iPhone 15 Models Feature New Setting to Strictly Prevent Charging Beyond 80%

[Jerutix]

Conceptually, the current way to do that would be to put in a battery with 100% capacity, set the meter so it shows 100% when it is actually 80% and put however this works in the system to halt charging at (actual) 80% while showing 100%. We see 100% but behind the scenes, it's this same 80% charged (actual) store of power.

And maybe tweak that gauge with some inspiration from Spinal Tap so that a dial that normally maxes at 10 could go up to 11 and thus "be louder, because it goes to 11" by making the PRO MAX option make the above option make the (actual) 80% display as 110%, so PRO MAX users can enjoy "10% more battery." 😉

To what you probably want though is an actual 100% capacity able to be effectively charged to 100% over and over with no consequence. For that, a new kind of battery technology will need to be discovered and invented beyond the one used now.

You joke, but this is exactly what I want. I want my phone to give me “110%” on special days.

 

[vegetassj4]

Wake me up when they invent an iPhone that never goes below 80%.

 

[magicman32]

Absolutely stupid. Yeah let me extremely negligibly save battery longevity only to cost myself more full depletions, and more charging. This is actually hilarious because it’s extremely detrimental to the end users who will knowingly turn it on but cost themselves massive user experience and ease-of-use.

You just don’t worry about battery…simple as that.

Next thing you know people will want a minimum limit of 20% so their phone automatically shuts off at 20% therein saving it from the lower detrimental charging percentages too.

Meanwhile EVERY single one of the people who use this feature are simultaneously people who complain that the battery life isn’t good and they want more battery added. Now they’re going in and literally artificially limiting a massive percentage of their battery capacity lmao. Priceless

I do this on my phones manually since I get through a full day of use by only going to 80-85% so there's no reason to stress my battery needlessly. And down the road when I need a full charge it's there for me ready and waiting. Obviously no one who needs full charge is going to use this nor should they. You do your thing and be happy but we can do without the condescension and nonsensical judgment of someone who has no clue how others use their phone.

First setting I will turn OFF when I get my new phone. I want the max capacity always. I don't buy a car that can go 80 MPH to turn a switch to stop me going beyond 60 MPH. And this is from someone still using an iPhone 8 PLUS on the ORIGINAL battery. Doesn't last as long as it did but 6 years in and still getting almost a day battery is acceptable.

Terrible car analogy as usual since this does nothing to limit the power or how you use your phone. You don't need or want it, cool. You do you and enjoy.

But those of use that care not to stress the battery and get though a day with 80 percent charge it's a no-brainer to use and save what we can of a perishable item until solid state batteries get here.

 

[magicman32]

This is something Apple should have never let users do. Why? Because it’s one of those things that people erroneously believe helps them greatly when actual engineers know that it would only effect their battery exceedingly exceedingly negligibly over a very very long period of time.

Now, instead, people’s user experience drops massively in needing to charge far more frequently and depleting the battery to 0 far more, which is equally detrimental, maybe more.

Apple should be applauded anytime they let the end-user control anything. No one is going to use this if they hit their phones hard to the point of low battery. I don't know why you think they would. They shouldn't. I get by easy on 80 so its win for me and those of us that do.

 

[dk001]

I bought a wireless charger (Belkin) for my 13PM and since using it my battery has plummeted from 95% down to 85%.

I assume the combination of heat and optimised charging not seeming to work on wireless charge has destroyed it. Suffice to say, no more wireless charging for my 15PM unless I have no other options available.

The portless iPhone is the stuff of nightmares.

Something changed and I suspect it was the software.
My 13PM dropped a couple of points year one but in the last 9 or so months it has dropped another 7 points. It started doing this with iOS16 and continues into 17 (betas). SOT also took a big hit starting with iOS16.

 

[kingtj1971]

I do this on my phones manually since I get through a full day of use by only going to 80-85% so there's no reason to stress my battery needlessly. And down the road when I need a full charge it's there for me ready and waiting. Obviously no one who needs full charge is going to use this nor should they. You do your thing and be happy but we can do without the condescension and nonsensical judgment of someone who has no clue how others use their phone.

Terrible car analogy as usual since this does nothing to limit the power or how you use your phone. You don't need or want it, cool. You do you and enjoy.

But those of use that care not to stress the battery and get though a day with 80 percent charge it's a no-brainer to use and save what we can of a perishable item until solid state batteries get here.

