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saxman211

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jun 12, 2010
258
58
Every since updating my iPhone X to IOS12 and I'm experiencing extreme battery drain. Am I the only one? I'm a disappointed.. and wonder if apple is setting these updates to make their latest phone look better...
 
Every since updating my iPhone X to IOS12 and I'm experiencing extreme battery drain. Am I the only one? I'm a disappointed.. and wonder if apple is setting these updates to make their latest phone look better...

iOS 12 was designed to be the opposite of phone killer.
 
My IP7 with iOS12 has better battery life than any iOS11.x, so it is not problem of everyone. But yes, some are complaining, it is likely there are some occasional issues.
 
Same here with iPhone 7 and 2018 iPad. Hopefully a software update is in the works. I had the same problem with the first few iOS 11 updates.
 
Better on my X than IOS 11. At least as good on my iPad
As been said before on many threads you need to provide additional information - what is battery under settings show you. What app are you running. How long since you did update - phone does a bunch of indexing etc after install and thus you need to wait at least a day to truly measure battery usage.
 
Every since updating my iPhone X to IOS12 and I'm experiencing extreme battery drain. Am I the only one? I'm a disappointed.. and wonder if apple is setting these updates to make their latest phone look better...

Not sure if it helps but after upgrading my iPhone 6S I read in another thread that Screen Time is a huge battery drain. After disabling it I noticed a huge difference. My battery health is 83%.
 
Not sure if it helps but after upgrading my iPhone 6S I read in another thread that Screen Time is a huge battery drain. After disabling it I noticed a huge difference. My battery health is 83%.
Which thread talks about Screen Time being a huge battery drain?
 
Installed as new on my XS, and I can't even get close to the battery life stated by Apple. For the record, on my 8Plus (on 11.4.1) I was exceeding Apple's quoted time by 2-3 hours.
 
What apps are wasting more of your battery?
No apps are “wasting more” of my battery. Battery life is just worse. This isn’t my first rodeo with iPhones and battery life. I’ve been using an iPhone for over a decade. iOS 12 has battery issues.
 
I did a clean install on iP7 and that still didn't fix it, I even went to the Apple store and they said the battery is fine and there is no hardware fault, not sure WTF should I do now?
 
I did a clean install on iP7 and that still didn't fix it, I even went to the Apple store and they said the battery is fine and there is no hardware fault, not sure WTF should I do now?
Did you get the battery replaced at some point recently?
 
No apps are “wasting more” of my battery. Battery life is just worse. This isn’t my first rodeo with iPhones and battery life. I’ve been using an iPhone for over a decade. iOS 12 has battery issues.
Here's what I suggest all of you do to know once and for all if iOS 12 is OK:

1) First of all: do an iCloud backup. Make sure all your settings and contents are saved, otherwise you'll lose them. If you don't pay for storage it's simple to move your contents from the device to another location, such as a free 15 GB Google Drive plan or your PC.

In my case I didn't want to risk and copied all my photos/videos from camera roll (using nPlayer Plus) and also moved all my files stored in this player (more than 100 GB) back to my PC.

The only settings that were not saved were Firefox (for iOS) bookmarks (sadly). Safari and others such as Notability/Goodnotes were.

Before you proceed further I recommend you also take screenshots (and save them) from the way your apps are organized in your device. Which apps you are currently using, or you can take photos from the settings you like. Save these photos, too.

2) You did an iCloud backup. What's next? Go to iOS internal settings and disable "Find My iPhone" (or iPAD). It will ask you to confirm. This step is required for the 3)

3) Still in internal settings go to...

Tap Settings > General > Reset. Then tap Erase All Content and Settings.

Please note YOU SHOULD NOT TAP "RESET ALL SETTINGS".

4) After that connect your device to a PC, and open iTunes.

Before that download (to your PC) the correspondent IPSW firmware file.

Link for it:
http://osxdaily.com/2018/09/17/ios-12-download-ipsw-update/

5) You did connect your iPhone or iOS device to your computer. Then you selected the device in iTunes.

