iOS 12.1.4 battery drain

DavidS4001 wrote:

Sounds logical. Except for the fact that when I installed iOS 12.1.4 as new, loaded no third party apps, changed no default settings, I had the same battery drain issues. So if it is not a third party app issue, not a phone model issue, not a setting issues, that leads me to conclude that it is an OS issue fixable by Apple. (BTW, it has been stated that Apple reps do monitor these discussions.)

When you installed as new did you log into your Apple ID on the phone? If you did you have already negated any valid data associated with installing as New.

Apple hosts do read posts, but the only purpose is to assure compliance with ToU. And who stated it? "It has been stated" is a null hypothesis.

The 6S doesn’t have a SIM card in it. It works on my home WiFi, that’s the only connection it has. The 8 also works on WiFi when I’m home. Always. I use the 6S mostly for playing games and rarely for browsing on Safari or for YouTube. But all the other apps are installed on it by default, I think iCloud does it automatically. Strangely though the 6S works also on voice calls without the SIM card in the sense that if my 8 rings and is in range the 6S rings too and I can answer the call and talk on it even if it doesn’t have a SIM card. The 6S’ battery health is at 70% (advising me to replace it) and it still does 6 days until it shuts down on standby. The 8 doesn’t last 12 hours even if I disable the data connection and works only on WiFi.

Interesting, too - that the working system doesn't have a SIM, I mean. Makes me wonder if the ipads that failed had a SIM. Not in the sense that SIM + 12.1.4 causes it but that having a SIM may be a pre-condition (which would explain why there seem to be fewer ipads than iphones with the draining problem). If you are thinking I am getting dangerously close to tin-foil hat territory you are forgiven.

About the automatic installation ... not sure that's really 1:1 equivalent. I have a "frozen in time" ipad on which I do not update the iOS to keep some old apps alive and it tries to install any app I put on my iphone, like you described - but I never open those. I doubt that's the same as actively using them and having them running in the background like I do on my iphone (also to Lawrence's point).

Any ASC member with more than 8,000 points (level 6) can interact directly with the hosts in private forums. Level 6 and higher are periodically invited to meetups in different cities across the US and in other countries. In fact, there were two such meetups in the past week in Pittsburgh and Washington, DC, and there is one coming up in London, UK. And I attended one last year in New York City. These generally include a meeting to discuss forum issues and to get previews of ASC updates, followed by an Apple-hosted dinner. So many of us know individual hosts personally, both face-to-face and through the private forums. That is where we get our information about Apple's participation in Apple Support Communities, directly from people who know. Anything other than from a level 6 user or higher is hearsay.

I understand - saying "it's not the iOS" when it is clearly triggered by upgrading the iOS seems a lot like saying "the shoe fits, it's just your foot that doesn't".

Just to explain myself better - my starting hypothesis was: if you start from scratch with a completely fresh install of 12.1.4 it doesn't drain. Not that I know this from personal experience, but if it was otherwise there would be riots at Apple stores. There are a few hundred thousand units sold each day, I believe, and always with the latest OS - Somebody would have noticed. If you really started from scratch, with a new ID (everything default) and it still drains ... hm, that's puzzling.

Why does it make a difference - well, if it is the default behavior of the iOS then you can kiss any hope of a solution goodbye until the official fix arrives. If it is the iOS in combination with some setting/app you may be able to find a workaround. That's why I insisted on that fine distinction - wasn't planning on causing any aggravation.

“I doubt that's the same as actively using them and having them running in the background like I do on my iphone (also to Lawrence's point).”

Thing is I’ve gotten to such a paranoid state cause of the battery issue that nothing anymore works in the background on my 8. I try to always shut down any working app and it’s became more like an instinct now. On the 6S I don’t have to worry about anything running in the background, and that’s the point I’m trying to make. While one device works properly without having to do anything different on my part, the other doesn’t.

And I feel again obligated to say that this shouldn’t be the case, not for a 1yo device like mine, not for a new device, not for any device. And I think the developers of the OS have the obligation to make sure that all the apps the users install don’t interfere or affect the performance of their device, and if that happens it’s primarily their job to try to fix the issue.

PS: While composing and typing this reply the battery dropped from 81% to 77% with nothing else running in the background.

“I have a "frozen in time" ipad on which I do not update the iOS to keep some old apps alive and it tries to install any app I put on my iphone, like you described - but I never open those.”

That's relative because, as you might imagine, all those apps that get automatically transferred to other devices have also the permissions included. So if they have been granted the permission to fetch data, location, camera, etc. on one device they will fetch data on the other device without asking for permission. You can check all that in ITunes/iCloud. So while you are not actively using them, they are still active to some degree. And as far as I know most of the apps are developed that way to fetch data.

PS: While typing this second reply battery dropped from 77% to 75% without anything else running in the background.

