Poor battery life with iPhone 3G running 3.1.2

Question

Level 1

4 points

Poor battery life with iPhone 3G running 3.1.2

Hi, I have an iPhone 3G which I bought brand new from O2 last July, and I've noticed that over the last few months my battery life has gone awful, especially with the 3.1.2 OS version.

An example is that I fully charged my iPhone 1 hour and 30 mins ago. For the first hour and 15 minutes, all I did was listen to the iPod for a bit, with the EQ off and the screen on about 30% brightness (when I needed to use it). For the remaining 15 minutes I watched 2 YouTube videos, again with the brightness low. In that time, my battery drained to under half!

My friend uses his iPhone about the same as me, and he charges his every 2 days - I have to charge mine TWICE a day! He usually has the same settings as me - 3G usually constantly on, BlueTooth 99% of the time off, and WiFi off when out & ab out.

I've tried restoring many times, but the problem still exists. If I take it to the Genius Bar, will they repair/replace it, and how long do you guys think the process would take?

Thanks

iPhone 3G, iPhone OS 3.1.2

Posted on Jan 14, 2010 12:39 PM

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Answer 1

Jan 14, 2010 12:44 PM in response to chrisstclair

What are the differences between your phone and your friends? How is email retrieve set (Push, Fetch, Manual)? Have you recalibrated the battery gauge within the past month? What apps do you have that use Notifications? Have you closed all Safari pages not in use?

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Answer 2

chrisstclair Author

Level 1

4 points

Jan 14, 2010 12:48 PM in response to Lawrence Finch

We both use an iPhone 3G, however his is second hand and is the old 8GB white model. He does not have Push mail set up, which I do (the only application I have which uses Push notifications). Today, I charged mine right up til the minute I left my house, and he charged his night the previous night. By 6pm (hence why I recharged a few hours ago) I was on about 20% and his battery meter barely had anything gone. Safari pages are always 'trimmed' every day by me, so there's no windows open usually.

I am unfamilar with battery recalibration, however if I understand correctly - I have let the battery drain, then charged it to 100%. If I'm doing this wrong please let me know.

Thanks

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Answer 3

Jan 14, 2010 12:49 PM in response to chrisstclair

Difficult to compare iPhone usage with someone else over a 2 day period unless you live with and go everywhere with the person, have identical 3rd party apps installed, and access and use everything the same during that time.

I've tried restoring many times, but the problem still exists.

From your iPhone's backup and as a new iPhone or not from your iPhone's backup?

If I take it to the Genius Bar, will they repair/replace it, and how long do you guys think the process would take?

If it is determined there is a hardware problem with your iPhone at the Apple store, your iPhone remains under warranty, there has been nothing done that would void the warranty and nothing else that can be done besides exchanging your iPhone under warranty, it will be exchanged under warranty on the spot.

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Answer 4

chrisstclair Author

Level 1

4 points

Jan 14, 2010 12:54 PM in response to Allan Sampson

I understand that our battery lives will differ, however we both use similar applications (Facebook, Tweetie on occasions, and built in applications like iPod and Messages). Actually, he texts a lot more than me.

On my most recent restore, I deleted all my backups and set it up as a new iPhone, and the problem is still the same.

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Answer 5

paulcb

Level 6

19,239 points

Jan 14, 2010 1:03 PM in response to chrisstclair

If your battery life problem still exists after restoring as a new phone and not adding any third party apps, the next step is to make and appointment at the Genius Bar.

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Answer 6

Jan 14, 2010 1:20 PM in response to chrisstclair

Using similar applications that require internet access for the same period of time when connected to an available wi-fi network, or when connected to the internet via 3G? If the latter, what was his cellular reception at the time compared to yours when doing the same for an identical period of time, etc.? There are a number of factors which can affect battery life which may or may not be the same during the course of a day when comparing battery life between the same iPhone models was my point.

On my most recent restore, I deleted all my backups and set it up as a new iPhone, and the problem is still the same.

No need to delete an iPhone backup or all iPhone backups if there is more than one available when restoring your iPhone with iTunes as a new iPhone or not from your iPhone's backup, which must be manually selected when doing a restore with each option being a separate process.

If no change after restoring your iPhone with iTunes as a new iPhone or not from your iPhone's backup, you can and should make an appointment at an Apple store if there is one nearby.

