iPad Air Pretty disappointed concerning battery new iPad Air

[FeliApple]

Interesting to see it occasionally bounce a few points back up – is it spending time in very different temperature regimes?

No (I assume that question was directed to me). And what I try to convey to people is that the battery will outlast the device. The device is on iOS 12. iOS 12 is pretty incompatible by now. I have two more iPads that are newer, wnd on newer iOS versions. Battery health and battery life are now irrelevant, as the iPad is practically unused by now.

Which is why worrying is pointless. Use it. For whatever you like and however you want. It is HIGHLY likely that the battery will outlast the iPad’s usefulness. When it is fully updated its quality is degraded too much by updates anyway.

You might wonder, why do you keep track of it then? Because I’m interested in the numbers for all of my devices. It’s curiosity. But I don’t care.

Due to irrelevant circumstances, I bought my iPad Air 5 (that still runs iPadOS 15) in September 2022, but I’ve barely used it since. OP has 99% health after 71 cycles? I have 96% and 54 cycles. And I don’t care. That is probwbly the worst ratio I’ve ever seen. It’s probably that low due to too little usage, as time degrades batteries too. And I don’t care. iPadOS 15 will be infinitely useless by the time the battery degrades. And since I won’t update it, low battery health won’t matter anyway. It’s pointless to worry.

 

[Cuesca]

Do you guys have optimized charging on? A lot of the screenshots seems to have it off.

 

[BigMcGuire]

Do you guys have optimized charging on? A lot of the screenshots seems to have it off.

I have this on (and the 80% charge limit set on all my devices).

 

[rui no onna]

Do you guys have optimized charging on? A lot of the screenshots seems to have it off.

The only iPad I have with that option is the iPad mini 7. I use it way too much to limit the battery by 20%. Maybe if there was a 90% option like on iPhones, I would use it.

 

[FeliApple]

Do you guys have optimized charging on? A lot of the screenshots seems to have it off.

My iPad Air 5 doesn’t have an 80% limit, but my iPhone 16 Plus and 11th-gen iPad do. They’re all disabled.

I’ll never limit my battery. Like I said, for my usage and iOS update patterns I consider battery health irrelevant and I’ll act in accordance…

…but I respect those who enable it to preserve battery health.

I do have optimised charging enabled on my 16 Plus. For overnight charging, it does no harm. It stops charging at 80%. I typically unplug it around 6am. The device typically finishes charging by 3:30-4am. It isn’t accurate, but it does no harm, it just pauses charging for a few hours. I do wish it were a little more accurate. Not once have I unplugged my iPhone at 4am, yet it consistently finishes at that time.

 

[grandM]

Meanwhile the battery of my iPad Air has degraded to 97%. We are talking 109 cycli. I also own an iPhone 16e which I didn’t unwrap yet given the battery health concerns. I had a long talk with Grok which gave me hints how to decrease the heating of the battery which can get really hot. Grok says the X app might be an issue and guided me towards making it less of a burden to the battery health. The heat seems less severe now but must test it over a longer period.

I am concerned though. I own the Anker 736 and am considering switching to a genuine Apple charger. The safest thing is the 20W. There is also a 30W and a 35W option with dual ports. The two latter also support fast charging which in theory should not offer a better option than the Anker 736 but Apple tends to work awesomely with Apple.

I am no expert and it might be that X app had side effects but I would appreciate your input. I did contact Apple but they didn’t prove that useful in this department.

 

[MacCheetah3]

Some additional info in general on the topic:

Batteries

Maximize the life and lifespan of the lithium-ion battery in your iPod, iPhone, iPad, or MacBook. Learn how to service and recycle it, too.

www.apple.com

I am concerned though. I own the Anker 736 and am considering switching to a genuine Apple charger. The safest thing is the 20W. There is also a 30W and a 35W option with dual ports. The two latter also support fast charging which in theory should not offer a better option than the Anker 736 but Apple tends to work awesomely with Apple.

I haven’t owned an iPad Air — I’ve had a few ‘regular’ and a couple Pro models.

However, I will say that allowing an M4 iPad Pro to fast, fast charge — I’ve recently used Apple’s 45W adapter — causes it to become quite toasty on the bottom third or so, near the USB-C port. I would in fact describe it as hot at times. As such, especially if you’re worried about battery longevity, to choose a 20W or even lower charger.

