I have used the heck out of this thing since I got it, just loving the retina display. Today, I got about 9 hours and 32 minutes before I had to recharge it. I have been basically using it on an off during the day, but what I did was set my timer on my phone each time I'd start using it, which is how I got the total time. The day before I had watched a couple of full movies and only ended up getting 8 hours and 22 minutes. So the battery life is very close to what is stated from my use. I keep the display at about 5o to 60 percent, which is plenty bright. The screen on full brightness hurts my eyes.
Good luck with yours!