BOOX Palma 2 · Troubleshooting

The BOOX Palma 2 battery drains fast

The Palma 2 loses charge quickly even when idle. On this pocket Android e-reader it is almost always background apps, sync, or Wi-Fi left on.

Software: BOOX firmware
Difficulty: Easy
Time: 25 minutes
Last tested: August 2026
Last updated: August 2026

Symptoms

The battery drops 10 percent or more overnight with nothing running.
A full charge lasts a day instead of several.
The device feels warm in your pocket when it has been idle.
Battery life fell after installing several apps.

Before you start

The Palma 2 is pocket-sized with a phone-class battery; expect several days of light reading, not weeks.
Note which apps you have installed and signed into — each is a potential drain.
None of these steps remove your books.

Which fix do you need?

What does the drain look like?

It has been heavy since I set the device up Restrict background apps and turn Wi-Fi off between syncs
It got worse after I installed several apps One app is likely holding it awake — find it
The device is warm when idle A stuck app or process — restart and check
It drains even in airplane mode Check the optimisation and auto-sync settings

Most common cause

Because people carry the Palma 2 like a phone, they leave it signed into feed readers, mail and store apps that sync constantly, with Wi-Fi always on. The causes in order are: background apps syncing; Wi-Fi left on; and one misbehaving app holding the device awake. BOOX's power settings control most of this.

Fixes

Fix 1 Restrict background apps and manage Wi-Fi

Feed readers, mail and store apps sync in the background by default, and Wi-Fi left on lets them do it constantly. Restricting them and turning Wi-Fi off between syncs is most of the fix.

Open Settings, then "Power", and set apps you use only occasionally to "optimised" or "restricted".
Keep one or two apps you use constantly exempt so they resume instantly.
Turn Wi-Fi off from the control centre when you are just reading; turn it on to sync, then off again. Or use airplane mode.
In each reading and feed app's own settings, turn off "sync on open" or set the sync interval to manual.

Fix 2 Find an app that is holding the device awake

One app with a bug can keep the processor from sleeping, which shows as steady drain and a warm device even with the screen off.

Open Settings, then Battery, and look at the per-app battery usage since the last full charge. An app near the top you have barely opened is the suspect.
Restrict or force-stop that app. If the drain stops over the next day, it was the cause.
Restart the device to clear any process already stuck awake.
If you cannot tell which app, use safe mode for a day. If standby is good in safe mode, a third-party app is the cause; add them back one at a time.

Fix 3 Check optimisation and auto-sync settings

If the device drains even with the radios off, an app is doing local work, or the system's own sync accounts are busy.

Open Settings, then "Accounts", and turn off auto-sync for any account you do not need syncing continuously.
In BOOX's app-optimisation panel, make sure no reading app is set to keep running or to disable Android's power management for it.
Let the device sit plugged in and idle for an hour to finish any pending indexing, then unplug and check standby again.
As a last resort, back up sideloaded books and do a factory reset, then add apps back carefully.

Undo / recovery

Restricting apps and turning off sync are safe and reversible. A factory reset erases the device's internal storage but not a microSD card or cloud-synced content. Only reset if targeted fixes fail.

Start by turning Wi-Fi off between syncs and restricting background apps — that alone brings most Palma 2 units back to several days of standby. If it is still bad, the battery-usage list will point to the one app holding the device awake.