It's been a bit of a rocky start for Apple, with both iOS 17 and the new iPhone 15 suffering from a raft of bugs, some big, some scary, and some that are majorly annoying.
Now that the first big update for iOS 17 is out, perhaps we can leave behind these irritating bugs. Here's hoping!
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But with every new release of iOS, some people -- in fact, most people initially -- suffer from poor battery life following an update.
So what should you do if you're finding worse than normal battery life?
After every iOS release, people are divided. Some say their battery life has gone through the roof and they're super happy, while others will describe the update's impact as abysmal, claiming not only that they are getting less battery runtime, but also that their battery health plummeted.
This is always the pattern.
And if you're one of those users who've noticed that your battery health has plummeted following the update, I suggest reading what Apple doesn't want you to know about your iPhone's battery.
But, this is a major release, and pretty much without fail, major releases come with major battery bugs -- not to mention other bugs -- that show up in the first few days after release, which is why there's usually a flurry of updates in the first few weeks following any big release.
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If you're experiencing better battery life, good for you. You can stop reading here and get on with your day. However, if you are one of those people having battery issues, I have some tips and tricks to help you make it through the day.
It's normal to experience a drop -- even quite a significant drop -- in battery life following the installation of an iOS update.
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iPhones need to carry out a number of tasks in the background in the aftermath of an update. This consumes more battery power than usual, and the battery life will return to normal once all these extra tasks have been completed.
Try a reboot and see if that helps. It can't hurt.
Here are a few things I've seen help with battery life on iOS 17:
The problem might not be an iOS issue but more a problem with apps that haven't been updated, especially when new versions of iOS have been released. Therefore, it's a good idea to make sure all your apps are updated before you spend a lot of time trying to diagnose what's going on.
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Fire up the App Store app and tap your profile icon in the corner, then scroll down to Available Updates to look for updates. (I like to pull down this screen to refresh it, so I see all the latest updates.)
If none of the previous steps helped, what else could it be? It could be a rogue app that's draining the battery. Fortunately, iOS offers you the tools you need to track down misbehaving apps.
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Head over toSettings > Battery, where you will see a lot of data, includingBattery Usage By App. Tapping on it also allows you to switch toActivity By App, which shows a breakdown of how much power the app is using while on the screen and how much it is using when in the background.
You can use this information to diagnose battery drain issues. Here are some other things you can use this information for:
Analyzing battery drain in iOS.
Adrian Kingsley-Hughes/Is your iPhone getting on a bit?
If your handset is four years or older, then the battery might need to be replaced.
Tap onSettings, head toBattery > Battery Health & Charging,and check what theMaximum Capacityof the battery is listed as. A level below 80% indicates a worn battery and that it's time for a replacement.
Don't get into a competition to see how hot you can get your iPhone. That path leads to hardware damage. A stressed, hot battery is an unhappy battery, and that can lead to premature wear and performance issues.
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So, if your phone is overheating, remove it from a hot window and don't keep it in a hot car. I also recommend temporarily taking the phone out of any case it's in.
Bugs do slip through the net, and sometimes all you can do is wait for Apple to fix the problem and roll out a new update.
Apple is getting much better about fixing issues like this, although you do have to wait for the fix and take a gamble that the new update does indeed fix the problem and not cause more chaos.
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That said, given that pretty much every update Apple rolls out nowadays is packed with iOS security fixes, I recommend installing updates because not doing this can leave your iPhone vulnerable to attack.