I was actually going to say the car analogy is excellent if you're familiar with electric cars!
My Chevy Bolt was artificially limited to a hard 80% charging limit for about 6700 miles of driving, via their latest firmware, because GM is trying to ensure the newer battery packs aren't defective and subject to catching fire like the original ones did. They clearly believe only charging it 80% full is a safer way to monitor the battery pack and prevent issues in case it turns out it's a defective one. They run a bunch of diagnostics for that 6700 mile period and if all is well, they unlock ability to charge to 100% again.

And I've owned several Teslas where they all advised you're better off never charging to 100% full except when you're ready to leave right after that, immediately starting to discharge it again on a trip. They say 90% is fine and 80% is better for daily use, if you're trying to maximize the battery pack's life.

I think this is just the nature of these types of batteries. They're under stress when charged all the way up to the limit, or close to it. That causes a faster breakdown of them at the molecular level. You can obviously do it if you want, but Apple's acknowledging it's a tradeoff of battery capacity vs lifespan, so now you have choices.

 

[F23]

HERE is info from The Verge, the battery still charges PAST the 80% limit even with this option enabled.

 

[FrozenDarkness]

Posts claiming usage of iphone for a year and still at 100% is asinine. This is chemistry not magic. If you use your battery, capacity will go down. If you charge to 100% it will degrade faster. These are facts

 

[daabido]

Good to know. My launch day iPhone 14 Pro is now down to 89% after a mixture of wireless charging in the car and overnight charging (optimized) at night (with MagSafe mostly).

I'm probably going to try to forgo wireless charging altogether when my iPhone 15 Pro Max gets here and see how that affects battery health over the next year.

So in other words, you're still 9% ahead of all the worry-whores/men who fix what doesn't need fixing types.

 

[mectojic]

Great change. My iPhone 15 Pro Max is already at 91% battery health and it's still sealed in the box!!

 

[matrix07]

I appreciate this for people who have issues (or are worried). I know that everyone's mileage is different. For me, on my launch day 14 Pro Max is at 100% Health with daily overnight MagSafe charging, daily plug-in CarPlay to/from work. Basically- just use it. Will I use this? Perhaps...But nice knowing its there.

Yeah I’m with you. I’ll just use it for 3 years then I’ll change to the new battery. Always does this it’s worry-free.

 

[magicman32]

Do you have a link, I can’t find it

Not sure if anyone took this already but here you go.

aldente

 

[hinrgmike]

one of first things I will turn off when I get phone Friday. To each their own. I want 100% when I leave house in AM and I find I use that 100% by nighttime. 80% I'd constantly being having to lug around a charger or find a place to connect. I use IUP and swap out for new phone every 12 months.

My current 14 Pro Mac is at 90% max battery capacity. And that's typical for what I see charging to 100% every day for a year and then swapping out for new model. I suppose this makes sense for someone keeping their phones for many years. Would be curious where the threshold in years is where this would make sense? But for me, for 1yr it's a big net negative.

 

[I7guy]

Why is this limited to the new models only? Given the OS is capable of stopping charging when it's overheating, comes in contact with liquid etc. since iPhone 6-7

Could be hardware related. But it’s a welcome move.

 

[rui no onna]

Posts claiming usage of iphone for a year and still at 100% is asinine. This is chemistry not magic. If you use your battery, capacity will go down. If you charge to 100% it will degrade faster. These are facts

It's possible with extremely light use and a battery with higher than design capacity.

I've noticed on iMazing/Coconut that the original capacity is often higher than design capacity. The iPhone just reports 100% but I've seen actual capacity on some of my devices to be 107% of design capacity. Hence in this scenario, when battery health reports 99%, it's already lost 8% of the design capacity (or 7.5% of original capacity).

 

[matrix07]

Absolutely stupid. Yeah let me extremely negligibly save battery longevity only to cost myself more full depletions, and more charging. This is actually hilarious because it’s extremely detrimental to the end users who will knowingly turn it on but cost themselves massive user experience and ease-of-use.

You just don’t worry about battery…simple as that.

Next thing you know people will want a minimum limit of 20% so their phone automatically shuts off at 20% therein saving it from the lower detrimental charging percentages too.

Meanwhile EVERY single one of the people who use this feature are simultaneously people who complain that the battery life isn’t good and they want more battery added. Now they’re going in and literally artificially limiting a massive percentage of their battery capacity lmao. Priceless

This post doesn’t make any sense.

 

[magicman32]

I was actually going to say the car analogy is excellent if you're familiar with electric cars!
My Chevy Bolt was artificially limited to a hard 80% charging limit for about 6700 miles of driving, via their latest firmware, because GM is trying to ensure the newer battery packs aren't defective and subject to catching fire like the original ones did. They clearly believe only charging it 80% full is a safer way to monitor the battery pack and prevent issues in case it turns out it's a defective one. They run a bunch of diagnostics for that 6700 mile period and if all is well, they unlock ability to charge to 100% again.

