iPhone X Battery Health Discrepancy

[pinkoos]

Hi,

Two year old iPhone X here running iOS 13.3

Under Battery Health, it says 91% Maximum Capacity, but also gives me an "Important Battery Message" that my battery's health is significantly degraded and that an Apple Authorized Service Provider can replace the battery

My understanding is that Apple doesn't consider replacing the battery unless the battery health is at or below 80% (don't quote me on this)

So, I'm confused - my battery health is decent for a 2 year old phone but at the same time, it's being reported as significantly degraded

Does anybody know if Apple would replace the battery because of this message?

And, I'm not asking about the warranty, so assume the warranty is not an issue - I'm simply wondering why the discrepancy and what does anybody think (or know from direct experience) Apple would do about it?

And, yes, I can make an appointment at the Genius Bar and probably will, but thought I'd just ask here first

Thanks in advance

 

[JPack]

Battery capacity doesn't equal battery health.

There are at least 3 factors that affect battery health: internal resistance, self discharge, and capacity.

If your battery is old and has high internal resistance, it can't offer the current required to sustain high loads, particularly in cold conditions. Even if the capacity is 100%, the energy can't come out fast enough. It's still a bad battery.

In short, your battery is due for replacement. Generally, the battery should be replaced every 12-18 months.

Apple will replace the battery regardless of the condition. You're paying for the service.

 

[BugeyeSTI]

Hi,

Two year old iPhone X here running iOS 13.3

Under Battery Health, it says 91% Maximum Capacity, but also gives me an "Important Battery Message" that my battery's health is significantly degraded and that an Apple Authorized Service Provider can replace the battery

My understanding is that Apple doesn't consider replacing the battery unless the battery health is at or below 80% (don't quote me on this)

So, I'm confused - my battery health is decent for a 2 year old phone but at the same time, it's being reported as significantly degraded

Does anybody know if Apple would replace the battery because of this message?

And, I'm not asking about the warranty, so assume the warranty is not an issue - I'm simply wondering why the discrepancy and what does anybody think (or know from direct experience) Apple would do about it?

And, yes, I can make an appointment at the Genius Bar and probably will, but thought I'd just ask here first

Thanks in advance

They won’t replace it for free but if you pay for it, they don’t care what the capacity says. 80% is their threshold for a severely degraded battery so they might say your battery is fine. Just tell them you want it replaced regardless

 

[pinkoos]

So I just noticed that I can actually extend my AppleCare+ (even though it technically expired in early November) on a month to month basis for $9.99

Wondering if I do that, if I can essentially get the battery replaced by Apple for the cost of the monthly AppleCare+ (ie, $10)

Or, if Apple will say that since it's not below 80% health, it's not eligible for the warranty replacement (despite the message that the battery is severely degraded)?

Hmmm

 

[canuckRus]

Hi,

Two year old iPhone X here running iOS 13.3

Under Battery Health, it says 91% Maximum Capacity, but also gives me an "Important Battery Message" that my battery's health is significantly degraded and that an Apple Authorized Service Provider can replace the battery

My understanding is that Apple doesn't consider replacing the battery unless the battery health is at or below 80% (don't quote me on this)

So, I'm confused - my battery health is decent for a 2 year old phone but at the same time, it's being reported as significantly degraded

Does anybody know if Apple would replace the battery because of this message?


Possibly covered.

https://ww.9to5mac.com/2018/01/02/apple-clarifies-that-all-iphone-6-and-later-devices-are-eligible-for-29-battery-replacements/

 

[David7522]

iPhone 7

Delete the Facebook app and the background data (very important), delete other apps that you don’t use but also have background data.

Getting rid of Facebook and it’s stored background data is the key.

Open up iTunes on your computer. Back up your iPhone.

Using iTunes restore your phone as new

Upgrade the operating system through iTunes only. This is the only way to truly wipe your phone and set it up as new!

Log into your updated phone, sign in to iCloud let everything sync.

Install your back up, either from iTunes or iCloud. I think I had better results from iCloud but could be in my head.

Battery problem fixed.

Consulted with a senior Apple advisor a few times. They installed a application on my phone and Monitored it for a week.

The background data that Facebook stores on your phone does not get deleted if you just delete the app sometimes. You can delete the app in Settings.

One more thing, leave your phone charging overnight. If you don’t, the phone may use excessive battery when you start using it in the morning.

hope this helps some people. I’m good to go now, and I believe I get even longer battery life than I did before.

 

[now i see it]

Nuking the phone (via restore) can't fix a dying battery.

 

[David7522]

So I just noticed that I can actually extend my AppleCare+ (even though it technically expired in early November) on a month to month basis for $9.99

Wondering if I do that, if I can essentially get the battery replaced by Apple for the cost of the monthly AppleCare+ (ie, $10)

Or, if Apple will say that since it's not below 80% health, it's not eligible for the warranty replacement (despite the message that the battery is severely degraded)?

Hmmm

When they diagnosed it they also get how many battery charging cycles the phone has gone through, just got also affect different things I guess. I think the recommended is 500 cycles. My last battery was at 85% with 700 charging cycles, they said it was still operating fine, but could go at any time

 

[pinkoos]

Apple replaced it for free (since I had re-upped AppleCare+ for the $10)

Now just need to decide if I want to continue the $10/month AC+ or just cancel it now that I got the battery replaced

 

[now i see it]

AppleCare is always a gamble, as insurance always is. Since I've never broken anything on the 5 iPhones I've owned over the years and never purchased Apple Care, I'm way ahead in the money game. If any future iPhone gets damaged and I have to pay for a repair out of pocket, I'll still be way ahead than if I had paid for AC for all those years.
Apple loves AppleCare. It makes them millions of dollars every year for doing nothing. That's why they push it and promote it.

