Is a background refresh a real drain on the battery?

[Ringfinger]

G-Mail App And Saving Battery Life

I'll make it quick, I seem to get a lot of e-mail. I have my iPhone set for background app refresh for the G-Mail app. If I turn that off, I will save on battery life but how will I get my mail? I assume I would have to launch the app every time I wanted to see if I got new mail?

Is background app refresh a real drain on this app? Anyone with advice?

Thanks!

 

[Just_Me_D]

Re: G-Mail App And Saving Battery Life

For the short time I was using the Background App Refresh feature, I didn't notice a "real drain" on the battery with my iPhone 5.

 

[Ringfinger]

Re: G-Mail App And Saving Battery Life

What does it actually do?