iPhone SE (2016) Battery capacity at 86%, but iPhone still empties quickly

[Silly John Fatty]

How is that possible? 86% is still very high capacity.

Let's say my iPhone is fully charged. I barely use it, and it's already at like 70%. And I have everything turned off that uses battery. I don't or barely have notifications, I'm in flight mode most of the time, I have barely any apps installed, I have even design options strongly limited (no transparency, no animations, etc.).

How is it possible that with 86% battery capacity, my fully charged iPhone is empty after 20 minutes of use? That's not normal …

I've disabled the high peak performance thing, do you think this will help? And will that wear the battery more, or less?

 

[BugeyeSTI]

Battery health readings are an estimate not precise measurements.. From what you've described I'd say you should replace the battery regardless of the health reading

 

[RRC]

Nothing but a new battery will fix your issues. You can change settings etc as much as you like, it won’t matter.

 

[Silly John Fatty]

(I would have been entitled for a free battery replacement a few years ago, but they denied it saying my battery capacity was at 80+% or something like that.

Eventually I could try again to get it replaced for free and argue that the battery was just bad.

A battery change costs 79€ at Apple for the 2016 SE. That's more than the phone is worth, but I don't see myself spending money on a 13 mini right now.

 

[JPack]

Battery capacity readings are often a poor estimate. People have 5 year old phones with claimed 80% capacity. I'm holding a launch day iPhone 14 Pro Max which claims 100% and I know it can't possibly be true.

Cycle count and age are far more better figures to use. If you're charging a full cycle once a day, you should replace the battery every 2-3 years.

 

[FeliApple]

iOS 15’s pathetic energy demands, coupled with a degraded battery = not the best combo, unfortunately.

 

[Motionblurrr]

86% can feel like 74% battery health because it's not accurate at all. It's really physics and the luck of the draw-- that health reading is a guesstimate at best. I bet you you'll get the Service alert soon too once it crashes once due to insufficient voltage

Trust me, a fresh new OEM battery will fix everything, there's just no way around it.

 

[GMShadow]

Battery capacity readings are often a poor estimate. People have 5 year old phones with claimed 80% capacity. I'm holding a launch day iPhone 14 Pro Max which claims 100% and I know it can't possibly be true.

It can, actually. The meter is based off the 'target' mAh capacity on the battery - if you got lucky and had a battery with higher capacity, you can have shed some capacity and still show 100% despite that.


As for OP, yes, replace the battery if you plan to keep using the device.

 

[Silly John Fatty]

I bet you you'll get the Service alert soon too once it crashes once due to insufficient voltage

Are you referring to that peak capacity thing that you can deactivate? I've already had this alert and I've deactivated it. I think I might change the battery and keep the phone, it's not bad otherwise. I think I will wait until fall to see what's announced, maybe a 13 mini successor.

 

[I7guy]

I had pathetic use time with my Xs max after 4 years at 93%. Until I had the battery replaced and now usage is back to day 1.

 

[Silly John Fatty]

Apparently I can have my SE's battery replaced for €12 at the official Apple store, so I made an appointment and I am curious to see what improvements there is going to be. Since I can still receive updates I might as well keep it a little bit longer. I'm very excited to see the results …

 

[Andeddu]

Apparently I can have my SE's battery replaced for €12 at the official Apple store, so I made an appointment and I am curious to see what improvements there is going to be. Since I can still receive updates I might as well keep it a little bit longer. I'm very excited to see the results …

That’s an excellent price. I had my SE1’s battery replaced in January 2023 by Apple for around £50. I don’t know how long they’ll continue replacing these batteries because they’ve already removed all support for phones older than the 6S/SE1.

I’ll be sticking this little guy into its original box tomorrow because I have no real use for a spare phone at the moment since I’ve got a 13.

 

[Paddle1]

Are you referring to that peak capacity thing that you can deactivate? I've already had this alert and I've deactivated it. I think I might change the battery and keep the phone, it's not bad otherwise. I think I will wait until fall to see what's announced, maybe a 13 mini successor.

That peak performance message is a giveaway that the battery has been weakened. I had a 2016 SE with that message that would turn off at 20%. All good after changing the battery.