Replacing Apple Watch Series 7 (battery health 86%) Question

[swandy]

I have an Apple Watch Series 7 (purchased on release day) that the battery health is 86%. I didn't upgrade to the Series 8 because I didn't see much of an "upgrade" and it seems that the Series 9 will be too similar also. (And rumors say that the Series 10 will be a much more considerable upgrade!)
Anyway, I can't see my Series 7 lasting till the Series 10 comes out (the way the battery is going it is usually down to 15-20% or so when I go to bed depending on what I did during the day which is what made me actually look for the battery health) so I am thinking of trading in my Series 7 and getting a refurbished Series 8 which then should last me until Series 10 is out. (Other option is obviously get the Series 9.)
Any thoughts/comments? Thanks.

 

[JustinRP37]

I'm rocking a Series 5 with 84% battery health that has been at 84% for a suspiciously long time. To the point where the watch cannot make a full day and on LTE it will drain within a few hours even without drawing data. I think the AW battery health is a placebo. If you have Apple Care you can try to get it replaced. I am thinking about that myself as I really do think mine has a problem since if I get a call while it is on LTE, it pretty much shuts down a minute into the call and indicates a dead battery.

 

[jz0309]

Why not wait til health drops below 80% and then get the battery replaced (aka get a refurb) for I think $79? Probably cheaper that way

 

[The_Joker13]

Get an ultra. That’ll last you a while. Love mine.

 

[japanime]

Have you considered using low-power mode?

My first-generation SE's battery is down to 82 percent of its capacity. However, I keep low-power mode on at all times, and I routinely go 30 hours between charges. Low-power mode doesn't affect the things I use my watch for the most (recording workouts, closing the activity rings, checking the weather, and using ApplePay).

 

[minimo3]

I think I may hold the record: I’m rocking a series 5 with 78% battery health. Just turn off AOD and put it in low power mode and it’s fine!

 

[ndouglas]

I have a Series 7 with 89%…. yes, you could get a Series 8 but the chances of you experiencing the same thing seem fairly high… I find the Ultra battery life appealing but not the price …

I enjoy this watch, but I don’t recommend it to nearly all friends/family since it‘s annoying to have to charge it so often. : /

 

[Monkswhiskers]

I have an Apple Watch Series 7 (purchased on release day) that the battery health is 86%. I didn't upgrade to the Series 8 because I didn't see much of an "upgrade" and it seems that the Series 9 will be too similar also. (And rumors say that the Series 10 will be a much more considerable upgrade!)
Anyway, I can't see my Series 7 lasting till the Series 10 comes out (the way the battery is going it is usually down to 15-20% or so when I go to bed depending on what I did during the day which is what made me actually look for the battery health) so I am thinking of trading in my Series 7 and getting a refurbished Series 8 which then should last me until Series 10 is out. (Other option is obviously get the Series 9.)
Any thoughts/comments? Thanks.

If the 9 is a meh update, can’t you just pay for a battery replacement on your 7? Will get you another couple of years out of it in case the 10 is meh too.

 

[swandy]

If the 9 is a meh update, can’t you just pay for a battery replacement on your 7? Will get you another couple of years out of it in case the 10 is meh too.

Yes, but from what I read elsewhere the replacement cost - even with Apple Care+ is around $80. I had an earlier apple credit from a trade in and with the trade in for my AW7 the cost for a new Series 8 (including the new Pride 2023 band which I like) will only be around $140, not much more than the battery cost. So that is the way I went. thanks.

 

[minimo3]

In case anyone is wondering, turning off AOD doubles the useable battery life at least for me. My S5 has 78% health. I typically put it on at 7:30am and by 7:30pm it will be < 5% battery left. With AOD off the same usage leaves me with 50% batt left by the same time in the evening. (Low power mode makes a marginal difference so I don’t use it)

 

[dblissmn]

I'd probably just hang tight....and if you need a battery replacement out of warranty it isn't too bad. See if the expected process shrink for Series 9 brings better battery life and if 10 brings a wider feature set, but honestly it seems for the time being they're adding an awful lot of stuff in system software. What else could, or would, they add? ANT+? Further beefing up of geolocation? More app memory? A brighter display even than the Ultra? More style and size options? It's mostly iteration at this point. And considering that on that list I'd probably like ANT+ the most and it's probably the least likely thing for them to add, and no doubt others would like to see a wider range of styles but that hasn't really been Apple's way.......it comes down really to the battery life and memory.