PowerTOP Still Worthwhile For Extending Linux Battery Life In 2018

[juno]

Isn't it easier to just install tlp?

Don't think so. powertop --auto-tune is a fast and easy call. Try it, see if it breaks something with your hardware and done. You have to do more configuration for TLP, although of course you get more options as well.

[Rune]

I find this interesting because in my HP laptop does not get any watt reduction (nothing above noise) using powertop.
it is a 7700HQ CPU and AMD+Intel GPU.

It idles at 5,5-6.5 watts measured a wall.
(I do undervolt the CPU & GPU, but that does not effect wattage significantly at idle)

[timrichardson]

Care to benchmark powertop vs laptop-mode-tools vs TLP?

I have a Thinkpad t480, Ubuntu 18.04 but with a 4.17 kernel. powertop --auto-tune makes tld savings redundant based on my testing (that is, tld offers no additional power savings). And vice-versa: tld enables all of the power savings powertop suggests, save one (VM write back).

However, I still use tld because of its neat management of the Thinkpad's battery features (stop charging before 100%, which greatly extends the service life of the battery, and easy one-time charge-to-max).

[elvenbone]

Do you guys also use the power management features when connected to the AC or only on battery? And if on AC, do some of the features reduce performance severely?

[quequotion]

I took everything powertop toggles, and most of what tlp toggles, and a bunch of other advise from all across the internet, and plugged it into a fork of indicator-cpufreq that I call indicator-powersave. Even if the indicator (an SNI of the Ayatana variety) wouldn't be useful on your desktop, the backend bash script, "throttle" can be used independently. I also package a systemd service that runs at boot, and a set of udev rules for even earlier setting of powersave features (packaged, but not installed in case systems have old, buggy devices).

The purpose of indicator-powersave and throttle are to provide user-discretion, rather than automated, power management.

To be honest though, I could use some help. I want to make an indicator that can be compiled for panels other than Unity or those with an Ayatana plugin. I could also use some feedback on hardware other than my own (currently not doing anything in particular for ATI gpus, etc, for lack of materiel)