Chrome has in recent years gained a reputation as a battery hog and a RAM killer, but it seems that Google has finally decided to do something about it. According to TheWindowsClub, the latest Chrome 86 build appears to include an experimental feature that reduces energy consumption by limiting JavaScript timer wakeups. With this, Chrome will limit JavaScript wakeup timers to 1 wake up per minute, which is similar to how Safari operates.
Google Chrome reportedly saved two hours of battery life in a test running 36 background tabs and one blank foreground tab. There were also tests running a youtube video in the foreground which, while not as dramatic, still saved about 36 minutes.
While this new upgrade is sure to help increase battery life, there are still quite a few steps you can take to improve the battery life on your laptop. The first, and probably the easiest would be to close down unused applications and browser tabs. Remember to check your task manager/activity monitor, as there might still be background processes running even if you appear to have closed the program. The task manager/activity monitor is also a good place to check what applications are using the most system resources. Checking for applications that are heavy users of RAM and CPU is often the best bet.
Wifi and Bluetooth can also draw quite a bit of power over time. Not only will the wifi card keep searching for available networks, but other applications that rely on them will continue to push updates and notifications. Consider putting your laptop into airplane mode on windows, or turning off wifi and Bluetooth on macOS.
Finally, the easiest way to ensure you don’t run out of power is to carry an external battery pack. Our Omnicharge Omni 20+ is a great addition for most laptops and provides 3 different ways you can power your laptop.
Check out our latest offerings here.
You can also read more about Chromes upcoming update here:
https://news.thewindowsclub.com/google-chrome-ships-a-new-feature-to-increase-the-battery-life-101417/