What's next? Since you already have the IPSW file:

On a Mac, hold down the “Option” key and then click on “Update”

On a Windows PC, hold down “SHIFT” key and then click on “Update”

Select the IPSW file you downloaded and click “Choose”

Let the iOS device update as usual.

6) Once that ends do not select "restore from an iCloud backup". Instead use "set this iPAD/iPhone as NEW". I'll repeat: SET THIS DEVICE AS NEW.

7) You'll have to download all your apps again and reconfigure EVERYTHING. Log into your Apple ID account once the iPAD/iPhone is ready to use.

**********

8) Here's how my IPP 10.5 is configured and so far I haven't noticed any battery issues:

- Brightness: reduced to 28%. When I watch movies I increase to 38, perhaps close to 50%.

- After 15 minutes my device is locked. I don't use a passcode or Touch ID. And closing the Smart Cover also turns the screen off (this setting is enabled, too).

- Location services are on (only during use - I never enable "ALWAYS"), but I have turned off FOR ALL apps, except a few like:

* Find My iPhone
* One that tracks airplanes routes in my area
* All astronomy apps that need it
* Coordinates
* Maps (from Apple)
* All "ISP speedtest" similar apps
* Google Earth and Google Maps
* iFood
* Moovit

* Siri and... (but I have disabled Siri completely. It's not useful in my opinion)

* Sun Surveyor Lite
* Weather app
* Uber

Notification services are disabled for Mail, which is only searching for new messages when I open the app. Podcasts also disabled (manual update).

- Safari - avoid tracking enabled.

- Automatic iCloud backup - disabled

- Do not disturb - disabled
- Background App Refresh is COMPLETELY DISABLED.

Also:

- Wi-fi and bluetooth disabled for GOOD (not just temporarily - to do this you need to turn them off from iOS internal settings, too). Reason: I use ethernet and bluetooth only enabled when I have to write with the Pencil:

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/has-anyone-tried-using-ethernet-on-ipad-pro.1974288/

- And I also disabled cellular data. My IPP 10.5 is the 256 GB (wifi+cell), however it does not have a SIM card.

********
In my case:

- The device was purchased in 2017. After a year I updated to iOS 12. It was using iOS 10.3.2 from day 1, with a tvOS profile preventing updates.

- Before I did this clean install I looked into battery health: 10, 14% degradation, which in my opinion is OK. It means from 10 hours it was reduced to 8:30 at least.

- Now I can't see what changed since ALL BATTERY APPS STOPPED WORKING.

What I can tell is that from the way I was using nothing changed and if there were some changes I would have noticed by now, after one week.

- Why I am telling all this? Because you need to investigate if one specific setting is draining your battery. If none of them are, then you'll need to:

- Go to Apple and replace yours (for a brand new battery).

*****
And here are some general tips that we always need to remember:

- Never let yours down to 0%. Recharge way before that, when it's down to 20% I am already doing it. Draining completely will reduce the health faster and you'll need to replace a lot sooner. I never allowed this to happen with this iPAD.

Some advices I found:

- Store your phone at 40 percent power. If you're not using your phone for more than a few days — say, if you're off on a week-long meditation retreat — power it down after charging it about halfway. An empty battery could fall into a state Apple refers to as “deep discharge,” rendering it incapable of ever holding a charge again. On the other hand, turning off your phone for more than several days at 100 percent battery power can also damage the battery capacity and shorten battery life.

If you're storing your phone for longer than six months, Battery University recommends charging it to 40 percent before storing it. Apple recommends turning your phone on every six months and making sure your phone is charged to 50%.

- Excessive heat can damage the battery's capacity and shorten how long it can power your device on a single charge. Apple suggests http://www.apple.com/batteries/maximizing-performance/ that you avoid exposing your phone to temperatures above 95 degrees Fahrenheit (35 degrees Centigrade), so don't leave your phone on your car dashboard on a hot summer's day, as distant a dream as that may seem at the moment.