About Apple USB power adapters - Apple Support

Learn about Apple USB power adapters.

support.apple.com

 

[grandM]

Some additional info in general on the topic:

Batteries

Maximize the life and lifespan of the lithium-ion battery in your iPod, iPhone, iPad, or MacBook. Learn how to service and recycle it, too.

www.apple.com

I haven’t owned an iPad Air — I’ve had a few ‘regular’ and a couple Pro models.

However, I will say that allowing an M4 iPad Pro to fast, fast charge — I’ve recently used Apple’s 45W adapter — causes it to become quite toasty on the bottom third or so, near the USB-C port. I would in fact describe it as hot at times. As such, especially if you’re worried about battery longevity, to not choose a 20W or even lower charger.

About Apple USB power adapters - Apple Support

Learn about Apple USB power adapters.

support.apple.com

Yes, it gets enormously warm here.
What percentage are you at after how many cycli?

 

[MacCheetah3]

What percentage are you at after how many cycli?

An M1 iPad I recently traded into Apple:



The M4 iPad can’t provide a lot of insight (yet):


Although, there is an anomaly — which I’m curiously watching and awaiting to see how it turns out.

 

[danny842003]

There’s a lot of reasons not to use X preserving battery health isn’t one of them.

 

[dumastudetto]

I never check my battery capacity. I just enjoy using my devices the way I want. Every iPad I've owned has had a usable battery way beyond it's useful life.

 

[FeliApple]

Meanwhile the battery of my iPad Air has degraded to 97%. We are talking 109 cycli. I also own an iPhone 16e which I didn’t unwrap yet given the battery health concerns. I had a long talk with Grok which gave me hints how to decrease the heating of the battery which can get really hot. Grok says the X app might be an issue and guided me towards making it less of a burden to the battery health. The heat seems less severe now but must test it over a longer period.

I am concerned though. I own the Anker 736 and am considering switching to a genuine Apple charger. The safest thing is the 20W. There is also a 30W and a 35W option with dual ports. The two latter also support fast charging which in theory should not offer a better option than the Anker 736 but Apple tends to work awesomely with Apple.

I am no expert and it might be that X app had side effects but I would appreciate your input. I did contact Apple but they didn’t prove that useful in this department.

I like to charge with the slowest possible original charger I can. I charge my iPhone 16 Plus with the 5w adapter, and I charge my 11th-gen iPad with the 20w because I have one USB-C to USB-A cable and sharing it would be too much of a hassle.

Grok has absolutely no idea, and like I said earlier, battery health typically stabilises in the long run.

 

[BigMcGuire]

The “Grok” app (similar to any LLM) is just pulling data from the web.

My iPhone 15 Pro Max never gets hot and I only use 15-25% of its battery capacity per day. My significant other, (partner), has to charge her 15 Pro Max at least once a day (sometimes two) because of social media apps that get her phone burning hot. Her battery is also almost in need of replacement while mine is still 102% battery health (same phone, purchased at same time (2 years ago)).

I’d say that social media apps like X, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok can have a huge impact on battery health and life. I know when I used them in the long past they’d make my devices hot hot hot.

My friend used a baby livestream monitoring app on his phone that basically cooked his battery to an early death. All depends on how we use our phones I guess. Meanwhile my phone (identical to his at the time) had over 100% battery health.

Big proponent of slow charging if you can handle it (spot on @FeliApple). Also, recent iPhones and iPads will run completely off wall power and not pull charge cycles from the battery if you leave them plugged in (my iPad mini A17 below spends most of its time plugged in using almost no cycles despite hours of use):

 

[grandM]

The “Grok” app (similar to any LLM) is just pulling data from the web.

My iPhone 15 Pro Max never gets hot and I only use 15-25% of its battery capacity per day. My significant other, (partner), has to charge her 15 Pro Max at least once a day (sometimes two) because of social media apps that get her phone burning hot. Her battery is also almost in need of replacement while mine is still 102% battery health (same phone, purchased at same time (2 years ago)).

I’d say that social media apps like X, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok can have a huge impact on battery health and life. I know when I used them in the long past they’d make my devices hot hot hot.

My friend used a baby livestream monitoring app on his phone that basically cooked his battery to an early death. All depends on how we use our phones I guess. Meanwhile my phone (identical to his at the time) had over 100% battery health.

Big proponent of slow charging if you can handle it (spot on @FeliApple). Also, recent iPhones and iPads will run completely off wall power and not pull charge cycles from the battery if you leave them plugged in (my iPad mini A17 below spends most of its time plugged in using almost no cycles despite hours of use):

View attachment 2539341

So basically the problem isn’t the charger but X?