I have the same problem as you with my new iPhone 8. I sent my phone to iSpot Apple (premium reseller in Poland). For the first time the problem was with charging module and they gave me the new one device but I had the same problem so I sent them the iPhone back. I have answer that everything is correct (with battery and other hardware) and I should install as a new device via iTunes..... I did it and still isn’t good. My battery is draining as a ****.

I don’t know what can I do. I don’t have time to send my device every month to iSpot Apple to check my device cause I need my phone.

Any ideas? I am sure that in this case isn’t hardware it’s something with OS.

So digging in further, using the Instruments app, it looks as if the kernel is the major consumer of CPU in the problem I'm seeing. The error console is overflowing with location service messages:

default 15:33:00.742790 -0700 com.apple.WebKit.WebContent {"msg":"CLLocationManager", "event":"activity", "_cmd":"heading", "self":"0x10309c020"}

There were also a lot of cache errors, too, though they did slow down after a bit:

container_create_or_lookup_user_managed_assets_path: error = (container_error_t)71

Regarding the first clue, turning location services off (and, incidentally, turning off wifi, which is also used by location services) cut the CPU usage way down. Turning them back on again appeared to be okay, too, though CPU usage did rise somewhat again. I'm going to guess (with only this evidence, sadly) that there's a bug in the OS that is causing the location service to repeatedly loop. I have seen problems with it lately; I have had to take the iPad outside to get a lock from GPS, whereas this was never necessary in prior versions of iOS.

You need to install Xcode first. Then, ctrl-click the Xcode app icon to show the package contents. You can use Finder search to locate it, I believe. I don’t have my Mac in front of me, but you should be able to find it.

My guess is that the problem is circumstantial. It doesn't happen all the time to me, but every time I've noticed it, I crossed a Wifi zone. Because Wifi is used by location services to enhance their ability to find you, my very wild guess is that LS starts looping when it calls Wifi while a boundary crossing is in progress.

One way to test this theory is to start where you have a strong Wifi signal and put the device to sleep. Go find a place, such as indoors but not buried in a building, where GPS is just a bit too weak to work perfectly. Then open the device and see if you see a sudden spike in battery usage. My iPad grows warm to the touch, and my monitoring app (System Status Lite) shows nearly 100% continuous CPU usage. And when I see that, I hook up my laptop with Instruments and start recording as well as watching the Console, and I see what I described above.

That kind of heavy duty developer software is not really suitable for Mr Public User. As you are capable, and as you seem to have the drain problem, perhaps you can follow the general advice in the thread of restoring the device as new in itunes and perform the tests again.

Also from a purist point of view I would concentrate on changing just one parameter at a time - e.g. turning off location services alone.

Well I agree with the principle that you are supposed to charge an iPhone every day and 2 days standby for a phone with active email accounts etc is optimistic.

The other people in the thread were experiencing total run down in a few hours.

Short story: For me, the battery drain is in using iCloud to sync my Calendar.

Long story: I read with great interest megaschwein's post Apr 6, 2:00pm. (p27) That fact that the work phone still has good battery life after updating to 12.x was a great clue. My iPhone, which I barely use, had to be charged, oh, once a week. After installing 12.1.x, it was loosing 25% of it's charge every day! Someone said to turn on Low Power mode. Small help, still loosing 23% of it's charge every day.

What you may or may not know is that 12.1.x also kills battery life on the iPad.

I have an iPad Air 2 on my night stand (now up to 12.2). The only thing I use it for is to turn lights on in the morning using the Home App. Siri is off. I don't browse the WEB. I don't read mail. Seriously, it just sits there with the cover closed, except for about 30 seconds every morning when I use it to turn on the lights.

Before 12.1.x update, I only had to charge it every couple of weeks (14-16 days), and after the 12.1.x update, I have to charge it every 4-5 days.

When that iPad was my primary iPad, I was using the iCloud to sync my Contacts, Calendars, Reminders, Notes, Home, and I had Find My iPad enabled. Everything else was off, including iCloud drive. After reading megaschwein's post I turned off everything except for Home (but left Find My iPad enabled as well). And now my battery life is back to normal! Hmmm... My conclusion is that battery drain is definitely iCloud related.

So I began turning things back on, one at a time, and watching for battery drain over a period of 24-36 hours. Turn on Reminders – no drain. Turn on Notes – no drain. Turn on Contacts – no drain. Turn on Calendar – BIG drain. Battery usage dropped 10% in 22 hours - just sitting there! So I'm turning off iCloud Calendar on my iPhone 6s, and I'm betting my battery life will be back to normal for a phone mostly collecting dust. (If I'm wrong, I'll come back and let you know). Regression test... Regression test...

Replying to my own post... Turning off iCloud Calendar on my iPhone 6S helped the battery drain, but it didn't help it as much as it helped my iPad. Now instead of the battery draining 25% in a day, it takes 1 day and 8 hours to drop 25%. FYI