- Some cases aren't made for charging. Certain styles of cases may insulate your iPhone so well that it causes the phone to heat up as it charges. Check your phone while it's charging, and remove it from its case if it's heating up.

- When charging by computer, make sure the computer has power. If you're charging your phone by USB on a computer and the computer goes into sleep or standby mode, it could actually drain your iPhone battery. Make sure the computer is plugged in and that the USB port remains active even if the computer goes to sleep.
 
Here's what I suggest all of you do to know once and for all if iOS 12 is OK:

1) First of all: do an iCloud backup. Make sure all your settings and contents are saved, otherwise you'll lose them. If you don't pay for storage it's simple to move your contents from the device to another location, such as a free 15 GB Google Drive plan or your PC.

In my case I didn't want to risk and copied all my photos/videos from camera roll (using nPlayer Plus) and also moved all my files stored in this player (more than 100 GB) back to my PC.

The only settings that were not saved were Firefox (for iOS) bookmarks (sadly). Safari and others such as Notability/Goodnotes were.

Before you proceed further I recommend you also take screenshots (and save them) from the way your apps are organized in your device. Which apps you are currently using, or you can take photos from the settings you like. Save these photos, too.

2) You did an iCloud backup. What's next? Go to iOS internal settings and disable "Find My iPhone" (or iPAD). It will ask you to confirm. This step is required for the 3)

3) Still in internal settings go to...

Tap Settings > General > Reset. Then tap Erase All Content and Settings.

Please note YOU SHOULD NOT TAP "RESET ALL SETTINGS".

4) After that connect your device to a PC, and open iTunes.

Before that download (to your PC) the correspondent IPSW firmware file.

Link for it:
http://osxdaily.com/2018/09/17/ios-12-download-ipsw-update/

5) You did connect your iPhone or iOS device to your computer. Then you selected the device in iTunes.

What's next? Since you already have the IPSW file:

On a Mac, hold down the “Option” key and then click on “Update”

On a Windows PC, hold down “SHIFT” key and then click on “Update”

Select the IPSW file you downloaded and click “Choose”

Let the iOS device update as usual.

6) Once that ends do not select "restore from an iCloud backup". Instead use "set this iPAD/iPhone as NEW". I'll repeat: SET THIS DEVICE AS NEW.

7) You'll have to download all your apps again and reconfigure EVERYTHING. Log into your Apple ID account once the iPAD/iPhone is ready to use.

**********

8) Here's how my IPP 10.5 is configured and so far I haven't noticed any battery issues:

- Brightness: reduced to 28%. When I watch movies I increase to 38, perhaps close to 50%.

- After 15 minutes my device is locked. I don't use a passcode or Touch ID. And closing the Smart Cover also turns the screen off (this setting is enabled, too).

- Location services are on (only during use - I never enable "ALWAYS"), but I have turned off FOR ALL apps, except a few like:

* Find My iPhone
* One that tracks airplanes routes in my area
* All astronomy apps that need it
* Coordinates
* Maps (from Apple)
* All "ISP speedtest" similar apps
* Google Earth and Google Maps
* iFood
* Moovit

* Siri and... (but I have disabled Siri completely. It's not useful in my opinion)

* Sun Surveyor Lite
* Weather app
* Uber

Notification services are disabled for Mail, which is only searching for new messages when I open the app. Podcasts also disabled (manual update).

- Safari - avoid tracking enabled.

- Automatic iCloud backup - disabled

- Do not disturb - disabled
- Background App Refresh is COMPLETELY DISABLED.

Also:

- Wi-fi and bluetooth disabled for GOOD (not just temporarily - to do this you need to turn them off from iOS internal settings, too). Reason: I use ethernet and bluetooth only enabled when I have to write with the Pencil:

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/has-anyone-tried-using-ethernet-on-ipad-pro.1974288/

- And I also disabled cellular data. My IPP 10.5 is the 256 GB (wifi+cell), however it does not have a SIM card.

********
In my case:

- The device was purchased in 2017. After a year I updated to iOS 12. It was using iOS 10.3.2 from day 1, with a tvOS profile preventing updates.

