GSam Labs

Android continues to throw wrenches into how GSam Battery Monitor gathers statistics.  That said, the changes are for the most part good from a security perspective, and Google has made it possible to continue to access much of the data - it just requires some re-work. Standard vs Enhanced Stats Standard:   For standard statistics (what you get if you don't run any ADB commands), GSam tracks things like bluetooth, phone, network, and screen usage using standard Android interfaces.  These all require GSam to be running at all times as a service in the background.  GSam is pretty efficient, so should have negligible impact on the battery. Enhanced:   In enhanced mode, the user needs to provide GSam with access to the BATTERY_STATS permission .  This allows GSam to access a wealth of data that Android collects.  In KitKat, Android removed the ability for apps to request access to this permission.  However in Lollipop and beyond, they partially restored the ability by allowing

GSam Battery Monitor and KitKat As of version 3.3, GSam Battery Monitor is now fully compatible with Android KitKat (4.4) for non-root devices.  If your device is rooted however, there are more statistics that GSam can collect.  So if you have root, make sure you install the GSam Battery Root Companion app.  If you don't have root - no problem, things will still work well, but some stats such as app wakelocks will not be available. Unfortunately, Google has removed the ability in KitKat (4.4) for non-system applications to access battery statistics.  On versions prior to KitKat, GSam obtained battery statistics from a built-in set of statistics from Android.  If you have root, we can still get at that data.  If you do not, then GSam will track as much of that data as it can by itself.   Not all data can be tracked however. Permissions: In order to manually track usage for non-root users in KitKat, we had to include 2 new permissions.  READ_PHONE_STATE and ACCESS_WIFI

Version 2.28 of GSam Battery Monitor has added support for displaying Kernel Wakelocks.  Kernel wakelocks are a very advanced feature, and are not intended for your average user.  Indeed, I see so many users getting confused by them in forum posts that I have resisted the urge to add them in.  They are often unique per phone / manufacturer, and a high wakelock time is not necessarily indicative of a problem. All that said, kernel wakelocks are very useful for folks trying to diagnose custom ROM problems.  If you're running a custom ROM and are seeing battery issues, kernel wakelocks are very useful, and can help the ROM developer understand what is going on.  For people using stock ROMs they are useful to simply understand how their phone usage affects their battery life, however this takes a lot of understanding and often a lot of research reading code to understand what a certain wakelock does. So - use with caution.  Click on the wakelock and select the Google Me button t

Mea Culpa - my apologies to the entire community that uses and relies on GSam Battery Monitor.   This bad update (version 2.23) should have never gone out the door!  The latest version on Google Play (version 2.24) fixes the force close issue. Yesterday (Sat Dec 1) I worked on a few updates and bug fixes to GSam Battery Monitor.  I got them all working and tested on my various test devices, and I was ready to publish. Publishing is a pain.  I have 6 different builds to run.  2 for Google Play (free & paid), 2 for Amazon Appstore, and 2 for the Nook Store.  I do each one manually - yes, I know...I should have automated this a long time ago).   Once built, I will test install one of the builds onto a phone - make sure it installs and do a very basic test (I've already done my full code tests before the formal build).  Then I have to go into each 'store' and upload them.  It's easy enough when there are no screenshot changes - but it still takes about 5 minutes

The GSam Battery Monitor Icon Pack contains support for overlaying your default battery icon.  Take a look at the top right of the screenshot below.  You see the 12?  That's the overlay icon, replacing the normal drab battery icon that doesn't show you any details. Why Overlay? Some devices don't show the icon in the normal notification bar, so you have to drag down the notification to see the % of your battery. A lot of custom ROMs for your phone/tablet support a 'mod' that allows you to control the battery icon itself.  Great for those who have it - but this brings you similar function without rooting your device! The overlay shows up on your lock screen - so no more unlocking your phone just to see your battery %.  Some phones already show the battery % in the lock screen, but a lot don't. Enabling the Overlay: Launch GSam Battery Monitor (any edition) Open up the Preferences (Menu -> Preferences) Choose one of the icon pack theme