Best Practices

1) Unregister sensor listeners

public class SensorActivity extends Activity, implements SensorEventListener {
  private final SensorManager mSensorManager;
  private final Sensor mLight;
  ...

  protected void onResume() {
    super.onResume();
    mSensorManager.registerListener(this, mLight, SensorManager.SENSOR_DELAY_NORMAL);
  }

  protected void onPause() {
    super.onPause();
    mSensorManager.unregisterListener(this);
  }
}

Always make sure to disable sensors you don't need, especially when your activity is paused. Failing to do so can drain the battery in just a few hours. Note that the system will not disable sensors automatically when the screen turns off.

2) Don't block the onSensorChanged() method

Sensor data can change at a high rate, which means the system may call the onSensorChanged(SensorEvent) method quite often. As a best practice, you should do as little as possible within the onSensorChanged(SensorEvent) method so you don't block it.

3) Avoid using deprecated methods or sensor types

Several methods and constants have been deprecated. In particular, the TYPE_ORIENTATION sensor type has been deprecated.

4) Verify sensors before you use them

Always verify that a sensor exists on a device before you attempt to acquire data from it. Don't assume that a sensor exists simply because it's a frequently-used sensor.

5) Choose sensor delays carefully

Sensors can provide data at very high rates. Allowing the system to send extra data that you don't need wastes system resources and uses battery power.