Re: Which uses less power

Bill Powell <bill@anarchists.org> wrote:

Which uses less of the phone's battery power on long trips?
 
Playing long podcasts with the Android speaker as the output?
Playing long podcasts with a Bluetooth speaker as the output instead?
 
Any idea?

The Bluetooth headset requires its own power source to produce the
audio.  Audio played from the phone's speaker uses the phone's battery.
Of course, with the BT headset consuming its own battery to power the
audio output, you'll have to recharge the BT headset.  Depending on how
"long" is the trip, your BT headset could die before you arrive.  But
then so, too, can your phone, unless you carry a power pack (I always
take on on a trip that is fully charged), or have a power port in the
car or plane to recharge the phone or keep the phone charged.

Presumably your smartphone support Bluetooth LE (low energy).  Even if
using the phone's own speaker for audio output, you're likely still
leaving on the BT radio to consume energy.  The BT power would be wasted
when using the phone's speaker.