uninstalling the app and performing a power cycle a few times, the battery charging and life went back to normal. 

a week later i installed the app again. device started to exhibit the same behavior of random discharging and failure to charge.

after uninstalling the app a second time, the phone resumed normal operations.

i installed the app a third time and the charging started to fail again and android device started to discharge at an extremely fast pace. Each time, i performed a force stop on the application to ensure it was not running.

after multiple iteration it seems that the battery drain and charging issues are linked to having Pandora installed.