iPhone battery careplan

[ced89]

Hello,
I have an iPhone 12 since almost 1 year, the max capacity is already at 95%.
I'm not so much concerned by that number, because I know that the battery is supposed to last a long time, maybe I won't even need to replace it during the whole lifetime of 4-5 years, it just needs to be charged when ncessary.

I always switched off the phone every night, is this worst or better?

 

[MacInWin]

I never shut down my iPhone completely. Just let it go to sleep. My iPhone 12 battery health says it's at 89% after a year. But it's been at 89% for six months now, so whatever the original falloff was, it's stopped.

Electronics tend to fail most at power on. That's due to current inrush, which can overload them before they get totally online. I would recommend to just leave the phone on charge overnight, sleeping. And make sure that in Settings/battery/battery health you have switched on "Optimized Battery Charging."

 

[ced89]

I've never considered that aspect... Good one, but it will tough to convince my mind after 10y of habit

 

[chscag]

Not sure I totally agree. I have over the years shut down my iPhones when not in use and my batteries have always maintained good heath over the life of the phone. My current iPhone 12 still shows 100% battery health as an example.

As far as power surge goes, I agree that turning off and then turning on AC or AC/Battery powered equipment can put excess stress on the device. Not sure that applies so much to a battery powered iPhone. I guess your mileage may vary on that.

 

[MacInWin]

As far as power surge goes, I agree that turning off and then turning on AC or AC/Battery powered equipment can put excess stress on the device. Not sure that applies so much to a battery powered iPhone. I guess your mileage may vary on that.

The inrush is still there, no matter the source of the electricity. I guess my puzzlement comes over why one would turn an iPhone off completely overnight, when that is the perfect time to let it charge up. You can silence notifications, even block calls, during the night, if you want to do so. There is even a setting to say "block calls, but do ring if the same number calls twice in three minutes." Given that a lot of folks no longer have a landline, it makes no sense to me to turn off the one remaining connection.

 

[chscag]

In our situation here in my home, my wife keeps her iPhone on 24/7 so we always have a means of incoming communication. (I forgot to mention that.) I have mine on during the day or when we travel but turn it off at night.

Many folks nowadays (depending on your cable company) keep a VOIP phone on hand as a home phone in addition to their mobile units.

I'm currently considering going with a new cable carrier that offers that service along with the cable subscription. VOIP is okay as long as your internet connection is up.

 

[MacInWin]

Charlie, it's an interesting dilemma. All we get on our landline is spam. We've quit giving out that number. The only reason I'm holding on to it is that right now it's the line our home security system has. I need to contact them to swap over to cellular for alarms and notification, which I just haven't gotten around to doing. Once that is done, I have no reason to keep a landline. I figure if I lost cable and also lost cellular, the probability is the landline will be out, too. Frankly, it's just a matter of the hassle of contacting ADT to come out and do the transition. Once that is done, the landline is gone, gone, gone.

 

[Marrk]

So, about re-booting. Isn't that supposed to allow our devices to run "systems checks" and refresh things? (I use the term "refresh" loosely.) I thought that periodic re-boots were healthful — and, occasionally, the fix for some problems.

 

[MacInWin]

No, rebooting of an iPhone really doesn't do much. It just starts the system. Periodic reboots of a laptop are useful for cleaning up cache and scratch space, but iOS is not macOS and doesn't need the same periodic reboot. I only boot my iPhone when iOS is updated by Apple. Other than that, I let it run 24/7. I have Do Not Disturb set for 11 pm to 8 am, with the wake up if called again in 3 minutes on. Smartphones (all of them) don't need rebooting to do any system checks or refreshments.

 

[lclev]

My iPhone 12 Max is 10 months old and shows 98% battery health. I quit worrying about battery percentage, usage and health a long time ago. I just use the phone. I do not shut it down/off but occasionally have to reset it. Why reset it? Because my carrier, T-Mobile, is currently integrating Sprint into their towers and adding/fine tuning 5G in my area. I have had issues of low signal, echoing, and not able to call out at times. I called tech support and she suggested resetting. Things have been settling down and have gotten much better lately so T-Mobile is making progress.

Lisa

 

[ced89]

So, about re-booting. Isn't that supposed to allow our devices to run "systems checks" and refresh things? (I use the term "refresh" loosely.) I thought that periodic re-boots were healthful — and, occasionally, the fix for some problems.

About that I agree with @Iclev, mobile OS are designed much better, unless you install Candy Crash for free super version 2030 , it will run fine without reboot.
Good point regarding the network maintenances and 5G rollout, but it's not due to the OS, not as first cause at least, the OS depends from the network carriers in many things, like Wi-Fi calling, SMS, Calls, 5G, Watch etc...

 

[ced89]

I still think that the battery lasts less if constantly used...
But I don't know how to measure the max risk about overcurrent or a simple battery degradation due to 24/7 usage.
It's just an idea for now, nothing that I can proove.

 

[MacInWin]

I still think that the battery lasts less if constantly used...
But I don't know how to measure the max risk about overcurrent or a simple battery degradation due to 24/7 usage.
It's just an idea for now, nothing that I can proove.

Nobody is disagreeing with that thinking. But turning it off at night probably doesn't add very much to battery life at all. Powering it on requires more power for a while, as it initializes. I put my iPhone on the charger overnight, let it manage the charge cycle and just use it. The battery will probably outlast the iPhone anyway.

 

[lclev]

I do confess - I have yet to keep a phone over three years and average two. I also plug it into a car charger when I drive and I have a 30 minute commute to work. I always charge overnight and let it manage the charge cycle. I just don't worry about battery health since they came out with the Li-Ion's. Now when I had phones with the NiCD batteries (I had a bag phone) and later the NiMH batteries, I was always aware of battery health and it holding a "memory".

I sold my Xs Max to a friend and it still is going strong. Not sure what the battery health shows though.

Lisa

 

[MacInWin]

Lisa, I am signed up with the Apple's program to get a new phone, pay over 24 months interest free, trade in after 12 months for the next model, assuming it's ready. So, basically, I'm "renting" my iPhone, and I'm good with that. I'll trade this one in when the next model appears this Fall.

 

[chscag]

So, basically, I'm "renting" my iPhone, and I'm good with that. I'll trade this one in when the next model appears this Fall.

Does that also include Apple Care +? I may do that for my wife's phone as she is a heavy user and can go thru a phone easily in 2 years.

 

[MacInWin]

Does that also include Apple Care +? I may do that for my wife's phone as she is a heavy user and can go thru a phone easily in 2 years.

Yes, it does. In fact, I think it is required as part of the program. After 12 months you can do the trade/upgrade and move on. They ship a new iPhone to you, you make the swap and send the old one back to them. Pretty painless.

 

[chscag]

I wonder if I can do that thru my local Apple Store? Our local store is a 10 minute drive from my home and a lot easier to pickup a new phone and turn in an older one than using the mail.

 

[MacInWin]

Not really, Charlie. Last time I placed the order the first day I could. Got the phone 2-3 days after they started to ship. Comes with a return label and box. You put the old phone in the box after the transfer of data, put the shipping label on and call Fedex/UPS or whomever to come pick it up, or drop it off in an appropriate drop box. Dead easy to do. I don't know if you can set it up through a store because the nearest Apple store is about 50 miles from me, so the shipping method is brilliant for me.

 

[chscag]

With the ongoing pandemic and some Apple Stores closing again, it might be better to use Fedex/UPS for some folks. I'll check first if I decide to go with that plan for my wife's phone.