iPhone SE and iOS 17 Battery Life Issues?
March 3, 2024 6:06 AM Subscribe
Recent Battery Life Issues with my iPhone SE. Not sure if its iOS 17 related, or just getting old and nearing end of life. Any tips?
I have a iPhone SE (2nd Gen) which I think was released in 2020 (I bought it new in Jan 2021). So I realize that I reached the 3 year mark of owning this phone and I love it; it suits my needs perfectly and haven't had any complaints with it, and was hoping it would last me a little while longer. Been having some recent Battery issues that have me wondering if its almost dying OR if its due to my recent iOS update.
It could be a coincidence that these issues only happened after upgrading to iOS 17, or maybe its just that time? I use my phone a lot during the day (mostly listening to Spotify and podcasts), and been seeing the battery drain rapidly during the day, when it never used to do this. Likewise, its starting to feel very warm on the back to touch at times when using it (never did this before) and now when I go out for a walk in the snow (its still very much winter here), it will go down to 2-5% at times when out for a walk (but will quickly boost up to 70% as soon as I get home) and plug it in.
I did some basic searches last night for things to do to increase battery life (like lowering screen brightness and switching to Dark Mode, etc), which I did, and will monitor to see if that makes a difference.
Outside of waiting for the next iOS release (to see if its iOS related), if there anything I should/could do to see if its actually the phone/battery reaching its end cycle vs software related? I would rather not get a new phone if its software related. And I think the cost of a new battery replacement is $134, so even that is $$.
Thoughts? Suggestions? Tips? Advice?
Details:
iPhone SE (2nd Gen)
iOS: 17.3.1
Battery Health & Charging: Maximum Capacity is currently 84%,
but I have an Important Battery Message (Your Battery's Heath is significantly degraded...an Apple authorized Service Provider...
I have a iPhone SE (2nd Gen) which I think was released in 2020 (I bought it new in Jan 2021). So I realize that I reached the 3 year mark of owning this phone and I love it; it suits my needs perfectly and haven't had any complaints with it, and was hoping it would last me a little while longer. Been having some recent Battery issues that have me wondering if its almost dying OR if its due to my recent iOS update.
It could be a coincidence that these issues only happened after upgrading to iOS 17, or maybe its just that time? I use my phone a lot during the day (mostly listening to Spotify and podcasts), and been seeing the battery drain rapidly during the day, when it never used to do this. Likewise, its starting to feel very warm on the back to touch at times when using it (never did this before) and now when I go out for a walk in the snow (its still very much winter here), it will go down to 2-5% at times when out for a walk (but will quickly boost up to 70% as soon as I get home) and plug it in.
I did some basic searches last night for things to do to increase battery life (like lowering screen brightness and switching to Dark Mode, etc), which I did, and will monitor to see if that makes a difference.
Outside of waiting for the next iOS release (to see if its iOS related), if there anything I should/could do to see if its actually the phone/battery reaching its end cycle vs software related? I would rather not get a new phone if its software related. And I think the cost of a new battery replacement is $134, so even that is $$.
Thoughts? Suggestions? Tips? Advice?
Details:
iPhone SE (2nd Gen)
iOS: 17.3.1
Battery Health & Charging: Maximum Capacity is currently 84%,
but I have an Important Battery Message (Your Battery's Heath is significantly degraded...an Apple authorized Service Provider...
I would get your battery replaced, by Apple. No need for a new phone, especially if you're happy with it. Your model should be supported by the OS for a handful of years yet. (I am still using a 6S+ on its fourth battery and it does what it needs to.)
posted by seanmpuckett at 6:53 AM on March 3, 2024 [2 favorites]
posted by seanmpuckett at 6:53 AM on March 3, 2024 [2 favorites]
Response by poster: Argh. I just checked. I am in Canada (no apple stores close to me) so the closest Apple Authorized Reseller charges $134 + tax to replace all batteries out of Warranty... That's a bit pricey...
posted by konaStFr at 7:44 AM on March 3, 2024
posted by konaStFr at 7:44 AM on March 3, 2024
Best answer: In Canada, Apple wants $95 to replace the battery -- you can mail them the phone and they will mail it back if you can do without the device for a few days. You can buy a full kit to replace the battery yourself from iFixit for $45CAD, but I will be honest, I read the 30+ very delicate steps to do it and ... I would find it worthwhile to pay someone else $100 to do it as long as they warranted the replacement. Buying a new phone seems like overkill if there's no compelling reason to do so; replacing lithium batteries as a device ages is part of the cost/benefit ratio of maintenance.
