Leaving wifi on 24/7 on iPhone 5

canwe3 · Jan 7, 2013, 10:05 AM

I did a test for a week and left the wifi on and didn't noticed any difference in battery life. I think I'll just leave it from now. Also when I'm out and have crappy 3g connection from sprint it gives me a wifi network to choose from every time I open internet browser.

ucfgrad93 · Jan 7, 2013, 10:17 AM

I leave the wifi on my 4S on all of the time. I haven't really noticed a difference in my battery life either.

sdilley14 · Jan 7, 2013, 10:19 AM

I've tested with this a bit and leaving wifi on all the time never really seemed to effect my battery life. It's nice being able to leave it on and have it pick up and connect to saved networks on it's own without having to go into settings and enable/disable it all the time...especially handy when you are on a limited data plan and you're bouncing around between places where you have saved networks.

Small White Car · Jan 7, 2013, 10:27 AM

I used to turn it on and off on my iPhone 3G and I did notice a difference back then. But since the 4 came out out I can't see a difference anymore.

Either batteries got better, the wifi chip uses less power, or the software regulates the wifi chip better now. I dunno why, but I do just tell everyone to leave it on these days.

AutoUnion39 · Jan 7, 2013, 10:30 AM

Be careful. Leaving wifi on constantly leads to excessive heat. Eventually it gets so hot, the chipset gets burnt and wifi doesn't work. This eventually leads to no cell signal because they use the same antenna.

genius told me this

corvus32 · Jan 7, 2013, 10:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AutoUnion39

Be careful. Leaving wifi on constantly leads to excessive heat. Eventually it gets so hot, the chipset gets burnt and wifi doesn't work. This eventually leads to no cell signal because they use the same antenna.

genius told me this

stuaz · Jan 7, 2013, 10:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AutoUnion39

Be careful. Leaving wifi on constantly leads to excessive heat. Eventually it gets so hot, the chipset gets burnt and wifi doesn't work. This eventually leads to no cell signal because they use the same antenna.

genius told me this

Lol that made me chuckle!

All of the iPhones I have had, I always leave WiFi on.

scaredpoet · Jan 7, 2013, 11:06 AM

I've kept WiFi on 24/7 on every iOS device I've owned since the original iPhone, with no issues. The only time I've really turned it off is when I'm traveling and know that I won't be on WiFi for a few days.

Quote:

Originally Posted by AutoUnion39

Be careful. Leaving wifi on constantly leads to excessive heat. Eventually it gets so hot, the chipset gets burnt and wifi doesn't work. This eventually leads to no cell signal because they use the same antenna.

Completely false, every word of it. Even down to them using the same antenna.

nburwell · Jan 7, 2013, 12:19 PM

I have always left on wifi with every single iPhone I owned. I never encountered any issues in loss of battery or the phone "heating up."

Givmeabrek · Jan 7, 2013, 12:41 PM

I've never turned wifi off on any phone. Sounds just as nutty as turning the phone off if you aren't using it?? If you can't leave everything on then you need another phone or better cell phone service.

Hankster · Jan 7, 2013, 12:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by canwe3

I did a test for a week and left the wifi on and didn't noticed any difference in battery life. I think I'll just leave it from now. Also when I'm out and have crappy 3g connection from sprint it gives me a wifi network to choose from every time I open internet browser.

I leave Wifi, Bluetooth and LTE on with email push set to 15 minutes. I never run out of battery life during the course of a day.

Applejuiced · Jan 7, 2013, 01:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AutoUnion39

Be careful. Leaving wifi on constantly leads to excessive heat. Eventually it gets so hot, the chipset gets burnt and wifi doesn't work. This eventually leads to no cell signal because they use the same antenna.

genius told me this

LMAO

I hope you didnt believe that.
I never turn wifi off.
I just leave it on to autojoin known networks. Battery is fine.

jav6454 · Jan 7, 2013, 01:13 PM

It may or may not impact you depending on your usage. Being outside and havig the iPhone read several networks will drain battery. However, being on and connected to one same network will yield zero extra drainage. That's what I've found.

Knockoutjosie · Jan 7, 2013, 03:25 PM

I just have " join networks " turned off. But keep my wifi on all day

canwe3 · Jan 7, 2013, 04:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Knockoutjosie

I just have " join networks " turned off. But keep my wifi on all day

I leave the joint network on. It asks you which network to join when your in public so I don't have to manually go to settings.

nwmtnbiker · Jan 7, 2013, 04:15 PM

I also leave mine on 24/7 but not auto join. I used to but find 4g or lte to be faster than a wifi I join away from home.

canwe3 · Jan 7, 2013, 04:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nwmtnbiker

I also leave mine on 24/7 but not auto join. I used to but find 4g or lte to be faster than a wifi I join away from home.

Unless you turn it off it auto joins the network you been on before. It asks you to choose a network,.

AutoUnion39 · Jan 7, 2013, 05:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stuaz

Lol that made me chuckle!

All of the iPhones I have had, I always leave WiFi on.

----------

Quote:

Originally Posted by scaredpoet

Completely false, every word of it. Even down to them using the same antenna.

I guess my sarcasm failed to come across to you?

----------

Quote:

Originally Posted by Applejuiced

LMAO

I hope you didnt believe that.

Hell no, it was a joke.

ecschwarz · Jan 7, 2013, 05:34 PM

Count me in as another who has turned on Wi-Fi from day one and turns it off if I'm in an area with a poor signal.

nwmtnbiker · Jan 7, 2013, 07:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by canwe3

Unless you turn it off it auto joins the network you been on before. It asks you to choose a network,.

