diff --git a/FEATURES.md b/FEATURES.md
index e9a8bfe8..0e90e281 100644
--- a/FEATURES.md
+++ b/FEATURES.md
@@ -339,7 +339,61 @@ A fuller position-centred navigator (you fixed at screen centre, fixed/preset
 zoom, pan) is a larger separate feature; start with the rotate-the-fit version
 if pursued.
 
-### 📋 Battery / power optimization (CAD RX windowing + APC) — after trail polish
+### 🚧 Battery / power optimization (CAD RX windowing + APC)
+
+**Phase 1 shipped on branch `feat/power-saving`** (CAD-windowed receive). Not yet
+merged — under field testing. Where things stand and what to return to:
+
+**✅ Done (phase 1) — CAD-windowed RX, behind a setting**
+- `RadioLibWrapper` gained a CAD state machine (scan → standby window → on
+  detect, full RX), driven from `loop()` (runs before `recvRaw`). `state` stays
+  `STATE_RX` through all phases so the dispatcher's not-in-RX watchdog never
+  trips; re-arm routes through `armRecv()`; falls back to continuous RX if CAD
+  is unsupported. `setPowerSaving()`/`getPowerSaving()`.
+- Companion: `rx_powersave` pref (schema `0xC0DE0008`), **Settings › Radio ›
+  "Pwr save"** toggle, applied at boot (MyMesh) and on change (UITask).
+- CSMA unaffected: this firmware's interference threshold is already 0, so
+  listen-before-talk was a no-op; airtime budget + `isReceivingPacket()` still
+  gate TX. CAD window = 45 ms (< the ~66 ms 16-symbol preamble at SF8/BW62.5),
+  RadioLib default CAD params.
+- **Field test:** the **base (Pwr save OFF) is healthy** — no regression vs
+  stock; an earlier "drops vs stock" scare turned out to be weak repeater
+  coverage at the test site (direct device-to-device was fine). With **Pwr save
+  ON, occasional message drops** were observed (CAD misses some), so it stays
+  **default OFF** and is experimental until detection is made reliable.
+
+**⏸ To return to (not done)**
+- **WAITING ON: upstream preamble 16 → 32.** Upstream `dev` raised the LoRa
+  preamble from 16 to 32 symbols; we'll pick it up via the next upstream
+  release/merge (our radio init still hardcodes 16 in `CustomSX1262.h`
+  `begin(..., 16, tcxo)`). This is the natural fix for the CAD drops: at
+  SF8/BW62.5 the preamble goes ~66 ms → ~131 ms, so the conservative 45 ms scan
+  window gains a huge margin (~21 ms → ~86 ms) and the occasional misses should
+  disappear — **revisit power-save right after that lands.** It also un-no-ops
+  `startReceiveDutyCycleAuto(32)` (32 ≥ 2·minSymbols+1), enabling the SX126x
+  hardware RX duty cycle as an alternative to the software CAD loop. Caveat: the
+  scan window must be sized for the *shortest* preamble on the mesh, so a longer
+  window / `startReceiveDutyCycleAuto(32)` only pays off once senders are
+  broadly on 32 — keep 45 ms while the mesh is mixed.
+- **CAD detection reliability** — the open blocker (see above; the preamble
+  bump is expected to resolve most of it). If misses persist after preamble 32,
+  tune the CAD parameters (`setCad` symbolNum / detPeak / detMin via a
+  `ChannelScanConfig_t`). Needs the current measurement below to judge the
+  reliability-vs-savings trade.
+- **Current measurement** — never taken (no PPK2/meter to hand). The actual mA
+  win is unquantified. Do this alongside the detection-reliability tuning.
+- **Warm sleep between scans** — tried (`cadSleep()`/`cadWake()` hooks exist) but
+  **reverted**: warm sleep dropped longer packets because the **TCXO** hadn't
+  re-stabilised before the post-CAD receive → frequency drift → symbol errors
+  over a long payload. To revisit: configure a proper SX126x TCXO startup delay
+  and ensure RX waits for "TCXO ready", then re-test long-packet reception. Worth
+  ~another 2× on idle-window current (standby ~mA → sleep ~µA).
+- **CAD window tuning** — 45 ms is conservative; could push toward the preamble
+  limit (~55 ms) for fewer scans / lower average current, once measured.
+- **Adaptive Power Control (APC)** — drop `tx_power_dbm` dynamically on good
+  links. Small win for a mostly-listening node; lower priority.
+
+**Original analysis (kept for context):**
 
 Goal: multiply battery life **without losing functionality**. The dominant
 draw on this node is the radio in **continuous RX** (always-on `startReceive()`
@@ -379,12 +433,9 @@ at preamble 16). Prefer adopting/extending upstream work over a parallel
 implementation. Note ZephCore's licence before copying any code verbatim
 (architecture inspiration is fine).
 