- Before I did this clean install I looked into battery health: 10, 14% degradation, which in my opinion is OK. It means from 10 hours it was reduced to 8:30 at least.

- Now I can't see what changed since ALL BATTERY APPS STOPPED WORKING.

What I can tell is that from the way I was using nothing changed and if there were some changes I would have noticed by now, after one week.

- Why I am telling all this? Because you need to investigate if one specific setting is draining your battery. If none of them are, then you'll need to:

- Replace your battery.

*****
And here are some general tips that we always need to remember:

- Never let yours down to 0%. Recharge way before that, when it's down to 20% I am already doing it. Draining completely will reduce the health faster and you'll need to replace a lot sooner. I never allowed this to happen with this iPAD.

Some advices I found:

- Store your phone at 40 percent power. If you're not using your phone for more than a few days — say, if you're off on a week-long meditation retreat — power it down after charging it about halfway. An empty battery could fall into a state Apple refers to as “deep discharge,” rendering it incapable of ever holding a charge again. On the other hand, turning off your phone for more than several days at 100 percent battery power can also damage the battery capacity and shorten battery life.

If you're storing your phone for longer than six months, Battery University recommends charging it to 40 percent before storing it. Apple recommends turning your phone on every six months and making sure your phone is charged to 50%.

- Excessive heat can damage the battery's capacity and shorten how long it can power your device on a single charge. Apple suggests http://www.apple.com/batteries/maximizing-performance/ that you avoid exposing your phone to temperatures above 95 degrees Fahrenheit (35 degrees Centigrade), so don't leave your phone on your car dashboard on a hot summer's day, as distant a dream as that may seem at the moment.

- Some cases aren't made for charging. Certain styles of cases may insulate your iPhone so well that it causes the phone to heat up as it charges. Check your phone while it's charging, and remove it from its case if it's heating up.

- When charging by computer, make sure the computer has power. If you're charging your phone by USB on a computer and the computer goes into sleep or standby mode, it could actually drain your iPhone battery. Make sure the computer is plugged in and that the USB port remains active even if the computer goes to sleep.


I'm very aware of how to handle battery draining issues on iOS. I've been helping other forum members for 10 years with battery drain issues. I can unequivocally tell you that iOS 12 is the issue. I had zero battery issues with the betas, this latest build is terrible. I have multiple devices all getting 20% less battery life now than they did with iOS 11.4.1 or with iOS 12.0 betas. All my devices have been set up as new in the last week to try to combat these issues. These devices batteries are in stellar condition, ruling out hardware defects. The issue is iOS 12. Its that simple.

I invite you to go through my post history to see first-hand. A good number of my posts relate to battery health and battery life details.
 
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I did a clean install on iP7 and that still didn't fix it, I even went to the Apple store and they said the battery is fine and there is no hardware fault, not sure WTF should I do now?

Can I ask what your average screen on time a day is? I’m averaging about 3 hours with my iPhone 7 on 93% battery health.

I just want to know if this is about right? Siri and background app refresh turned off. Apple Watch connected.

Cheers.
 
I'm very aware of how to handle battery draining issues on iOS. I've been helping other forum members for 10 years with battery drain issues. I can unequivocally tell you that iOS 12 is the issue. I had zero battery issues with the betas, this latest build is terrible. I have multiple devices all getting 20% less battery life now than they did with iOS 11.4.1 or with iOS 12.0 betas. All my devices have been set up as new in the last week to try to combat these issues. These devices batteries are in stellar condition, ruling out hardware defects. The issue is iOS 12. Its that simple.

I invite you to go through my post history to see first-hand. A good number of my posts relate to battery health and battery life details.

I agree with this. All my devices and my wife’s iPhone 8 have taken a hit in battery life.
 
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Can I ask what your average screen on time a day is? I’m averaging about 3 hours with my iPhone 7 on 93% battery health.

I just want to know if this is about right? Siri and background app refresh turned off. Apple Watch connected.