 

[pinkoos]

AppleCare+ = peace of mind, especially as a parent to two teenagers with iPhones

 

[xxBlack]

AppleCare is always a gamble, as insurance always is. Since I've never broken anything on the 5 iPhones I've owned over the years and never purchased Apple Care, I'm way ahead in the money game. If any future iPhone gets damaged and I have to pay for a repair out of pocket, I'll still be way ahead than if I had paid for AC for all those years.
Apple loves AppleCare. It makes them millions of dollars every year for doing nothing. That's why they push it and promote it.

Yes and then there is me who broke every phone I’ve used for the past 3-4 years. The only reason I upgraded to the 11 pro Max was because my XS Max broke. Yes I could‘ve repaired it but that costs around 300-400€...Too much and I needed the extra battery. But now I bought Apple care. Just to be safe

 

[xxBlack]

Does it make a different in battery health when you charge it every second day (0-100%) OR charge it every night (50-100%)? Booth is one cycle.

 

[nickdalzell1]

Anyone got their health alternating between say 99% and 100% at random? what's up with that?

 

[HEK]

Removed

 

[aakshey]

Does it make a different in battery health when you charge it every second day (0-100%) OR charge it every night (50-100%)? Booth is one cycle.

Every day 50-100 is way way better. Deep discharges are bad.

 

[Kerry78]

iPhone 7

Delete the Facebook app and the background data (very important), delete other apps that you don’t use but also have background data.

Getting rid of Facebook and it’s stored background data is the key.

Open up iTunes on your computer. Back up your iPhone.

Using iTunes restore your phone as new

Upgrade the operating system through iTunes only. This is the only way to truly wipe your phone and set it up as new!

Log into your updated phone, sign in to iCloud let everything sync.

Install your back up, either from iTunes or iCloud. I think I had better results from iCloud but could be in my head.

Battery problem fixed.

Consulted with a senior Apple advisor a few times. They installed a application on my phone and Monitored it for a week.

The background data that Facebook stores on your phone does not get deleted if you just delete the app sometimes. You can delete the app in Settings.

One more thing, leave your phone charging overnight. If you don’t, the phone may use excessive battery when you start using it in the morning.

hope this helps some people. I’m good to go now, and I believe I get even longer battery life than I did before.

hmm I will try that Facebook thing out thanks

had my battery replaced last year at Apple it went down after 5 months to 97% and stayed like that till early this month then dropped to 94% I decided to restore it via iTunes but it now says 93% lmao

I guess it’s ok after a year but I wish it only dropped in small sequence 😆

 

[cynics]

Every day 50-100 is way way better. Deep discharges are bad.

I'm going to preface this post by saying, if you are charging you battery to prolong its life you are effectively wasting your life. Its a phone just use the thing.

That said, answering the question to the constraints of its wording (100-0 charge every other day vs 100-50 charge every day) isn't "way way better" its more along of lines of "negligible". Remember these are still consumer mobile devices in a competition for longest single charge life. 100-50 charge every day is only way way better in a products are maximizing longevity (aka 100% charge =< 4 volts).

The iPhone battery has a nominal voltage of 3.7 to 3.8 depending on model (typical of all lithium ion batteries). The more you exceed that 3.7/3.8 nominal voltage the longer the battery will be able to maintain nominal output. 4.2volts max charge of most lithium ion batteries in consumer devices that strive for single charge longevity.

4.2volts (and 4.35volts with newer technologies) is as high as you can charge a lithium ion battery without accruing exponential harm to longevity (total cycles). This is how 4.2 became the 100% charge mark.

Products with lithium ion batteries that prioritize the batteries longevity typically dont exceed 4 volts. Examples would be electric vehicles, medical equipment, laptops set to "long life" mode, iPhone when using optimize battery health mode (which is just delaying peak battery charge).

Electric vehicles is a good example because manufacturers need to warranty the battery in miles. Around 4 volts (per cell) will deliver the most amount of mile out of a electric vehicle over the course of its battery life. If they charged all the cells to 4.2volts you could get A LOT more range which would sell great, until the battery needed to be replaced in 2 years.

The depth of discharge is also important. The iPhone battery will be at 0% charge and turn off when battery voltage is 3-3.1v.

Here is a good visual aid.

How to Prolong Lithium-based Batteries - Battery University

Discover what causes Li-ion to age and what the battery user can do to prolong its life

batteryuniversity.com

Running the battery from 100% down to 25% is the worst for it (black line), knowing that 100% to 0% which is not on the chart would be even worse. This is pretty much what you stated. However we need to consider 100 to 0 would be every OTHER day while 100 to 50 would be every day (100 to 40 is red line).

While unrealistic in real world use 75% to 65% charge would be "way way better" for battery longevity.

Again I do not think anyone should go out of their way to practice 75%-65% charging but the extremes are states 100% and 0% are most harmful to keep the battery. Of course Apple even states for long term storage....

Apple link

 

[Aydy]

Interesting in the above diagram the worst culprit methods of charging (blue black & red) are probably the majority of the population’s practice of charging devices while the healthier options require excessive faffing around to upkeep.

I kinda wish operating systems would somehow implement a semi aggressive cutoff (70/40ish) with 70 represented as 100 and a system where discharge doesn’t fall below a definite point..Eg, 20% represented as shut down. Could potentially result in a couple more years use

 

[nickdalzell1]

FYI when your phone says the charge is at, say 4%, that's not the real percentage. The battery gauge lies to you. It's only going to let you run it to around 25% before it shuts off. If you ran a Li Ion battery to 4% it wouldn't even be safe to recharge.

Also, I don't panic about the health reading like so many posts here seem to convey. I just never saw it change before.