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labroste

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 8, 2019
4
0
Hi all, so my iPhone 14 pro max had always a weak battery (mainly in standby) and after many calls with apple support and 3 clean restores through iTunes everything stayed the same. And then I’ve done an experiment, I’ve swapped my sim card for another in the same carrier (with a different number) and then poof, the magic happened, in 8h in stanby the iPhone only drained 4%, whereas on my SIM card it normally would drain 20% as you can see in the images. I’ve already done a duplicate of my card (in the hope that I had a faulty one) but the drain remains exactly the same. Any ideas about what could be causing this?
 

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That is very interesting... when you say "the same carrier", is it a MVNO? Different service providers have different towers, equipment, signal strength, etc. If your cellular service is via a MVNO, their "virtual network" could be comprised of access to more than one service "behind the scenes". Depending on the IMEI or phone number attached to the different SIM cards, your phone could be actually trying to connect to different network towers, equipment, signal strength, etc., which could impact battery life as the cellular modem struggles to maintain a connection.
 
Hi all, so my iPhone 14 pro max had always a weak battery (mainly in standby) and after many calls with apple support and 3 clean restores through iTunes everything stayed the same. And then I’ve done an experiment, I’ve swapped my sim card for another in the same carrier (with a different number) and then poof, the magic happened, in 8h in stanby the iPhone only drained 4%, whereas on my SIM card it normally would drain 20% as you can see in the images. I’ve already done a duplicate of my card (in the hope that I had a faulty one) but the drain remains exactly the same. Any ideas about what could be causing this?
Interesting.
Are both SIMs have the same plan from the same carrier? Different plans might have different prioritization on the towers. Also, do you have the correct APN for the problematic SIM? And how did you "duplicate" your card?

I would try having the problematic SIM replaced by the carrier just to eliminate the physical SIM being an issue. If there's still a problem, double check the APN settings, and also check with the carrier to ensure that your line is provisioned correctly.
 
when you say "the same carrier", is it a MVNO?
Are both SIMs have the same plan from the same carrier?
They are both from the same network. The only difference is that the SIM where the battery normally works and has great battery life is prepaid, and my SIM is postpaid.

Also, do you have the correct APN for the problematic SIM? And how did you "duplicate" your card?
The first thing I did was checking the APN, and it’s the same on both SIMs. I’ve made the duplicate in the carrier store.

I’ve already contacted my carrier but they haven’t heard anything like this. Yesterday I did a full iTunes restore and used a new iCloud account and the drain still happens with my SIM card.
 
They are both from the same network. The only difference is that the SIM where the battery normally works and has great battery life is prepaid, and my SIM is postpaid.


The first thing I did was checking the APN, and it’s the same on both SIMs. I’ve made the duplicate in the carrier store.

I’ve already contacted my carrier but they haven’t heard anything like this. Yesterday I did a full iTunes restore and used a new iCloud account and the drain still happens with my SIM card.
Couple more ideas on top of my head.

- do both SIMs show the same signal strength? How’s the speed, is the postpaid faster? If it does, it might be using more bands or connecting to more towers to achieve better speed, and that might cause the higher battery usage.
- do both SIMs support 5G? Is there 5G coverage in your area? If not, try turning off 5G and only use 4G. If the postpaid plan support 5G while the prepaid does not, the postpaid SIM might use more power looking for 5G signals.
- are there any extra services on your postpaid plan that can trigger more network activity? Eg some sort of network location service perhaps?
 
is your SIM card old? Last month I was having bad coverage and the battery was mild. I went to Apple Support and they checked if the antennas were okay. After that they told me everything was okay and that it might be cause by the SIM card.
I went to my carrier and got a new SIM card and now the problems fixed. Also they told me that if the sim card is old, it might try to connect to a further tower because it doesn't "know" it has one nearer.
 
It's possible that the issue with your iPhone 14 Pro Max's weak battery in standby mode could be related to your carrier or SIM card. It's interesting to note that swapping your SIM card with another on the same carrier resulted in a significant improvement in battery life. This could suggest that there may be some sort of issue or compatibility problem with your specific SIM card.

One potential solution could be to contact your carrier and explain the issue you are experiencing with your SIM card and its impact on your iPhone's battery life. They may be able to provide you with a new SIM card or troubleshoot the issue further.

Another possibility could be that there are certain apps or settings on your iPhone that are causing excessive battery drain when your SIM card is in use. It may be worth reviewing your app usage and settings to see if there are any adjustments you can make to optimize battery life.

Overall, it's difficult to say for certain what is causing the issue without further information and testing. If the issue persists, it may be worth scheduling an appointment with an Apple Genius at an Apple Store or authorized service provider to diagnose the issue further.
 
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