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Answer 7

Jan 14, 2010 3:03 PM in response to chrisstclair

Yes, you recalibrated it correctly. If you use Push email go into Settings/Mail,Contacts & Calendar, open the Push account and turn it off. The reboot the phone (hold HOME and SLEEP until a Apple logo appears, ignoring the "Slide to Power Off" message). After the phone completes rebooting go back into settings and turn Push back on.

Note that your battery life will vary with the number of email Push notifications you get and the number of emails you receive. I charge my phone overnight. On a weekday I am between 20% and 40% by the end of the day. On a weekend when I get very little Push email I am at 80%.

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Answer 8

Jan 14, 2010 3:52 PM in response to chrisstclair

Chris7197,

It is highly unlikely that it is your settings IMHO. Having to charge your iPhone twice a day should not really happen. If you were using a battery intensive application several hours straight or something but you are not. I would recommend an appointment at the Apple Store to have a genius diagnose it to find out if it is a battery issue covered under your warranty.

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Answer 9

chrisstclair Author

Level 1

4 points

Jan 15, 2010 2:19 AM in response to iphone3Gguy

Thanks for all your replies.

Well today I tried yet another restore, and I left my house at 7:20 with the battery on 95%. I used the iPod for about an hour and a half while I travelled to Uni, and quickly checked the Mac rumors site for 2 minutes. I left it on standby/sleep for an hour in my lecture, and when I started using it agani the battery warned me it was 20% full! And that was a 10am, under 3 hours later.

I've spoke to my friend who works at the Genius Bar and he said even on his he uses battery intensive apps for hours and still gets through the day ono his 3G, and that in my case they'll swap for a brand new one, so I've made an appointment at the Apple Store.

Another question though, I have the Zagg InvisibleShield on my phone, which if I remove I can't apply it again - will I have to buy a new one, or would Apple cover the cost?

Thanks

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Answer 10

Jan 15, 2010 4:42 AM in response to chrisstclair

Another question though, I have the Zagg InvisibleShield on my phone, which if I remove I can't apply it again - will I have to buy a new one, or would Apple cover the cost?

Apple will not cover the cost for this - you will have to buy a new one if you want the same on the exchange.

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Answer 11

Jan 15, 2010 5:09 AM in response to chrisstclair

Chris,

I had the exact same problem and tried the same solutions. In the end i install the System Activity Monitor App ( http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/system-activity-monitor-3gs-update/id306192663?mt =8) and it showed that my Cisco VPN was consuming lots of CPU, all the time. I removed the profile for the VPN and voila! I now get normal usage, meaning i can now go a whole day without a recharge.

The VPN thing might not be your issue, but the Activity Monitor app might give you some clues. it's 3 bucks but for me worth every penny. i just wish Apple would have had such an app by default.

hope this helps. good luck!

- sean

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Answer 12

Abers

Level 1

0 points

Jan 15, 2010 10:18 AM in response to chrisstclair

I found that my phone battery life was drastically reduced as soon as I installed an app that offered push notifications. I installed Real Soccer 2010 and even though all the push notifications were turned off the battery life sucked. The latest release of Facebook app also now has push notifications.

I deleted the apps and restored the iPhone to Factory settings and the battery life is back to being as good as new. I winder if the deactivation of push notifications REALLY deactivates them or just stops the phone displaying them? I'll use that activity app that someone mentioed to do some debugging.

I'm running on 3.1.2 with a 3G 8Gb and iTunes 9

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Answer 13

Jan 15, 2010 2:03 PM in response to Sean Frazier

seanf,

Thanks for sharing. I did not know about the app. Very cool tool indeed. I am glad it helped you focus in on the problem causing the battery drain.

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Answer 14

chrisstclair Author

Level 1

4 points

Jan 16, 2010 2:07 AM in response to Abers

Thanks for your replies again

I've used the app that you mentioned and it's great - my CPU is 85% idle at least though, and that's when I'm using it of course - so I assume CPU usage being high is not a problem.

Last night, I charged it fully before sleep and went to sleep at 12pm. I woke up at 8am and the battery was in the red/under 20% - according to the application above I was on 3%! I did have about 3 push emails throughout the night, however I'm baffled by how my standby hours are 8 hours and Apple advertise 300 hours - if I'm doing my math correctly that is over 37 times the amount I get.

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Answer 15

Jan 16, 2010 5:39 PM in response to chrisstclair

chris7197 I really believe you have a hardware issue. I would call AppleCare or take it to a Apple Store.

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