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Questions about Power Reserve mode

MrXiro

MrXiro

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Nov 2, 2007
3,850
604
Los Angeles
I was under the impression that Power Reserve mode was automatic when you run low on power or if you decide to turn it on. But I was in a different post that says that all you see is the message that pops up when you have 10% left and you're supposed to turn it on yourself.

Can someone also confirm if there is an auto ON percentage point for the Power Reserve Mode or if you're just supposed to hit the PRM button when you hit 10% and the notification pops up?

Another question I have; is the 72 hour battery life in Power Reserve Mode from the remaining 10% when it asks you to turn it on?

Has anyone actually tested out the 72 hour PRM battery life yet?
 
MrXiro said:
It doesn't. It is pretty much just a low battery warning and a suggestion. That's why I was confused.
Click to expand...

Watch enters Power Reserve once the battery reaches 0%. Watch will also display a red charging symbol to indicate that the battery has been depleted. Power Reserve will last for another several hours (based on the WSJ review, about a couple of hours) until the reserve power has been depleted as well.
 
MrXiro said:
It doesn't. It is pretty much just a low battery warning and a suggestion. That's why I was confused.
Click to expand...

yeah i haven't gotten to test it (fortunately my battery has not depleted that far since the day i bought it). i'm hoping for some real-world tests on power reserve mode soon so i know. i'm not about to try to use my watch on power reserve for 72 hours... i can't go that long ;)
 
I think mine went into power reserve at 3%. Forced basically. I ignored the message at 10%. Question is to which battery percentage do the remaining 72 hours relate to?
 
The first day I received my watch I saw the battery warning at 10% did not select reserve mode and later that day the watch turned off completely. I charged it for a bit and used it for the rest of the day. (It didn't arrive at 100% and I was syncing apps and learning to use it, it has lasted all day for me every day since with battery to spare since).

So I'd say the reserve mode is simply suggested at 10% and when it gets to zero, it is too late to put it into reserve mode.
 
CmdrLaForge said:
I think mine went into power reserve at 3%. Forced basically. I ignored the message at 10%. Question is to which battery percentage do the remaining 72 hours relate to?
Click to expand...

Yeah that's what I mean... the wording is a little confusing on the Apple Site.

My original impression was that PRM came on when the Phone hit somewhere between 0-5% and lasted for 72 hours. But after looking into it now I'm not so sure.
 
The support document says:

"Apple Watch automatically enters Power Reserve mode if the percentage of battery charge remaining drops below approximately 10 percent",

while the Watch app on the iPhone states:

"Apple Watch will enter Power Reserve when your battery level nears zero."

That can't both be right (unless you consider 10% to be near zero). I can't relate any personal observations, for some reason my watch's battery level has never dropped down to 10% :p :D
 
dotnet said:
The support document says:

"Apple Watch automatically enters Power Reserve mode if the percentage of battery charge remaining drops below approximately 10 percent",

while the Watch app on the iPhone states:

"Apple Watch will enter Power Reserve when your battery level nears zero."

That can't both be right (unless you consider 10% to be near zero). I can't relate any personal observations, for some reason my watch's battery level has never dropped down to 10% :p :D
Click to expand...

Based on one reading of the support document, I chose to ignore the 10% notification asking if I'd like to turn on Power Reserve mode. I thought it would eventually go into that mode on it's own (for 72 hours?).

Later that day, the watch just shut itself off. Completely. :(

Fortunately, I've never approached that type of battery drain since.
 
extricated said:
Based on one reading of the support document, I chose to ignore the 10% notification asking if I'd like to turn on Power Reserve mode. I thought it would eventually go into that mode on it's own (for 72 hours?).

Later that day, the watch just shut itself off. Completely. :(

Fortunately, I've never approached that type of battery drain since.
Click to expand...

So once it hits 0% that's it... no power reserve mode... good to know. See this isn't how the things were worded. Hence my questions.
 
MrXiro said:
So once it hits 0% that's it... no power reserve mode... good to know. See this isn't how the things were worded. Hence my questions.
Click to expand...

As I said - mine went into power reserve mode at around 3% by itself.

I would really like to understand how long watch can run in power reserve mode as a function of the remaining percentage of battery life. E.gl at 100% - how long does the watch work in power reserve mode? 60 days ? 90 days ?
 
I believe the 72 hour number is for a full watch battery. However, the phone app tells you exactly how much power reserve you have left. Just open the watch app on the phone, go to general, then usage, then look at what it says after "Power reserve" That's how long it would last in power reserve if you were to enable it right now.
 
Right, my impression is that Power Reserve (perhaps poorly named?) is a lower power consumption mode, so, right now my watch says 54% and would last another 10 hours perhaps (since I've had it on about 10...) but the Power Reserve available number says '>2 days'.

So, if I switch to only showing the time and not doing any other functions (and needing a reboot to come out of that mode) it would last 48+ hours.
 
BrettDS said:
I believe the 72 hour number is for a full watch battery. However, the phone app tells you exactly how much power reserve you have left. Just open the watch app on the phone, go to general, then usage, then look at what it says after "Power reserve" That's how long it would last in power reserve if you were to enable it right now.
Click to expand...

That's not my understanding. My understanding is that it's 72 hours AFTER you reach < 10%.
 
MoodyM said:
That's not my understanding. My understanding is that it's 72 hours AFTER you reach < 10%.
Click to expand...


I think you may be right. I had a hard time believing that the watch could run for 72 hours on 10% of the battery, even in super power save mode, but that seems to be the case. Even now with 62% of my battery remaining the apple watch app is saying I have more than 2 days of power reserve.
 
we have no way of knowing without someone going to 10% and switching to Power Reserve. Of course then it would also depend on how often you actually looked at the watch face! :)
 
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