And I've owned several Teslas where they all advised you're better off never charging to 100% full except when you're ready to leave right after that, immediately starting to discharge it again on a trip. They say 90% is fine and 80% is better for daily use, if you're trying to maximize the battery pack's life.

I think this is just the nature of these types of batteries. They're under stress when charged all the way up to the limit, or close to it. That causes a faster breakdown of them at the molecular level. You can obviously do it if you want, but Apple's acknowledging it's a tradeoff of battery capacity vs lifespan, so now you have choices.

My thing was he was talking about limiting the speed the car can go which could affect usability. If you charge your car to 80 percent you can still go whatever speed you want and use the full capabilities of the car regardless.

This doesn't affect anything regarding the power of the chip inside the phone. You get full use of the processors regardless of charging to 100 or 80. I am completely agree regarding the 80-20 battery rule of thumb (though I use 80-30).

Preaching to the choir, buddy!

 

[matrix07]

Be good to know how much it actually extends the battery life so I can make an informed decision about whether it’s actually worth it.

Anyone actually know?

The thing that will extend your battery better is (in this order)
A. Don’t use wireless charging
B. Don’t full charge

 

[Rogue AI]

Been charging my iPhone 14 Pro Max to 100% every day for the last year now and my battery health is still at 100%. No need to gimp your phone to squeeze out a few more weeks of battery longevity, especially with cheap battery replacements.

 

[nate13]

Assuming it’s a charge controller or battery tech issue… the layered battery might be more receptive to such a setting, where a traditional pack battery might not see a benefit over the optimized charging. Someone with battery background welcome to refute.

 

[Rogue AI]

Posts claiming usage of iphone for a year and still at 100% is asinine. This is chemistry not magic. If you use your battery, capacity will go down. If you charge to 100% it will degrade faster. These are facts

My battery is still 100% after a year. I’m not a heavy user and charge my phone to 100% daily.

Really not that difficult to believe.

 

[rui no onna]

one of first things I will turn off when I get phone Friday. To each their own. I want 100% when I leave house in AM and I find I use that 100% by nighttime. 80% I'd constantly being having to lug around a charger or find a place to connect. I use IUP and swap out for new phone every 12 months.

My current 14 Pro Mac is at 90% max battery capacity. And that's typical for what I see charging to 100% every day for a year and then swapping out for new model. I suppose this makes sense for someone keeping their phones for many years. Would be curious where the threshold in years is where this would make sense? But for me, for 1yr it's a big net negative.

It depends on usage. If you regularly deplete your phone battery in a single day, it doesn't make sense to enable this feature.

For a light user like me who always has my phone on a charging dock while at the office, this feature helps reduce battery wear. I can't give up wireless charging though. It's just so convenient.

 

[citysnaps]

Posts claiming usage of iphone for a year and still at 100% is asinine. This is chemistry not magic. If you use your battery, capacity will go down. If you charge to 100% it will degrade faster. These are facts

Nope... That's where I am on my 14 PM with a year of everyday usage.

 

[BuddyTronic]

Somewhat amusing that Apple keeps upping the iPhone cost yet keep removing things or advising to use your phone less at the same time.

*Screentime so you phone can tell you you’re using it too much.
*Headphones + Headphone jack gone.
*Charging plug gone.
*Now pretty much asking you to not even bother to charge your phone all the way up.

At this rate, they’ll remove the USB-C cable next. You’ll just get the phone and the Box. Wouldn’t even shock me if they remove the battery completely and sell that separately some point down the road 😂

They should get rid of the box - I'm fine with a brown box and bubble wrap.

They should rubber coat the iPhone (TPU plastic overmould), and make it thicker to hold a battery that is much bigger.

They should make the iPhone housing out of stiff plastic instead of metal.

I think this weird battery setting is Apple telling its customers that this thing is built to last a while, so if you wanted to use it for 8 years, you could do so and maybe this odd battery setting could help that? I upgrade my iPhone every single year, so I don't care about this 80% stuff so much.

 

[Octavius8]

Why is this locked to the 15???, even the CPU is the same in the 15!. What is the excuse Apple????
Improved HDR also only in the Pro because…? The 14pro CPU can’t handle it???. Seems action class lawsuit to me!. Capping a last year device to sell the new model should be illegal practice! Is like planned obsolescence!!