ā¤ How to improve iPhone 14 battery life: Why your battery is draining and 7 tips to boost it
If youāre seeing faster battery drain than expected with iPhone 14 or 14 Pro youāre not alone. However, that doesnāt necessarily mean thereās a problem with your phone. Hereās a look at 7 tips and tricks to improve iPhone 14 battery life as well as why you might be seeing spikes in battery use.
The iPhone 14 lineup comes with what Apple says is roughly 1 hour longer battery for each model and the 14 and 14 Pro do feature larger mAh capacities (14 Pro Max capacity is ever so slightly less but battery life is up).
But people with the new iPhone 14 are sharingĀ across TwitterĀ and social media about having a bad experience with battery life so far. Letās dig into what could be going on and how to improve battery iPhone 14 battery.
What causes battery use spikes?
- Restoring a backup on your new iPhone
- Things like downloading a large photo/video library are particularly draining
- iPhone creates more heat when restoring and uses more battery
- High background app activity
- Using your new iPhone more than normal checking out new features, cameras, etc.
- Combination of new hardware and software with early bugs (first iOS 16 releases)
- Third-party apps and even some Apple apps may not be running optimally yet
There are many other factors at play, but these four are notable ones.
A couple of things to consider in the first few days of using your iPhone 14. Even after youāve restored from a backup, it takes time to fully download your entire photo library, all your apps/data, etc. Your iPhone is working harder and is hotter than normal so itās using more battery than normal.
In the Photos app, you can pause syncing/downloading with iCloud until evening. If it hasnāt done this automatically, open Appleās Photos app > Library > All Photos > swipe to the bottom and tap āPause.ā Having that continue when youāre charging in the evening will help save battery.
In my experience, 17% of all battery use in the first four days for my iPhone 14 Pro was from the Photos app.
Iāve also seen much higher background app activity than normal across not just the Photos app but other Apple and third-party apps.
One bug Iāve seen is optimized battery charging with iPhone 14 Pro/iOS 16 has only powered my phone up to ~70% the last few nights. That, of course, makes a big difference if youāre not starting the day with a 100% charge.
You can turn that off by heading to Settings > Battery > Battery Health > Optimized Battery Charging ā but keep in mind that may age your battery faster to keep it off permanently. Ideally, with a new iPhone, it will learn your schedule before long so itās charged to 100% when you normally pull it off the charger.
Hopefully, some of these issues could be addressed with iOS 16.1 or other future updates. And after the first week, you might not be using your iPhone for quite as many hours each day and see your battery lasting longer.
How to improve iPhone 14 battery life
7 options instead of using aĀ battery pack:
1. How are apps using battery?
Head toĀ SettingsĀ >Ā BatteryĀ to check out the details of your battery usage.Ā āLast 24 HoursāĀ is the default and shows which apps are using the most energy (including Home & Lock Screen and Siri).
- Tapping the āLast X Daysā toggle on the right-hand side gives you a broader look at whatās eating up your power.
- Look for āBackground Activityā under an app to learn if itās been using energy behind the scenes.
- Also, take a look atĀ battery life suggestions just above battery usage (near the top). This will give you quick, actionable ways to reduce battery drain.
- And, if you like to see the battery percentage on your iPhone ā not just the icon ā
2. Low Power Mode
Low Power Mode is a quick way to extend battery life. The feature works by suspending mail fetch, background app refresh, auto-downloads, and more with a single button. This isnāt an everyday-use feature, but it is handy.
You can turn on Low Power mode underĀ SettingsĀ >Ā BatteryĀ orĀ ask SiriĀ to do it.Ā However, itās useful to have quick access to Low Power Mode in Control Center. Navigate toĀ SettingsĀ >Ā Control Center > Customize Controls,Ā then tap theĀ +Ā icon next toĀ Low Power ModeĀ if itās not already there.
- This is useful to stop all the background activity from apps when youāve recently set up a new iPhone
3. Auto-Lock, screen brightness, and always-on display
If you notice āHome & Lock Screenā on your battery usage is higher than youād expect, itās good to check those settings.
Auto-Lock at 30 seconds will help you preserve the most battery life. Especially with iPhone 14 Pro having an always-on display, 30 seconds can be worth it.
Navigate toĀ SettingsĀ >Ā Display & Brightness > Auto-Lock.
Lowering your screen brightness will also help with battery life, but this will come down to personal preference. You can do that in Control Center (swipe down from the top right corner) orĀ Settings > Display & Brightness.
With iPhone 14 Pro HDR brightness now going up to 1600 nits and outdoor peak brightness going to 2000 nits, this is something to keep an eye on to help keep battery life in check.
Always-on display
We donāt have detailed data yet on how much battery the always-on display with the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max uses. Ideally, it wonāt eat up much as it goes down to a 1Hz refresh rate. But if youāre looking to eke out the most battery, turning it off could help a touch.
Head to Settings > Display and brightness > Always On at the bottom.
4. Hot and cold temps
AppleĀ saysĀ the ambient temperature ācomfort zone for iPhone is 32Ā° to 95Ā° F (0Ā° to 35Ā° C). Temps above 95Ā° F (35Ā° C) have the potential to āpermanently damage battery capacity.ā
- Outside of keeping your iPhone from extreme heat, itās good to remove your iPhone case if you notice it gets hot while charging or restoring from a backup.
- Meanwhile, temperatures below 32Ā° F (0 Ā° C) can temporarily reduce battery life. If you live in a climate with cold temps, keeping your iPhone closer to your body in an inside pocket can help extend battery life by keeping it warmer.
5. Background app refresh
Low Power Mode turns off background app refresh across the board, but you can customize which apps use this feature for a more convenient experience as well as improved battery life. Head toĀ SettingsĀ >Ā General >Ā Background App Refresh.
You can also opt to only use background app refresh on Wi-Fi in addition to Wi-Fi and Cellular or turn the feature off totally. However, most users will find leaving Wi-Fi and Cellular on while customizing which apps are used for background app refresh to be the best fit.
Turning off Background App Refresh prevents apps that youāre not actively using from updating (until you open them again).
6. Location services
Dialing in your location services settings is another way to extend battery life. (It can reduce cellular data use too). Head toĀ SettingsĀ >Ā Privacy & Security >Ā Location ServicesĀ to update the privileges for your apps.
- Look out for any apps that ask toĀ AlwaysĀ use your location and switch toĀ While Using,Ā Ask Next Time,Ā orĀ Never.
7. Push and Fetch
If you choose not to use Low Power Mode, you can manually control Push and Fetch for your email/internet accounts.
Head toĀ SettingsĀ >Ā Mail >Ā AccountsĀ >Ā Fetch New Data. One approach is to leave your primary account(s) as push to receive new mail asap, and turn less important accounts to fetch every hour or even set them to manual.
Wrap-up on how to improve iPhone 14 battery life
While itās no fun to have a bad experience with battery life with a brand new iPhone, hopefully, these tips plus future updates from Apple and third-party apps will reduce battery drain.
Until then, keep an eye on what apps are eating up your battery the fastest, get Low Power mode in Control Center for quick access, and use as many of the settings discussed above as you can without making daily use a hassle.
If you find youād rather not change many (or any) of the settings, another option is to just pick up aĀ powerĀ bankĀ orĀ MagSafe battery pack.
