Is a smartphone that has been turned off really asleep?

August 4, 2025

Turning off your smartphone gives you a bit of peace of mind, doesn't it?

No notifications come through, the screen goes completely dark, and finally, you feel like you are free from everyone.

But don't you sometimes wonder
if it is really completely off?

In fact, recent smartphones have a complex mechanism that cannot be described as just on or off.

Even when the power is off, alarms may sound or the battery may drain.
Sometimes it behaves in a way that makes you think it might still be running somewhere.

On iPhones, a feature released in iOS in 2022 caused a stir because even when powered off, the device continues to emit Bluetooth signals through the "Find My" function.
In other words, even if the smartphone is off, its location can be tracked like an AirTag.
Of course, this feature is provided for user convenience, but if misused, it could become a legitimate tracking method.

In the Android camp, there have been reports that on some models, certain processor parts operate weakly even when the battery is completely drained. This is for faster startup and communication standby, but it means the device is "not completely off."

There are also cases where parts that detect location or movement, such as GPS or accelerometers, are not completely stopped.

Moreover, most mainstream smartphones today have built-in batteries.

Unlike in the past, you cannot remove the battery to completely cut the power.
In other words, even if you think you have turned off your smartphone, it may not actually be in a deep sleep.

Of course, that doesn't mean something bad will happen immediately.
But knowing that your smartphone might be awake just a little bit without you realizing it
can cause a slight feeling of unease.

AntiSpyPhone properly addresses this point.
For example,

It has a mode that completely blocks hardware-level functions such as the microphone, camera, GPS, and WiFi communication when the power is off.

Conversely, it completely shuts out convenient features like iPhone's "Find My" or Android's "Find Device," which allow communication even after the power is turned off.

Also, it is designed to minimize unnecessary operations, such as automatically blocking network communication when entering sleep mode.

In short, by letting the smartphone rest properly,
we as owners can also rest more peacefully.

Nowadays, owning a smartphone has become normal,
and precisely because of that,