Uh? I only use wifi at home & work & yes" ask to join" is off. Thought I was pretty clear. 3G is faster than AT&T wifi @ Starbucks...

SprSynJn · Jan 8, 2013, 06:45 AM

Any battery app you download will tell you that iOS devices will last longer using wifi than using 3G. I don't turn mine off unless the connection is unstable.

boomhower · Jan 8, 2013, 06:52 AM

I never turn mine off and haven't on any phone in years. Especially with LTE and tiered plans forgetting to turn it back on can get you some nasty overages.

TWD98j · Jan 8, 2013, 07:19 AM

Guess the 5's battery must be better than the 4S's battery....either that or the 5 is more power efficient.

I always turn Wifi OFF when I'm not using Wifi and the battery life on 4S is still atrocious. And when I am on Wifi I always turn Cellular data OFF. It's either one or the other.

Hopefully the 5S's battery will be even moreso....and hopefully a mophie juice pack will exist for the 5/5S by then.

Jan 7, 2013, 10:05 AM	#1
canwe3 macrumors member Join Date: Oct 2012	Leaving wifi on 24/7 on iPhone 5 I did a test for a week and left the wifi on and didn't noticed any difference in battery life. I think I'll just leave it from now. Also when I'm out and have crappy 3g connection from sprint it gives me a wifi network to choose from every time I open internet browser.
	0

Jan 7, 2013, 10:30 AM	#5
AutoUnion39 macrumors 6502a Join Date: Jun 2010	Be careful. Leaving wifi on constantly leads to excessive heat. Eventually it gets so hot, the chipset gets burnt and wifi doesn't work. This eventually leads to no cell signal because they use the same antenna. genius told me this __________________ rMBP 15 2.3 i7/16gb/256 SSD\| MacBook Air (Late 2011) 1.7 i5/4gb/128 SSD\| riPad 32gb WiFi\| TV (3rd gen)\| Airport Extreme\| iP5\|S4\|Note2
	0

Jan 7, 2013, 12:19 PM	#9
nburwell macrumors 65816 Join Date: May 2008 Location: Philadelphia	I have always left on wifi with every single iPhone I owned. I never encountered any issues in loss of battery or the phone "heating up." __________________ 13" MBP 2.3GHz l iPhone 5 l 4G iPod Touch l Apple TV l 5D Mark III l L glass
	2

Jan 7, 2013, 01:13 PM	#13
jav6454 macrumors G5 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: 1 Geostationary Tower Plaza	It may or may not impact you depending on your usage. Being outside and havig the iPhone read several networks will drain battery. However, being on and connected to one same network will yield zero extra drainage. That's what I've found. __________________ Al MacBook 2.4GHz Late '08 \| Macross Click Me
	0

Jan 8, 2013, 06:52 AM	#22
boomhower macrumors 6502a Join Date: Oct 2011	I never turn mine off and haven't on any phone in years. Especially with LTE and tiered plans forgetting to turn it back on can get you some nasty overages. __________________ 2011 Macbook Pro 15 iPad 2 iPhone 5
	1

Jan 7, 2013, 10:17 AM	#2
ucfgrad93 macrumors G4 Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Colorado	I leave the wifi on my 4S on all of the time. I haven't really noticed a difference in my battery life either.
	1

Jan 7, 2013, 10:19 AM	#3
sdilley14 macrumors regular Join Date: Feb 2007	I've tested with this a bit and leaving wifi on all the time never really seemed to effect my battery life. It's nice being able to leave it on and have it pick up and connect to saved networks on it's own without having to go into settings and enable/disable it all the time...especially handy when you are on a limited data plan and you're bouncing around between places where you have saved networks.
	0

Jan 7, 2013, 10:27 AM	#4
Small White Car macrumors G3 Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Washington DC	I used to turn it on and off on my iPhone 3G and I did notice a difference back then. But since the 4 came out out I can't see a difference anymore. Either batteries got better, the wifi chip uses less power, or the software regulates the wifi chip better now. I dunno why, but I do just tell everyone to leave it on these days.
	0

Jan 7, 2013, 12:41 PM	#10
Givmeabrek macrumors Demi-God Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: NY	I've never turned wifi off on any phone. Sounds just as nutty as turning the phone off if you aren't using it?? If you can't leave everything on then you need another phone or better cell phone service.
	3

Jan 7, 2013, 03:25 PM	#14
Knockoutjosie macrumors regular Join Date: Nov 2012	I just have " join networks " turned off. But keep my wifi on all day
	2

Jan 7, 2013, 04:15 PM	#16
nwmtnbiker macrumors 6502a Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Fidalgo Island	I also leave mine on 24/7 but not auto join. I used to but find 4g or lte to be faster than a wifi I join away from home.
	0

Jan 7, 2013, 05:34 PM	#19
ecschwarz macrumors 6502 Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Indiana	Count me in as another who has turned on Wi-Fi from day one and turns it off if I'm in an area with a poor signal.
	0

Jan 8, 2013, 06:45 AM	#21
SprSynJn macrumors 6502 Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Japan	Any battery app you download will tell you that iOS devices will last longer using wifi than using 3G. I don't turn mine off unless the connection is unstable.
	0

Jan 8, 2013, 07:19 AM	#23
TWD98j macrumors member Join Date: Sep 2010	Guess the 5's battery must be better than the 4S's battery....either that or the 5 is more power efficient. I always turn Wifi OFF when I'm not using Wifi and the battery life on 4S is still atrocious. And when I am on Wifi I always turn Cellular data OFF. It's either one or the other. Hopefully the 5S's battery will be even moreso....and hopefully a mophie juice pack will exist for the 5/5S by then.
	0

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