 

[BigMcGuire]

So basically the problem isn’t the charger but X?

Well I’d put the statement more towards: “ The problem is usage “ - if you have someone who reads static webpages as their most intense activity on an iPhone, that person is going to see significantly less wear than someone who heavily games on their iPhone in the sun.

Social media apps are pretty intense - moving video, constantly downloading gigs with just a few hours (or less) of usage - one of the more intense ways to burn cycles and add a lot of heat to the battery, especially when a lot of people use their phones outside in the summer.

I have a Mac and an iPad - I am also an old fart so … my iPhone has a very easy life. So after 2 years my iPhone’s battery health is still 102% - meanwhile other people I know who use their iPhone heavily and do everything and anything on it (gaming, social media, long video calls, etc), are closer to 80%.

Not one app’s fault - it’s usage. They get a different type of utility out of their hardware - don’t let the phone/tablet dictate how you use it - it’s a tool to give you what you want/need.

iPad / iPhone batteries haven’t really changed all that much - but what we do with our devices has significantly increased over the last 5 years. I’d argue screen time continues to go up.

 

[grandM]

Well I’d put the statement more towards: “ The problem is usage “ - if you have someone who reads static webpages as their most intense activity on an iPhone, that person is going to see significantly less wear than someone who heavily games on their iPhone in the sun.

Social media apps are pretty intense - moving video, constantly downloading gigs with just a few hours (or less) of usage - one of the more intense ways to burn cycles and add a lot of heat to the battery, especially when a lot of people use their phones outside in the summer.

I have a Mac and an iPad - I am also an old fart so … my iPhone has a very easy life. So after 2 years my iPhone’s battery health is still 102% - meanwhile other people I know who use their iPhone heavily and do everything and anything on it (gaming, social media, long video calls, etc), are closer to 80%.

Not one app’s fault - it’s usage. They get a different type of utility out of their hardware - don’t let the phone/tablet dictate how you use it - it’s a tool to give you what you want/need.

iPad / iPhone batteries haven’t really changed all that much - but what we do with our devices has significantly increased over the last 5 years. I’d argue screen time continues to go up.

Agreed but in that case buying a new Apple charger seems a waste of money?

 

[BigMcGuire]

Agreed but in that case buying a new Apple charger seems a waste of money?

Yeah I wouldn’t go out of my way to buy a new charger to help “battery life” in that aspect.

Setting your max charge to 80% and leaving your phone/tablet plugged in as much as you can is probably the best thing you can do for battery longevity (if your iPad/Phone has it).

Those 5w chargers get REALLY HOT trying to keep a Pro Max (or even a Pro) charged these days - I had one actually yellow from overheating. I just set my max charge to 80% (need a recent device) and leave it plugged in (I work a desk job).

I’d only buy more chargers for convenience. My house is peppered with batteries because of my hobby (batteries) and my 80% charge limit set.

 

[grandM]

Yeah I wouldn’t go out of my way to buy a new charger to help “battery life” in that aspect.

Setting your max charge to 80% and leaving your phone/tablet plugged in as much as you can is probably the best thing you can do for battery longevity (if your iPad/Phone has it).

Those 5w chargers get REALLY HOT trying to keep a Pro Max (or even a Pro) charged these days - I had one actually yellow from overheating. I just set my max charge to 80% (need a recent device) and leave it plugged in (I work a desk job).

I’d only buy more chargers for convenience. My house is peppered with batteries because of my hobby (batteries) and my 80% charge limit set.

Thing is that when I am on X my battery isn’t that warm since I made some adjustments. It burns up though when it is plugged on and on X. Need to test it if it is also really warm not on X and plugged in.

 

[Homme]

Mine (iPad A16) is practically the same, purchased 09 April, for what it’s worth.

View attachment 2526465

A16 kills the battery capacity far more quicker than any other SoC in history ( it’s very brutal on the 14 Pro more than the 15/iPad 11 because 14 Pro’s battery capacity is 500 cycles while besides thw iPad since all iPad Models IIRC Have 1000 cycles the 15 lineup is the first iPhone lineup to support 1000 cycles)

This is actually fantastic. 500 cycles or 2 years is typically what it should take to get to 80%,

yes but that is from the OG iPhone to the 14 lineup. The 15 lineup supports 1000 cycles.

Another big reason why the 14 lineup sucks especially the 14 Pro in comparison to the non pro 15 with the same A16 Chip

Seconded on the heavy usage pattern.

