Battery powered systems with long standby times, such as automatic external defibrillators, may be required to indicate their operational status to a user by blinking lights or sounding speakers or buzzers. These active status indication activities consume power thereby reducing the battery life of the system. Automatically adjusting the level and frequency of these indication activities to match the ambient environment can reduce power consumption of the battery operated system. For example, in a dimly lit room, an indicator light may be visible even though it might be too dim to be seen in a bright room. Thus, if the room is dim, indicator lights can be dimmed to conserve power. These automatic adjustments made in response to the environment may help conserve power and extend battery life.