I’ve always been baffled by how quickly my phone’s battery drains when I’m watching videos. It doesn’t matter if it’s Instagram reels, a video podcast, or a stand-up special playing in the background while I’m scrubbing dishes—I’m usually not even looking at the screen. I’m just listening. Meanwhile, my phone is blasting its display at full brightness, draining the battery and warming up the device for no meaningful reason.

Android users have been improvising fixes for years. We dim the screen as far as it will go (never quite enough) using screen brightness apps, flip the phone face-down (and hope it doesn’t get scratched), or pay for premium subscriptions just to unlock background playback.

If you want a universal, app-agnostic solution that doesn’t hide behind a monthly fee, you have to rethink how your screen behaves. That’s exactly where ScreenVeil steps in.

ScreenVeil

OS Android

Price model Free

ScreenVeil blacks out your display while videos keep playing normally in the background. Save battery, cut glare, and watch content without needing the screen.

ScreenVeil lets you stream audio from any video app with the screen off

And that really helps you reduce battery drain

Once installed, open ScreenVeil, tap START SERVICE, grant the Overlay permission, and a blue floating button will appear on your screen. That’s pretty much the whole thing. The floating button stays visible over any app you’re using, ready to activate whenever you need it. When you want to save battery while watching a video, tap the button to dim your screen, revealing an always-on clock display. Your video continues playing normally, but you only hear the audio.

To exit the black screen mode, you touch anywhere on the display. This reveals an UNLOCK button centered at the bottom of the screen. Tap it, and you’re back to your normal view with your video or app visible again. This two-step unlock process is brilliant because it prevents accidental exits, just as you might disable touchscreen input to avoid interruptions.

The app also offers some useful customization options in its Settings menu. You can enable "Auto-hide floating button," which makes the blue button semi-transparent after three seconds of inactivity. This keeps it accessible but less visually intrusive when you’re actively using your phone. There’s also a "24-hour format" toggle that changes how time is displayed on the black overlay, though it’s off by default.

Under Permissions, the app shows that it has been granted "Overlay Permission," which is required to display both the floating button and the black screen overlay. This is the only permission ScreenVeil needs, and you must grant it during initial setup. It’s a standard requirement for apps that function this way, but it’s always good practice to check app permissions before installing.

ScreenVeil delivers the biggest battery gains on AMOLED devices

Saving your screen from burn-in and your battery from an early grave

Credit: Yadullah Abidi / MakeUseOf

The reason ScreenVeil works so effectively comes down to the differences between OLED vs. AMOLED vs. IPS LCD displays. If you have a phone with an AMOLED, OLED, or POLED screen (which covers the vast majority of Samsung Galaxy models, Google Pixels, and OnePlus phones), you’re sitting on untapped potential to reduce battery drain with phone display settings. Unlike traditional LCD screens that use a backlight, OLED technology illuminates individual pixels. When a pixel needs to display black, it simply switches off. No light. No energy draw. No wasted power.

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This is what ScreenVeil leverages on. By covering your entire screen with pure black pixels, the app effectively covers the display with a pure-black overlay without actually putting your phone to sleep. According to the developer, this can save 50–80% of your battery life compared to leaving the screen on during video playback. In my testing, this claim holds up remarkably well.

I typically watch YouTube videos and listen to podcasts during my commute and throughout the workday, which used to drain my battery from 100% to around 20% by evening. After switching to ScreenVeil for audio-focused content, my phone consistently ends the day with a 40–50% battery remaining. Isn’t that lovely?

And so, for students, this means you can listen to recorded lectures while taking notes without worrying about your battery dying before the end of the day. If you are a commuter, you can enjoy your favorite podcasts for hours without having to check your battery percentage frequently. Anyone working out can play workout videos for audio cues without the screen timing out or accidentally pausing. The use cases are endless, and they all share the same benefit: significantly extended battery life.

A simple cure for the headache of mandatory "active watching"

ScreenVeil is quite lightweight and responsive, adding minimal overhead to your system. Unlike bloated battery-saver apps that promise optimization but end up consuming resources themselves, ScreenVeil delivers on its claims without bogging down your phone. The floating button is small and unobtrusive, and toggling the overlay on and off is instantaneous.

If you are tired of carrying a power bank just because you like listening to video essays, or if you want to listen to your favorite shows without lighting up the entire room at night, ScreenVeil is a must-download.