If replacing the battery for $150 gets you two-three more years of use out of the phone (by which time there will be a 4th generation SE), that's just like 25c a day. Cheap.
posted by seanmpuckett at 7:57 AM on March 3, 2024
If replacing the battery for $150 gets you two-three more years of use out of the phone (by which time there will be a 4th generation SE), that's just like 25c a day. Cheap.
posted by seanmpuckett at 7:57 AM on March 3, 2024
Best answer: We’ve got three of these in our house and I think this recent update is simply providing both better information/ self diagnosis and it’s a bit of a reset. One of our phones is essentially never restarted, and has lived a life of constant recharging and after the update it is noting a degraded battery, which Apple defines as having lost ~25% capacity. And mine absolutely hates the cold and will quickly lose its charge in that environment.
Before doing anything I would make certain all the other software is also updated. Then I would look into a mag safe case. Your phone has an inductive charger and you can just use an external battery pack to boost its battery life. There is heaps of options. Normally I am super fussy about how my electronics are charged but build quality isn’t as much of an issue for this type of tech- either it works or it does and it won’t (generally speaking) accidentally cook your phone.
On the issue of quality I would double check your charging setup - after a few years it might not be working as well as it could, and you might be able to actually upgrade to a more powerful setup. Apple has shipping underpowered bricks and I have found that quick charge makes up a bit for lower battery capacity.
posted by zenon at 8:36 AM on March 3, 2024
Before doing anything I would make certain all the other software is also updated. Then I would look into a mag safe case. Your phone has an inductive charger and you can just use an external battery pack to boost its battery life. There is heaps of options. Normally I am super fussy about how my electronics are charged but build quality isn’t as much of an issue for this type of tech- either it works or it does and it won’t (generally speaking) accidentally cook your phone.
On the issue of quality I would double check your charging setup - after a few years it might not be working as well as it could, and you might be able to actually upgrade to a more powerful setup. Apple has shipping underpowered bricks and I have found that quick charge makes up a bit for lower battery capacity.
posted by zenon at 8:36 AM on March 3, 2024
So I realize that I reached the 3 year mark of owning this phone and I love it; it suits my needs perfectly and haven't had any complaints with it, and was hoping it would last me a little while longer.
This was me three months ago. Your choices, alas, are to replace the battery or replace the phone. It's infuriating. (A couple of stupid accidents finally decided that I would replace the phone, but, god, spending $400+ to maintain essentially the same phone I already bought is maddening.)
posted by praemunire at 11:51 AM on March 3, 2024
This was me three months ago. Your choices, alas, are to replace the battery or replace the phone. It's infuriating. (A couple of stupid accidents finally decided that I would replace the phone, but, god, spending $400+ to maintain essentially the same phone I already bought is maddening.)
posted by praemunire at 11:51 AM on March 3, 2024
I trust third-party phone repair people on battery replacement, maybe I’m lucky being in a UK city; worth the fairly cheap fee and reliable. This is on an iPhone SE of the previous sort, which very much isn’t dead yet, giving me hope for yours.
posted by lokta at 1:29 PM on March 3, 2024
posted by lokta at 1:29 PM on March 3, 2024
Best answer: I have an SE that's older than yours. I've had the battery changed and it made it like a new phone. You could do that I'm sure.
posted by Liquidwolf at 2:25 PM on March 3, 2024
posted by Liquidwolf at 2:25 PM on March 3, 2024
At one point a security update started causing my battery to drain rapidly and my phone to run hot. I backed it up and completely reset it as a new phone then restored from back up.
Fixed the issue entirely for me.
This is an iPhone 12 mini. The one thing I wish I’d realized before I did it was that a lot of my MFA stuff should have been configured with an alternate method like SMS because that was a bit of bother.
But cheaper than a repair and may be worth a try!
posted by hilaryjade at 6:49 PM on March 3, 2024
Fixed the issue entirely for me.
This is an iPhone 12 mini. The one thing I wish I’d realized before I did it was that a lot of my MFA stuff should have been configured with an alternate method like SMS because that was a bit of bother.
But cheaper than a repair and may be worth a try!
posted by hilaryjade at 6:49 PM on March 3, 2024
My iphone SE's battery from the same timperiod is still perfectly fine, but I don't really use my phone that much - just like an hour a day actively looking at the screen I think.
