As iPhones get more powerful, they need a battery that can hold up. Apple should arguably be making batteries that can handle the power-sucking features of the newest iPhone iterations, but users are reporting that all is not well. Though we've heard whispers of the issue before, there's an active Twitter thread running right now that seems to confirm the problem.
Scores of unhappy iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max users are sharing their less-than-ideal battery health stats, which can be found within the battery settings on your iPhone. With reports that on iPhone 14 launch day, some iPhones were (apparently) already showing a 14 per cent reduction in the maximum capacity of batteries, it seems Apple has some work to do.
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This is bad. 14 Pro Max. Anyone having this type of battery degradation? pic.twitter.com/tZwOIbiClTJune 4, 2023
The thread was kicked off by Jon Rettinger, a well-known tech commentator (see the initial tweet above). Rettinger stated: "This is bad. 14 Pro Max. Anyone having this type of battery degradation?" alongside a screenshot of his battery health showing only 93 per cent.
The floodgates opened, and the conversation is now full of iPhone users showing battery health degradation ranging from 97 per cent all the way down to 84 per cent (which apparently happened on launch day, prompting Apple to replace the handset).
Same. This has been the worst iPhone battery life I’ve had ever. Hope the 15 is better.June 5, 2023
According to many users, the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max's battery health is specifically an issue compared to previous models. The tweet above is one example of a user who upgrades every year and noticed that the battery health of the 14 is around 6 per cent less than it usually is in June.
Not everyone is upset, though, one user (below) is impressed with the Pro Max, stating it's performing better than any of the other iPhones they've had – with the 12 Pro being the worst they've encountered.
What's your charging habits?June 4, 2023
So maybe it's about how you use it, right? We realise it's important to look after your device properly to ensure it's optimal performance, and many users shared tips on how to get the most out of the iPhone battery. These include never charging it above 90 per cent and turning off the 'clean battery' setting, but there are also more basic tips in there for extending the battery life such as turning the brightness down (see this handy video, which outlines some of our favourite tips for improving battery performance).
Of course, the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro max models are powerful beasts, so it's understandable there could be battery implications – even if the phone is being treated well. But with a top of the range (and top of the budget) phone like this, you'd expect battery performance to live up to its responsibilities without the user having to make major sacrifices in the way they actually use the phone. For the overall capacity to drop so severely for so many users may well be a design issue Apple needs to rectify in future iterations. And the fact some of these battery issues are appearing on launch day compounds the problem.
Want to check your own battery health? Go to Settings > Battery and click on 'Battery Health'.
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