The latest version of the iPhone, the iPhone 15, has updated battery features that will extend the battery life of your phone.
Macworld
Every iPhone user is concerned with battery life, and for good reason. Our phones are our everything these days, and when the battery dies we feel cut off from the world and unable to capture the moment. With the iPhone 15, Apple is providing a new option to help increase battery longevity–not how long a single charge lasts, but to reduce the natural degrading common to all rechargeable batteries.
Apple introduced a new feature called Optimized Battery Charging in iOS 13. When activated, it analyzes your previous iPhone usage and stops charging at 80 percent if it predicts that you won’t require more battery before your next charge. While this is a useful feature, it still relies on the system’s decision.
The iPhone 15 (all versions, including Pro) now offers a new option in Settings > Battery > Battery Health & Charging > Charging Optimization. This feature, called the 80% Limit, will prevent your iPhone from charging beyond 80% of its maximum capacity, consistently.
Furthermore, you have the option to navigate to the Settings menu, then select General and go to the About section. Here, you will find a new Battery section that displays the manufacturing date, first use date, and cycle count of your battery. This information can be helpful for those who have had third-party repairs or replacements for their batteries, or for those who are considering replacing their battery in the future. All iPhone models record this data, but it may require the use of third-party apps or going through some steps, such as copying your iPhone Analytics Data into Notes and searching through it. This feature could be particularly beneficial following reports of abnormal battery degradation in the iPhone 14 Pro Max.
Why might someone choose to restrict charging to 80%? This is because rechargeable batteries naturally deteriorate with use, leading to reduced capacity and shorter overall battery life. This degradation is accelerated by high temperatures and constantly being kept at maximum charge.
As an illustration, this is the reasoning behind the recommendation for modern electric cars to charge only up to 80-90 percent for everyday use and offering options to do so, while reserving full 100 percent charging for longer journeys.
For individuals like myself who have a desk job and can easily charge their device, it is recommended to set a maximum charge limit of 80% if they usually do not use more than 40% of the battery in a day. However, it is important to remember to disable this limit on days when the device will be heavily used and away from a charger.
This feature is merely a choice and can be turned on or off as desired, similar to Optimized Battery Charging. It allows users to have more authority over the lifespan and durability of their battery.
We have one question: why is this beneficial feature only available on iPhone 15 models? There are likely many current iPhone users who would find this option useful in a software update, and it should be simple to incorporate. Perhaps it will be included in iOS 17.1.