However, I've had battery and camera replacements done on out of warranty phones and I'd do it again. It's super cheap. No need to pay Apple to replace a battery.
posted by The_Vegetables at 7:21 AM on March 4, 2024
However, I've had battery and camera replacements done on out of warranty phones and I'd do it again. It's super cheap. No need to pay Apple to replace a battery.
posted by The_Vegetables at 7:21 AM on March 4, 2024
I have an old iPhone 8 that had been showing "significantly degraded" battery for a while. In particular, just having Pokemon Go open and occasionally used while out walking would drain my battery from 100% to 1% in about an hour. I got a $30 battery replacement kit from iFixit, read through the online guide several times before starting, and finally took my time and did it. Working slowly and carefully, I completed the swap without any issues.
The basic tools provided in the kit got the job done, just required a lot of patience. The "anti-clamp" they sell probably would have made opening the phone a little easier, but it wasn't necessary. I'll admit to it being a bit of a nervous process; there are so many tiny, delicate bits in there, but if you're reasonably handy with a screwdriver, and very patient, you can do this repair. Patience is the biggest thing. Jam a pick tool or spudger too deeply into the gap while working the screen loose, and you can damage or destroy the screen. Don't rush it, it may take several "laps" around the screen to work loose all the adhesive, but it can be done.
As for why it's happening? I don't think it's necessarily iOS at fault; it's probably just your failing battery plus colder temperatures (which these batteries hate) teaming up to shorten your usable battery life.
It's a little counter-intuitive as fully-discharged cycles tend to shorten lithium battery life a bit, but I have found that having my phone run something demanding (again, Pokemon Go, or streaming something) until the phone turns itself off, and then charging it back up to 100% before using it, seems to "retrain" something in the battery meter. When mine is acting up, it'll quickly drop from 100% to like 1-3% remaining, but stay at that 1-3% for a long, long time. Hours of playing MP3s over Bluetooth. So it's like it has forgotten what the proper range of full vs empty is, and can't give an accurate estimate of % charge remaining. But fully discharging and then recharging it seems to reset this for a while. (All of that was before replacing my battery)
posted by xedrik at 9:13 AM on March 4, 2024
The basic tools provided in the kit got the job done, just required a lot of patience. The "anti-clamp" they sell probably would have made opening the phone a little easier, but it wasn't necessary. I'll admit to it being a bit of a nervous process; there are so many tiny, delicate bits in there, but if you're reasonably handy with a screwdriver, and very patient, you can do this repair. Patience is the biggest thing. Jam a pick tool or spudger too deeply into the gap while working the screen loose, and you can damage or destroy the screen. Don't rush it, it may take several "laps" around the screen to work loose all the adhesive, but it can be done.
As for why it's happening? I don't think it's necessarily iOS at fault; it's probably just your failing battery plus colder temperatures (which these batteries hate) teaming up to shorten your usable battery life.
It's a little counter-intuitive as fully-discharged cycles tend to shorten lithium battery life a bit, but I have found that having my phone run something demanding (again, Pokemon Go, or streaming something) until the phone turns itself off, and then charging it back up to 100% before using it, seems to "retrain" something in the battery meter. When mine is acting up, it'll quickly drop from 100% to like 1-3% remaining, but stay at that 1-3% for a long, long time. Hours of playing MP3s over Bluetooth. So it's like it has forgotten what the proper range of full vs empty is, and can't give an accurate estimate of % charge remaining. But fully discharging and then recharging it seems to reset this for a while. (All of that was before replacing my battery)
posted by xedrik at 9:13 AM on March 4, 2024
Do you spend a lot of time in any locations with poor cell service but decent WiFi? My work has terrible reception, and after a few months I realized that my SE3's constant attempts to maintain a tenuous signal was really draining the battery life, even when not being actively used. If you have any places like this, do what I do and turn Airplane Mode on while connecting to the local WiFi network.
posted by Rhaomi at 5:18 PM on March 15, 2024
posted by Rhaomi at 5:18 PM on March 15, 2024
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I don't think I've noticed a sharp dropoff in battery life in my SE 2020 with the iOS 17 update, although my max capacity is 75% and has been considered "significantly degraded" for awhile. I'm not away from a charger very much during my days so I haven't chosen to replace it.
posted by needs more cowbell at 6:44 AM on March 3, 2024