Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

max2

macrumors 603
Original poster
May 31, 2015
6,421
2,044
Is it really necessary to have on for some apps or is it best to keep it off system wide ?

Does it really use that much battery ?
 
Is it really necessary to have on for some apps or is it best to keep it off system wide ?

Does it really use that much battery ?
It can use a ridiculous amount of battery. Depends on what the developers are seeking.
I type, NO it is not necessary at all.
 
It can use a ridiculous amount of battery. Depends on what the developers are seeking.
I type, NO it is not necessary at all.

Does Uber, Lyft, and MyRadar need background app refresh ?

Like for example Uber to alert you when your ride is here?

MyRadar so it will alert you with a Thunderstorm Warning?
 
Does Uber, Lyft, and MyRadar need background app refresh ?

Like for example Uber to alert you when your ride is here?

MyRadar so it will alert you with a Thunderstorm Warning?
It depends on how you would like to use the app.
If you want the app to only track your data while the app is open then select "Only While Using the App"
If you want the app to track your data while in the background then select "Always Allow"
If you want to download the app to look cool, but not actually use the app the select "Don't Allow"
 
  • Like
Reactions: max2
Are there any examples of applications that use ridiculous amounts of battery via background app refresh? I’m just curious since I generally have no issues with standby battery life and haven’t had the need to turn off background app refresh for any applications. My thought is that this is because all of the applications that I have are just well behaved.
 
  • Like
Reactions: max2
Are there any examples of applications that use ridiculous amounts of battery via background app refresh? I’m just curious since I generally have no issues with standby battery life and haven’t had the need to turn off background app refresh for any applications. My thought is that this is because all of the applications that I have are just well behaved.

I would like to know this too!
 
I have it off, on both my iPhone and iPad. I can’t say how much it helps the battery, but I haven’t noticed any drawbacks of deactivating it.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: max2
Are there any examples of applications that use ridiculous amounts of battery via background app refresh? I’m just curious since I generally have no issues with standby battery life and haven’t had the need to turn off background app refresh for any applications. My thought is that this is because all of the applications that I have are just well behaved.
WARNING: Rumors ahead.
Just because no one else has answered; Facebook app was notorious for poor battery performance, although the app was exceptionally responsive. I'm not sure if they have addressed the battery complaints. It may be a very small minority with loud typing. I have not personally tested the claims, as I do not have a facebook account.
 
  • Like
Reactions: max2
WARNING: Rumors ahead.
Just because no one else has answered; Facebook app was notorious for poor battery performance, although the app was exceptionally responsive. I'm not sure if they have addressed the battery complaints. It may be a very small minority with loud typing. I have not personally tested the claims, as I do not have a facebook account.

Neither do I but I believe the issue with battery consumption on the FB app was a while ago.
 
Is it really necessary to have on for some apps or is it best to keep it off system wide ?

Does it really use that much battery ?

Who claims it’s using that much battery? I have not touched the feature for a year or two and battery life on my devices seems ok.
 
Who claims it’s using that much battery? I have not touched the feature for a year or two and battery life on my devices seems ok.

But how do you know it couldn’t be even better? ;)

Seriously though, the processor has to work to reflesh apps that you aren’t actually using at the moment, so it must use some power. Probably nothing significant though.
 
But how do you know it couldn’t be even better? ;)

Seriously though, the processor has to work to reflesh apps that you aren’t actually using at the moment, so it must use some power. Probably nothing significant though.

That’s right of course. Without proper testing we can only guess what the impact might be.

That’s why I asked the OP to please share his sources for this claim, so one can get an understanding where he’s coming from and what apps and workflows are in place.
 
That’s right of course. Without proper testing we can only guess what the impact might be.

That’s why I asked the OP to please share his sources for this claim, so one can get an understanding where he’s coming from and what apps and workflows are in place.
Or we can just wait 2.5 more days and have the OP update to iOS12 for the power usage data. That will show him exactly what is killing his battery.

Last one I have seen ( I have seen too many to count ) the user was running a proxy browser that ported flash. It ran in the background as a seeder for something like BitTorrent. Eating up something like 89% of the daily battery life.
 
  • Like
Reactions: muzzy996
Yeah really a case by case thing. Facebook isn't an issue for me but I don't fire the app up frequently either. For me right now I have stellar standby battery life, but have had enough experience with background drain to know that there's many factors to that as has been stated above.
 
  • Like
Reactions: max2
Not only background app refresh, I went through settings and turned off just about everything not of apparent need or use. That included automatic download of apps and updates, as well as keeping display brightness to minimum but still useful level. Still discovering unused power hogs.
 
Last edited:
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.