Cheers.
Without having an iPhone 7, I can tell you off the bat that that is bad. Devices should be able to reach a minimum of 5 hours of screen on time a day. Thats what Apple considers "normal".
 
Without having an iPhone 7, I can tell you off the bat that that is bad. Devices should be able to reach a minimum of 5 hours of screen on time a day. Thats what Apple considers "normal".

I thought as much. I have an appointment with Apple tomorrow morning to get the battery replaced but I fear that it may not improve things.
 
Without having an iPhone 7, I can tell you off the bat that that is bad. Devices should be able to reach a minimum of 5 hours of screen on time a day. Thats what Apple considers "normal".

Can’t seem to better this...

40dd1ec034450cda4c5b2c91a3c812a8.png
 
I'm very aware of how to handle battery draining issues on iOS. I've been helping other forum members for 10 years with battery drain issues. I can unequivocally tell you that iOS 12 is the issue. I had zero battery issues with the betas, this latest build is terrible. I have multiple devices all getting 20% less battery life now than they did with iOS 11.4.1 or with iOS 12.0 betas. All my devices have been set up as new in the last week to try to combat these issues. These devices batteries are in stellar condition, ruling out hardware defects. The issue is iOS 12. Its that simple.
I doubt all these people which are complaining about battery issues have done all I suggested. Find me one person that erased everything in his device and only then installed. Just one.

In my opinion these major updates won't work if you update from a previous version with tons of settings and apps already installed. It's a waste of time.

It's either that or some setting or app that it's wasting more battery than usual. Here's an idea: anyone that is having battery issues post a picture from iOS internal settings saying what apps are wasting more in the last day(s), and at which moment.

This is available in iOS 12 and if the members of Macrumors post here perhaps someone can tell what is causing this issue.

I am not ruling out that iOS 12 is shortening the battery from a few devices, all I am saying is that it's not good to update without cleaning the trash first. For example, in my PC I pretend to format the hard drive and reinstall Windows 10. Is this annoying to do? Sure, no one likes to do it often. It would be better to update from Windows 8 or some ancient version...

However after a while the system isn't in pristine condition as it was.
 
I thought as much. I have an appointment with Apple tomorrow morning to get the battery replaced but I fear that it may not improve things.
93% health should show a slight decrease in overall battery life, but not enough to average about 3hrs of screen on time a day. Worse case, you should still be getting 4-4.5 hours. But even that is on the more conservative side of the spectrum.
[doublepost=1538066862][/doublepost]
I doubt all these people which are complaining about battery issues have done all I suggested. Find me one person that erased everything in his device and only then installed. Just one.

In my opinion these major updates won't work if you update from a previous version with tons of settings and apps already installed. It's a waste of time.

It's either that or some setting or app that it's wasting more battery than usual. Here's an idea: anyone that is having battery issues post a picture from iOS internal settings saying what apps are wasting more in the last day(s), and at which moment.

This is available in iOS 12 and if the members of Macrumors post here perhaps someone can tell what is causing this issue.

I am not ruling out that iOS 12 is shortening the battery from a few devices, all I am saying is that it's not good to update without cleaning the trash first. For example, in my PC I pretend to format the hard drive and reinstall Windows 10. Is this annoying to do? Sure, no one likes to do it often.

However after a while the system isn't in pristine condition as it was.
Um, me? Am I not one person? I've done it on 4 different devices. Therefore, I have 4 samples to go off of. I never update X.0 versions of iOS. I always restore as new.
 
I can’t seem to improve things. On 11.4.1 I used to see around 4-5 hours easily. With the same settings I’m seeing 3 hours at a push.

I did update to iOS 12 through iTunes instead of OTA but no difference.

I can’t set up as new as I will lose my activity data so I’m hoping Apple can push a software update to resolve.
 
Every since updating my iPhone X to IOS12 and I'm experiencing extreme battery drain. Am I the only one? I'm a disappointed.. and wonder if apple is setting these updates to make their latest phone look better...

Turn off most useless features you can. Newer phones will perform better since their batteries are brand new, there aren't apps installed (unless you restore from backups)...
 
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