-Sequencing: **deferred until the trail/waypoints/nav polishing is finished.**
-The radio-side CAD windowing lives on the `feat/power-saving` branch and is now
-**unblocked** by the preamble fix. First step when picked up: rebase it onto the
-v1.16 merge (it will hit the removed `radio_set_tx_power()`/`radio_set_params()`
-globals — replace with `radio_driver.*` like the merge did), then re-test whether
-long messages still drop at preamble 32, ideally profiling with a PPK2/meter.
+Sequencing: phase 1 (CAD windowing) is done and in field test on
+`feat/power-saving`; see the status block at the top of this entry for what's
+left (measurement, warm sleep, window tuning, APC).
 
 ### SOS broadcast
 
diff --git a/src/helpers/radiolib/CustomSX1262Wrapper.h b/src/helpers/radiolib/CustomSX1262Wrapper.h
index cc7bb223..1889a866 100644
--- a/src/helpers/radiolib/CustomSX1262Wrapper.h
+++ b/src/helpers/radiolib/CustomSX1262Wrapper.h
@@ -40,6 +40,17 @@ public:
 
   void doResetAGC() override { sx126xResetAGC((SX126x *)_radio); }
 
+  // Warm sleep between CAD scans: ~1.5 µA vs ~600 µA in standby-RC.
+  // cadWake() delays 5 ms so the TCXO fully re-stabilises before the next scan
+  // (previous attempt without the delay corrupted long packets via freq drift).
+  void cadSleep() override {
+    ((CustomSX1262 *)_radio)->sleep(true);  // warm sleep — config retained
+  }
+  void cadWake() override {
+    _radio->standby();
+    delayMicroseconds(5000);  // TCXO stabilisation after warm sleep
+  }
+
   void setRxBoostedGainMode(bool en) override {
     ((CustomSX1262 *)_radio)->setRxBoostedGainMode(en);
   }
diff --git a/src/helpers/radiolib/RadioLibWrappers.cpp b/src/helpers/radiolib/RadioLibWrappers.cpp
index 45b266ef..57e27f63 100644
--- a/src/helpers/radiolib/RadioLibWrappers.cpp
+++ b/src/helpers/radiolib/RadioLibWrappers.cpp
@@ -19,10 +19,10 @@
 #define PS_SLEEPING  2   // standby between scans, waiting for _ps_timer
 #define PS_RXING     3   // CAD hit → full receive armed, waiting for the packet
 
-// Time between CAD scans. Must be shorter than the on-air preamble so a scan
-// always lands inside it (16-symbol preamble ≈ 66 ms at SF8/BW62.5). Tuned for
-// this firmware's fixed LoRa params — revisit if SF/BW change.
-#define PS_CAD_INTERVAL_MS  45
+// Time between CAD scans. Must be shorter than half the on-air preamble so at
+// least two scans land inside it. 32-symbol preamble ≈ 131 ms at SF8/BW62.5
+// → 65 ms gives 2 guaranteed windows with margin. Revisit if SF/BW change.
+#define PS_CAD_INTERVAL_MS  65
 // If CAD detects activity but no packet actually lands, fall back to scanning
 // instead of sitting in continuous RX forever.
 #define PS_RX_TIMEOUT_MS    1500
@@ -144,6 +144,7 @@ void RadioLibWrapper::startRecv() {
 // If CAD isn't supported by the module, permanently fall back to continuous RX.
 void RadioLibWrapper::armRecv() {
   if (_power_save) {
+    cadWake();                              // bring the radio out of warm sleep first
     int16_t e = _radio->startChannelScan();
     if (e == RADIOLIB_ERR_NONE) { _ps_phase = PS_SCANNING; state = STATE_RX; return; }
     MESH_DEBUG_PRINTLN("RadioLibWrapper: CAD unsupported (%d) — power-save off", (int)e);
@@ -159,7 +160,7 @@ void RadioLibWrapper::armRecv() {
 }
 
 void RadioLibWrapper::enterCadSleep() {
-  _radio->standby();              // low-power between scans (TODO: warm sleep for more savings)
+  cadSleep();                     // warm sleep (SX126x) or standby fallback between scans
   _ps_phase = PS_SLEEPING;
   _ps_timer = millis() + PS_CAD_INTERVAL_MS;
   state = STATE_RX;               // keep isInRecvMode() true so the dispatcher doesn't flag a stuck radio
diff --git a/src/helpers/radiolib/RadioLibWrappers.h b/src/helpers/radiolib/RadioLibWrappers.h
index ea98f627..d39e3ebf 100644
--- a/src/helpers/radiolib/RadioLibWrappers.h
+++ b/src/helpers/radiolib/RadioLibWrappers.h
@@ -30,6 +30,11 @@ protected:
   void armRecv();                // arm RX honouring power-save (CAD) or continuous
   void powerSaveLoop();
   void enterCadSleep();
+  // Low-power state between CAD scans. Default = standby; SX126x overrides with
+  // a warm (config-retained) sleep for ~µA idle. cadWake() brings it back to a
+  // responsive standby before the next scan.
+  virtual void cadSleep() { _radio->standby(); }
+  virtual void cadWake()  { _radio->standby(); }
 
 public:
   RadioLibWrapper(PhysicalLayer& radio, mesh::MainBoard& board) : _radio(&radio), _board(&board), _preamble_sf(0) { n_recv = n_sent = 0; }