What is Doraemon's standby mode or power-saving mode like?

Okay, the question about Doraemon's standby and power-saving modes is fascinating! As a seasoned "researcher," let me explain this for you.

Actually, in the original work, Doraemon's "power-saving mode" is conceptually similar to the power-saving mode on our phones today, but its manifestation is much cuter!

Doraemon's "Power Saving Mode": A Perfectly Round Blue Sphere!

Doraemon does indeed have an officially designated Power Saving Mode (Japanese: 省エネモード, shōene mōdo).

When he needs to remain on standby for a long time or when the energy from his internal atomic reactor is running critically low, he activates this mode. Upon activation, he retracts his head, hands, and feet entirely into his body, transforming into a smooth, perfectly round blue sphere.

You can imagine it like this:

Appearance: Simply a perfect small blue sphere, still retaining his yellow bell on top.
Function: In this state, he halts almost all activity, minimizing energy consumption to sustain only his core life (robot personality) systems. This is similar to an animal hibernating.
Purpose: It's purely to "save power," waiting for energy replenishment (like eating dorayaki) or to get through periods where activity is unnecessary.

This mode doesn't appear frequently in the manga or anime, but it is mentioned or used during some critical moments, like energy crises.

(Please visualize this scene yourself, as clear official screenshots are very rare)

It's Different from "Shutdown": Don't Pull His Tail!

It's crucial to distinguish between "Power Saving Mode" and "shutdown."

Doraemon's tail, that small red ball, is his main power switch.

Pulling his tail once: Doraemon will immediately "shut down," completely stopping all functions, like unplugging a computer.
Pressing his tail again: He will reboot.

So, pulling the tail is a forced shutdown, while turning into a sphere is a low-power "standby" mode – they are completely different concepts. Whatever you do, don't pull his tail casually!

Everyday "Standby" Mode: Sleeping and Eating Dorayaki

In a broader sense, Doraemon's daily behavior also reflects the "standby" and "recharging" logic of a robot.

Sleeping: He needs to sleep like a human, specifically in a closet. This can be seen as his daily routine "standby" and system maintenance time to recover mentally (process data).
Eating: This is his primary method of "recharging"! His internal "atomic stomach" can convert anything he eats into energy. Dorayaki, being his favorite, is believed to have the highest energy conversion efficiency (this is, of course, a somewhat playful setting). When he's low on energy, the fastest solution is to give him a pile of dorayaki.

To Summarize

So, Doraemon's standby/power-saving modes can be understood like this:

Ultimate Power Saving Mode: Shrinks into a blue sphere, conserving energy to the maximum extent.
Forced Shutdown Mode: Tail is pulled, completely stopping all activity.
Daily Standby/Recharging: Rests through sleep, replenishes energy by eating (especially dorayaki).

Hope this explanation helps you understand our adorable blue cat-shaped robot better!