iOS 11 battery life problems - iPhone owners complain of faster battery drain after update
APPLE rolled-out its latest iOS operating system update earlier this month. The free update includes a bevy of new features, however some users have reported a hit on battery life after installing the new software.
iOS 11 could be taking a toll on your battery life.
The new operating system, which is available for iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch owners, includes a swathe of new features.
iOS 11 brings a number of improvements to voice assistant Siri, as well as a completely redesigned Control Centre, one-handed keyboard, and better multi-tasking support on iPad.
However, there have been a number of teething issues following the worldwide launch of iOS 11.
The new operating system appears to cause some issues for Outlook.com, Office 365 and Exchange 2016 email addresses – leaving users unable to send messages from these accounts within the default Mail app.
Some users have reported a dip in battery life since upgrading their device to the latest version of iOS.
Enterprise security firm Wandera analysed 50,000 moderate to heavy iPhone and iPad users on its network to determine how battery life fared on iOS 11 compared to iOS 10.
The London-based company wanted “to compare the average battery decay rate over the past three days”.
Assuming the same device started with the battery at 100%, this chart shows how long it takes to get to 0% for each version.
The current estimate is 240 mins for iOS 10 and 96 mins for iOS 11.
Wandera head of content marketing Liarna La Porta posted on the company’s official blog, “Assuming the same device started with the battery at 100%, this chart shows how long it takes to get to 0% for each version.
“The current estimate is 240 mins for iOS 10 and 96 mins for iOS 11.”
According to the research by the London-based security firm, the decay rate for iOS 10 is 0.006958 per cent per second compared to 0.01739 per cent per second for iOS 11.
That’s a significant increase – and could easily be the difference between your iPhone lasting you through until the end of the day or not.
Social media has also seen a surge in iPhone users moaning about battery life issues.
One user reported seeing his iPhone “drop from 100 to 85 percent in probably an hour, pretty bad”.
“The iOS 11 really kills my iPhone 6s battery. #iOS11” another iPhone user tweeted.
One user shared on Twitter: “Noticed today that my battery is draining a little faster with the new iOS. Also sending messages is a little slower I think.”
And in our own testing here in the office, Express.co.uk has noticed some erratic battery performance following the jump to iOS 10 – with four mins on the Mail app apparently burning through some 12 per cent of our total battery life.
There are a number of explanations why this might be happening.
im scared to get ios 11 bc i don't want it to drain my battery and slow my phone down. i have the 6s ... any suggestions ?
— grace������ (@waltdisneygrace) September 21, 2017
iOS 11 has made my battery life worse on my 7 Plus, damnit apple #apple #iOS11 pic.twitter.com/pMldYLW0bK
— Ali (@lifeofalid) September 20, 2017
has ios 11 messed with anyone else’s battery life?
— tina (@christinatarann) September 21, 2017
First, it could be a problem with iOS 11. It is possible Apple has pushed-out software with a glitch or gremlin in the code that adversely impacts on the performance of some iPhone models.
If your iPhone is sharing usage data with Apple, it helps the company figure out these issues and fix them in future updates.
You can toggle on whether you share analytics to Apple from your device by heading to Settings > Privacy > Analytics and then tap Share iPhone & Watch Analytics.
With any luck, Apple will iron-out any problems with battery life in the next software update.
However, there is another explanation.
Major iOS software releases tend to hammer the battery life on your device much faster during the first few days of use – which is when Wandera gathered its data for the above graph.
This is usually because you’re using your smartphone a little more frequently.
There are a plethora of brilliant new features and hidden tricks discover – not to mention, settings to tweak and play around – which will all take their toll on your battery.
It’s also exacerbated by the fact that your iPhone will be installing a bevy of app updates from the App Store.
Dozens of popular apps have already pushed out updates to take advantage of the new software features in iOS 11 and improve performance on the new operating system.
But even if you haven't touched your phone since the iOS update, you’ll probably find that the battery is draining faster than usual.
That's because your smartphone will be re-indexing your data.
From contacts to app data, everything that can be searched using Spotlight on the iPhone needs to be re-categorised and sorted by the operating system.
The new improved Photos app also has to crunch and analyse your collection to generate its improved animated slideshows, Memories.
Unlike some rivals, Apple insists these complications processes are carried out on the phone, because it does not want the privacy implications associated with sending the data to the cloud.
This is all happening in the background following the update, battery life will suffer and it can take a day or two before things get back to normal.
Apple gives live demonstration of iOS 11
It's not just battery life that will take a hit while all of this is taking place in the background.
You will more than likely see a drop in performance in the days following your move to iOS 11.
Give it a three days or so, then judge how your iPhone device performs with the new software update.
If you’re still having problems, it might be worth speaking to an Apple Store Genius.
Some users have reported better battery life after upgrading their device to the latest version of iOS 11, which was pushed-out by Apple this morning.