My 16ProMax is still at 100% after 116 cycles, and it's seven months old.

I still wouldn't worry about it.

My 16e is still on 100% after 144 cycles.

Anyway to the OP The A17 architecture I Believe in ways is similar to the A16 even with the nm being 3nm from the wonky 4nm (according to Apple) or an enhanced version of the 5nm family ( according to TSMC) of the A16. A17 Pro/A17X (M3) can handle battery life better than the A16 but unfortunately for you iPads do not support Adaptive Power Mode via Apple Intelligence. Luckily A17 Pro iPhones get it but it would be so much better if Apple extended it to iPads like the Air and Mini 7 lineup.

A17 Pro/M3’s biggest flaw that contributes to this is the N3B micro architecture. N3E handles battery life a lot better ( and yes N3E is better than N3B contrary to what “experts” think). But then if the 15 Pro supports Adaptive Power Mode in OS 26 then so should all other AI devices

 

[grandM]

A16 kills the battery capacity far more quicker than any other SoC in history ( it’s very brutal on the 14 Pro more than the 15/iPad 11 because 14 Pro’s battery capacity is 500 cycles while besides thw iPad since all iPad Models IIRC Have 1000 cycles the 15 lineup is the first iPhone lineup to support 1000 cycles)



yes but that is from the OG iPhone to the 14 lineup. The 15 lineup supports 1000 cycles.

Another big reason why the 14 lineup sucks especially the 14 Pro in comparison to the non pro 15 with the same A16 Chip



My 16e is still on 100% after 144 cycles.

Anyway to the OP The A17 architecture I Believe in ways is similar to the A16 even with the nm being 3nm from the wonky 4nm (according to Apple) or an enhanced version of the 5nm family ( according to TSMC) of the A16. A17 Pro/A17X (M3) can handle battery life better than the A16 but unfortunately for you iPads do not support Adaptive Power Mode via Apple Intelligence. Luckily A17 Pro iPhones get it but it would be so much better if Apple extended it to iPads like the Air and Mini 7 lineup.

A17 Pro/M3’s biggest flaw that contributes to this is the N3B micro architecture. N3E handles battery life a lot better ( and yes N3E is better than N3B contrary to what “experts” think). But then if the 15 Pro supports Adaptive Power Mode in OS 26 then so should all other AI devices

So basically Adaptive Power Mode not being available is causing this mess? For you have more cycles. What charger are you using?

 

[Homme]

So basically Adaptive Power Mode not being available is causing this mess? For you have more cycles. What charger are you using?

All I can say is that they should have have released this when iOS 18 came out instead of iOS 26. But then it’s a good thing that Apple chose the iPhone 15 Pro as the first iPhone released to support Apple Intelligence. The 15 Pro is the best iPhone released in a very long time, a S! Tier iPhone which gives me iPhone 5s vibes since the A16 nowadays feels like the A6 ( A7 definitely feels like A17 Pro) ( and to an extent the OG SE).

I hope you have looked into adaptive power mode more. Apple Intelligence I rarely use ( I only use Visual Intelligence because it makes the action button so much useful ( this applies more to the 15 Pro and 16e because they don’t have an action button) but yeah Adaptive Power Mode must be turned on at all times when iOS 26 comes out. It makes the 15 Pro even better than the 14 Pro/15. Sure performance will be impacted but then A17 Pro and higher have a 3nm chip and have 8GB of RAM which compared to the A16 ( which the 14 Pro reminds me of the 5 and the 15 to an extent of the 5c).


Regarding a future iPad Air ( maybe the M4 version) what will make the Air’s backside truly perfect and sorely needed is a camera flash to make it look more Pro than the base iPad and perhaps battery life will be better. But you must message Apple to bring Adaptive Power Mode to iPads

 

[grandM]

I meanwhile ordered the Apple 30W charger. During the charging with my Anker 736 the device heated up again. Wil ley you know what the Apple charger does.

 

[iHorseHead]

You just didn't see the numbers before. Try installing Coconut or iMazing on your computer to check battery health on your iPad mini.

My launch day iPad mini 6 is currently at 87% battery health.

Wow, my iPad mini 2 is at 83% and bought it in 2014

 

[FeliApple]

Wow, my iPad mini 2 is at 83% and bought it in 2014

Cycle count?

 

[iHorseHead]

Cycle count?

Sorry, the battery health is 88.4% according to iMazing and cycle count is 214.