Lower the Minimum Refresh Rate to 1Hz via ADB Command

In this guide, we will show you the steps to lower the minimum refresh rate to 1Hz via ADB Commands. While the term refresh rate (aka the number of times the display refreshes itself per second) isn’t new, yet it has only recently made its presence felt in the smartphone domain. Many devices are now offering 120hz refresh with some gaming hardcore ones even pushing the limits to 144Hz. As a result, you are guaranteed a much more fluid, smoother, and lag-free user experience. But all this comes at a cost.

And the cost is of excessive battery drainage. In this regard, most OEMs packs in an Adaptive Refresh Rate functionality that will automatically adjust the refresh rate based on the task you are performing, For example, if you are playing a graphics-rich game, then it will adopt to a higher rate, more often to the maximum possible limit. On the other hand. if you are performing a less resource-intensive task, such as replying to a WhatsApp message, then this refresh rate will automatically lower down.

However, this lowering down is also capped by many OEMs at 60hz. So while you could have easily had a chat with your friends at 20-30Hz, your device is stuck at double the rate, with no benefits sight but rather the caveat of battery being drained out. So to prevent this from happening, you could lower the minimum refresh rate to 1Hz via ADB Commands. As a result, when a task with low resource usage is being carried out, your device would have the option to opt for 10-20Hz, as opposed to earlier only being stuck at 60hz. Without any further ado, let’s check out how this could be carried out.

Table of Contents

How to Lower the Minimum Refresh Rate to 1Hz

The below instructions are listed under separate sections for ease of understanding. Make sure to follow in the exact same sequence as mentioned.

STEP 1: Download Android SDK

First and foremost, you will have to install the Android SDK Platform Tools on your PC. This is the official ADB and Fastboot binary provided by Google and is the only recommended one. So download it and then extract it to any convenient location on your PC. Doing so will give you the platform-tools folder, which will be used throughout this guide.

STEP 2: Enable USB Debugging

Next up, you will have to enable USB Debugging on your device so that it is recognizable by the PC in ADB mode. So head over to Settings > About Phone > Tap on Build Number 7 times > Go back to Settings > System > Advanced > Developer Options > Enable USB Debugging.

STEP 3: Verify ADB Connection

To begin with, connect your device to the PC via USB cable. Make sure USB Debugging is enabled.
Then head over to the platform-tools folder, type in CMD in the address bar, and hit Enter. This will launch the Command Prompt.
Now in the following command in the CMD window to verify the ADB connection:
```
adb devices
```
if you get the device ID, then the connection stands successful and you are good to go ahead. However, if the connection isn’t successfully established, then do check out our guide on How to Fix All ADB and Fastboot Errors.

STEP 4: Lower the Minimum Refresh Rate to 1Hz via ADB

Now just execute the below ADB command in the CMD window to lower the minimum refresh rate to 1Hz. The refresh rate will still stay adaptive, it’s just that your device now has the liberty to opt for a lower value, something in the range of 10-20 as well. In other words, your device’s display will oscillate between 1Hz and the maximum possible refresh rate supported by your device. So on that note, here’s the command that you need to execute:

adb shell settings put system min_refresh_rate 1.0

That’s it. These were the steps to lower the minimum refresh rate to 1HZ via ADB Commands. The commands have been successfully tested on Galaxy S20 and it should work across all Android devices (obviously the device should be having a 120hz refresh rate in the first place). On that note, we round off this guide. If you have any queries concerning the aforementioned steps, do let us know in the comments. We will get back to you with a solution at the earliest.

About Chief Editor

Sadique Hassan

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A technical geek by birth, he always has a keen interest in the Android platform right since the birth of the HTC Dream. The open-source environment always seems to intrigue him with the plethora of options available at his fingertips. “MBA by profession, blogger by choice!”

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