How to maximize the lifespan of iPhone battery

Introduction

There have been many breakthroughs in smartphone technologies over the years. But one thing that is bothering the manufacturer – how to have longer battery life for the devices?

As smartphone users are increasingly dependent on their devices, so do the usage time. And having to re-charge several times throughout the day, sometimes scrambling to find a charging station, has become a nuisance task for users. 

Manufacturers over the years have introduced a faster charging method, ease of charging through wireless and bigger battery capacity. But there is a limitation to how much we can extend the battery life. Unfortunately, there is no perfect solution to this issue yet. Meanwhile, we can educate ourselves to have an understanding of the limitation of battery and how to make the best out of it. 

About lithium-ion batteries

Lithium-ion batteries were commercialized in the 1990s. Comparing with the previous generation of battery technology, lithium-ion charge faster, last longer, and can hold more charge in a smaller form. Till date, vendors do not have a commercially viable product to replace the lithium technology yet. 

Understand how your phone battery degrades

Your Apple lithium-ion battery uses fast charging to reach 80 percent of its capacity quickly, then switches to slower trickle charging. Apple iOS also limit charging above 80 percent if battery temperatures get too hot. By doing so, it will prolong the battery life to prevent over-charging. 

An iPhone lithium-ion battery typically holds up to 500 charge cycles, or about two years;  before you will see a degrading of the battery to 80% of its full capacity. You complete one charge cycle when you have used an amount equals 100% of your battery’s capacity. 

Example, you use up 60% today and re-charge it fully the next day. If you use 40% the next day, then you will have discharged a total of 100%. That is one charge cycle. It could also take several days to complete a cycle. 

How long is a battery supposed to last?

• iPhone – 500 cycles
• Apple Watch – 1,000 cycles
• iPad – 1,000 cycles
• iPod – 400 cycles 
• Macbook – 1,000 cycles

Question: Can I leave the iPhone to charge overnight even at 100 Percent?

How to maximize battery performance 

“Battery life” is the amount of time a device runs before it needs to be re-charged. “Battery lifespan” is the amount of time a battery lasts until it needs to be replaced. 

Let’s find out how we can stretch or maximum the lifespan and performance of your device’s battery. 

1. Update to the latest software

Simple yet effective. Apple software updates often include advanced energy-saving technologies, so always make sure your device is using the latest version of iOS.

2. Avoid extreme ambient temperatures

The ideal temperature comfort zone is between 16 – 22 degree). Avoid exposing your device to an ambient temperature higher than 35 degrees. Example, under direct sun, near high heat area, left in the car under hot weather. The damage can be irreversible and decreases the battery lifespan in the long term. 

3. Remove certain cases during charging

iPhone case is important. But charging your iPhone inside certain styles of cases may generate excess heat, which can affect battery capacity. If you notice that your device gets hot when you charge it, take it out of its case first. 

4. Store it half-charged when you store it long term

If you are not using your device for long-term, do the following:

• Do not fully charge or fully discharge your device’s battery – charge it to around 50%. 
• Switch off the device to avoid additional battery use. 
• Place your device in a cool, moisture-free environment that’s less than 32 degrees. 
• If you plan to store your device for longer than six months,  charge it to 50% every six months. 

5. Optimize your settings 

• Adjust your screen brightness. Dim the screen or turn on Auto-Brightness to extend battery life
• Turn on Wi-Fi connection whenever possible as it uses less power than a cellular network. 
• Disable Bluetooth if you are not using hands-free or wireless speakers. 
• Set Auto-Lock to 1 Minute. Setting your iPhone to go to standby mode when not used automatically is essential for conserving battery life. 

6. Enable Low Power Mode

7. View Battery Usage Information 

8. Background Activity

• Turn off the feature that allows apps to refresh in the background. Go to Settings > General > Background App Refresh and select Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi & Cellular Data, or Off to turn off Background App Refresh entirely.  

• Check your Mail app. Choose to fetch data manually or prolong the fetch interval. Go to Settings > Accounts & Passwords > Fetch New Data

9. Location services 

• Turn off Location Services for the app. Turn off in Settings > Privacy > Location Services. 

10. Home & Lock Screen

• Frequent incoming notification will awake the display on your device, taking every bit of precious battery life you have left. Turn off push notifications for the app in Settings > Notifications. Tap the app and set Allow Notifications to Off. 

11. No Cell Coverage and Low Signal

• Turn on the Airplane mode since the signal is weak or none. Turn it off when you are in an area with better signal reception. Note that you cannot make or receive calls while in Airplane mode. 
• Perform a manual selection of the network instead of having the iOS to search automatically. Go to Settings > Mobile Data > Network Selection > Turn off Automatic > Manual select the network you wish to be on

12. Disable Features You Don’t Use

There are probably some features you never use but are using up power in the background. You can consider disabling these battery draining features:

• Automatic App Updates: Switch to manual update instead. 
• Motion & Animation Effects: You don’t need all these cute effects to drain your battery life. 
• AirDrop: If you don’t use it often, might as well turn it off, so it’s not constantly using Wi-Fi and Bluetooth to find nearby devices. 
• Fitness Tracking: If you are not using iPhone to track your Health status, turn it off and save a bit of power. 
• My Photo Steam: This automatically syncs photos on your iPhone to your other Apple devices. If you don’t use it, use the battery for something more useful.
• Raise to Wake: The display automatically turns on when you lift your iPhone to look at it. Massive battery waster even if you accidentally lift your iPhone. 

13. Plugin and power on your computer to charge your device

Pretty straight forward, right? However, many users make the mistake of charging the device to a computer that is turned off or is in sleep or standby mode, which may cause your device’s battery to drain. 

Conclusion

Hopefully, all these tips will add up enough savings to help you get through the day without having to charge up regularly. And needing to charge less has its benefit: it prolongs the health of your battery so you won’t have to replace it quite soon. 

If you have tried the above methods yet finds that your phone battery is not holding the charge, it could be time to change your battery.

SellUp provides on-site battery replacement within 30 mins. Check out our low fee and make an appointment now!