Are all iPhone batteries crap?

[Orangeanddemons]

I recently upgraded to an iPhone 5.

The battery has usually gone by 2.00pm.

Eg today dd got hold of it. 25 minutes on Minecraft and it was down to 70%. 4 or 5 texts and a couple of weather websites, down to 50%. Unused after this, by 2:30 -3 it was gone. I'd hardly used it, and tried to keep it switched off. It's less than a week old!

[DontstepontheMomeRaths]

If I switch off bluetooth, 3g, etc it lasts a lot longer.

[KiaOraOAotearoa]

You probably leave the apps running in the background?

[Norfolknway]

Yes.

[niceguy2]

It could be a duff battery but chances are it's not. An easy way to test it is to reboot the phone then put it into aeroplane mode straight away. Make a note of the battery percentage.

Leave it for half a day then return. It should be pretty much the same percentage. If it's dropped by a lot then this is a sign it's a duff battery. If it's nearasdammit then it's a sign your battery is fine.

The latest smartphones are a bit better on battery life but I've yet to find one that lasts a full day from my usage. That's one big reason I switched to Android/Samsung because they use removable batteries. That way I can charge one whilst still using the phone and having multiple batteries is a godsend on long flights where I'm using whittling the boredom away by watching films.

[sebsmummy1]

Yep. My iphone4 was brand new a few months ago and the battery was as bad as the three year old iphone4 I was replacing (first one got broked). One day battery life will catch up with phone capabilities and we'll all laugh at how ridiculous our lives once were.

[DrinkFeckArseGirls]

Yes.
You need to turn off the automatic apps updates that goes on in the background; that helps a bit.

[Kefybaby]

Yes, the battery of the iphone 5 is crap. I carry chargers around with me.

[somedizzywhore1804]

This sounds pretty usual to me and is one if the reasons DH won't have an iphone (fair play).

I, however, am a slave to Apple and couldn't give up my iphone so I just have chargers everywhere: upstairs, downstairs, dock in kitchen, car charger, USB charger in computer at work, one in handbag .... I am even wondering if it's worth getting a wind up one in case of emergencies (!) I know it's a proposterous situation but it keeps me powered up.

[12thmonkey]

why don't people ever condition batteries. You should run it till its dead and fully charge a couple of times before regular use.

[NetworkGuy]

12thmonkey - it's not "obvious" to most people, and unless there are instructions which suggest the requirement to charge and discharge a few times then they will use the phones any way they like.

As it happens, for one mobile I have, the instructions indicate one can charge it "little and often" however you wish. It's probably not the best advice but then again, battery manufacture has changed considerably since I learned about batteries in the 70s at college.

[GretchenWiener]

check your apps
decrease your brightness.
turn off bluetooth

[GretchenWiener]

the running till dead is a myth

[GretchenWiener]

agree with turning off auto app refresh

[GretchenWiener]

mashable.com/2014/06/18/phone-charging-myths/

[TheOneWithTheNicestSmile]

I read that apple advise charging up from any point whenever you can. I used to try to run it down to almost nothing but now charge whenever there's a charger handy & there's no difference as far as I can tell

Haven't studied it though...

[Orangeanddemons]

Well, DS age 20 took me in hand. Turned off bluetooth, got rid of all apps in background and reduced brightness. It has made no discernible difference so far

[TheOneWithTheNicestSmile]

Do you also shut down all open pages when you've finished with them?

ie press the button twice from home page (?) & it shows everything that's open - you swipe them up to close them on recent phones or click the little red x on older ones.

If I forget to do it I sometimes find I have about 20 open (some by accident ) & they're all running in the background all the time.

[TheOneWithTheNicestSmile]

I've got a 5s - I switched it off last night after reading the myths thing - it was on 100% 2 hours ago, I've sent 2 texts & otherwise have been on MN & FB & a couple of other internet pages & it's down to 79% already!

So I do share your pain!

[niceguy2]

Make an appointment at your nearest Apple store and get them to test it. You can book a slot on their website. It's really hard for us to diagnose without seeing how often you use it and what for.

[BitOutOfPractice]

Mine is shit too!

[TheOneWithTheNicestSmile]

After 6 hours in the car with wifi off & almost no activity mine is now down to 64%

So it's used 15% doing almost nothing!