iPhone 13 mini iPhone 13 mini Battery Health

[Major774]

Creating this thread in preparation of my new iPhone 13 mini. I will report back in 2022 on my battery capacity, when the iPhone 14 (I assume) is released.

Currently I have been MagSafe charging my launch day iPhone 12 mini every night (with random wireless charging top ups). The phone has never been plugged into via the cable, and yes, I am able to run port less if it every gets to this stage. It is now Sep 2021 and my battery capacity is at 89%.

I hope this helps anyone who has battery capacity worries.

 

[jeremydc]

This validated my concern.

 

[akash.nu]

So 89% of the capacity within a year is pretty steep. My iPhone 11 Pro has just hit 89% a couple of weeks ago.

Although this entirely depends on the number of charge cycle you go through.

 

[catean]

iPhone 12 mini, 7 months old, charged with the 18w fast charger via cable, 99%.

 

[lpc2]

My 2016 iPhone SE is at 85%. This one was purchased in Sept. 2016. It is surprising to see much newer phones at only 4% better.

 

[catean]

I think wireless charging is killing those batteries.

 

[xxray]

I think wireless charging is killing those batteries.

That’s what I was thinking. It seems like a lot of the battery health numbers reported here from any model of the 12 series is lower than usual.

My XS Max, which I primary charge with the 5W wired charger, is still at 88% after 3 years (got it on launch day).

 

[Abstract]

I’ve had my XR for 2 years and 11 months. It’s at 89% battery health. I charge it every day, and only using a 5W “slow” charger. I don’t care since I charge at night when I sleep.

 

[Major774]

I think wireless charging is killing those batteries.

It appears that way.

• If you are upgrading yearly, charging method does not matter.
• If you are keeping for the longer term, a slow charge via cable is better.

 

[Phone Junky]

I think wireless charging is killing those batteries.

iPhone 12 Mini bought last Thanksgiving. Charged via MagSafe 90% of the time. Almost always charged to only around 90% max. Rarely ever below 30%-40%.

 

[danpass]

Interesting. My iPhone X sat at 86% for a long time. Just last month it went to 83%

.

 

[v386]

iPhone 12 mini, 7 months old, charged with the 18w fast charger via cable, 99%.

I haven't been so lucky, my 12 mini, 10 months old, is at 86%. Optimized battery charging turned on for the duration but I can't seem to make it do anything. Use the 20w charger with the magsafe puck. With my 13 mini I'm going to use a 5W charger wired and see if it does better. My son's 12 mini is at 96%, it started service on release day just as mine did.

 

[yukari]

Had my 12 mini since the launch. It's at 99%. I never use any fast charging. Alway use 5W wired charging and charge only to 80-90%, rarely to 100%. Also almost never let it fall below 20-25% charge.

Biggest culprit for a fast battery degradation is generally fully charging and fully draining the battery.
I always try to keep it between 20-85%.

 

[now i see it]

It is now Sep 2021 and my battery capacity is at 89%.

That's borderline horrible and testament right there that that charging practice is accelerating battery degradation.
An iPhone battery can easily outlast the useful life of the phone (+7 years) if it's charged with respect.

 

[Major774]

That's borderline horrible and testament right there that that charging practice is accelerating battery degradation.
An iPhone battery can easily outlast the useful life of the phone (+7 years) if it's charged with respect.

Indeed, food for thought for owners who keep their phones for the long run.

 

[sewerx]

That's borderline horrible and testament right there that that charging practice is accelerating battery degradation.
An iPhone battery can easily outlast the useful life of the phone (+7 years) if it's charged with respect.

I’m still on iPhone 4. It’s been my only phone since 2010. Even without any respectful charging practice original battery working fine (78% capacity).

 

[davidako]

It appears that way.

• If you are upgrading yearly, charging method does not matter.
• If you are keeping for the longer term, a slow charge via cable is better.

Or if keeping longer term then just pay about €70 every two years or so to have Apple replace the battery.

Decide for yourself if the convenience of wireless is worth about €35/year in extra costs (on top of what you paid for your wireless charger anyway) and if so just accept the price and forget about battery health.

BTW if you do charge with a wire don’t use your phone for heavy tasks like gaming while it’s charging as that’s effectively the same heat damage.

 

[Rigby]

I haven't been so lucky, my 12 mini, 10 months old, is at 86%. Optimized battery charging turned on for the duration but I can't seem to make it do anything.

Do you have "Significant Locations" disabled? That's what kept it from working for me initially. You can immediately see if it's working since it pops up a dialog on the screen. See:

About Optimized Battery Charging on your iPhone

With iOS 13 and later, your iPhone learns from your daily charging habits to improve the lifespan of your battery.

support.apple.com

FWIW, my SE (2020) shows 98% capacity after ~17 months, using over-night wired "optimized charging". But I am a very light WFH user during the pandemic and sometimes even skip a day.

 

[umbilical]

This is the only thing that I wanna know about the Mini, I start to read great reviews about the normal 13 battery, so if the mini is close I go for the Mini.

Camera, Chip bla bla is fine, so battery is the only thing that I need to know.

 

[hirsthirst]

I've never had an issue with battery health on previous iPhones, but my 12 Pro has been bad (88%).

It got badly overheated on vacation which did much of that damage, but I've also used a 20W iPad charging brick with Magsafe Duo iPhone / Watch combo travel wireless charger almost every night, albeit with optimised charging turned on.

New 13 will now only ever go on low power cable & infrequent low power wireless - Apple duo charger going onto eBay!

 

[felixroqu3]

I thought it was widely known that fast chargers degrade battery capacity a lot quicker?

 

[Major774]

BTW if you do charge with a wire don’t use your phone for heavy tasks like gaming while it’s charging as that’s effectively the same heat damage.

Good point.

 

[umbilical]

So the best charger for the iPhone Mini is the one selling by Apple? 20W USB-C Power Adapter.
I don't care about magsafe.

 

[Septembersrain]

Never used wireless on my 11 Pro Max and it is at 97% health. Not launch day. Was bought in January 2020.

 

[Major774]

So the best charger for the iPhone Mini is the one selling by Apple? 20W USB-C Power Adapter.
I don't care about magsafe.

Actually the old 5W brick… slow charging = less heat.