Battery indicator percentage error iOS14

I have just received my iphone 6S back from the Apple authorised UK service centre which was arranged by Apple support. It only took 2 days from sending off yo receiving it back, total cost GBP £52.44. So far working fine but have not taxed it yet but with s new battery hopefully all is well now.

I’m so pleased to find this conversation on here as this battery ‘issue’ has been driving me nuts! My iPad is doing exactly the same, draining really fast without being used. Unless it’s changed to 100% over night it is virtually down to nothing the next morning. As soon as I use it it’s dropping like a stone. I’ve tried all the hints etc to maximise usage and yesterday I restarted back to factory settings thinking that was bound to work - nope! Latest iOS was 14.4. What a nightmare. I’m virtually using my iPad whilst plugged in all the time now - good job we're in lockdown and can’t go anywhere 😂

To QuickTimeKirk-

As long as the battery maximum capacity (not charge level) is reading 80 or more, there is no immediate need to replace it regardless of age.

Your skate tactics are unfair and unwanted.

AnotherOldEngineer wrote:

To QuickTimeKirk-

As long as the battery maximum capacity (not charge level) is reading 80 or more, there is no immediate need to replace it regardless of age.

Your skate tactics are unfair and unwanted.

You should read before you post. QTK was responding to a user who said their maximum capacity was 69%. As an engineer you should know that 69% is less than 80%.

Also as an engineer you should know that batteries have more failure modes than just loss of capacity.

—An old engineer

I stand corrected.

QuickTimeKirk’s comment appeared to emphasize time in service and not other pertinent information such as maximum capacity. Note that 80% is a leftover from flooded lead acid technology and the battery chemistry used in cell phones does not have a knee at 80% of rated capacity but instead declines at a rather flat rate. But again the issue is apparently the battery meter algorithm which is hopefully a software issue that Apple will soon fix.

Good observation, but, well, it's not that simple. Around 80% is the point where other factors become more significant, such as increased internal resistance. It has been observed empirically that devices that use Lithium technology battery abruptly shut down under heavy load as their capacity decreases below 80%, so 80% was chosen as the indication that the battery should be replaced (plus the shorter battery life between charges becomes more significant). There’s nothing wrong with the battery meter algorithm; the battery condition is actually a chip in the battery itself. Actually, my wife’s iPhone started showing symptoms of battery failure around 95% capacity, and the battery health page displayed a message saying it should be replaced. As it was still under warranty Apple replaced the battery for free.

In 2018 Apple added a feature that slows down the processor as battery internal resistance (which it measures) increases to prevent abrupt shutdowns. They made the mistake of doing this without telling anyone, which resulted in a class action lawsuit that was settled late last year for a half billion dollars. It’s now in the documentation, and the feature is still there.

Thanks!

And I agree, nothing is that simple. Thanks for the additional background.

My 4.5 year old SE r1 (64g) works just fine while my wife’s 7, which gets less use, has this problem.

I don’t mind getting new phones, I just want assurance they won’t have the same problem.

My iPhone 11 Pro is doing the EXACT same thing. As soon as I unplug from a full charge, it goes down to 1% within about 30min. It is definitely a software issue, as the phone will last nearly all day with me watching videos, at 1%. Also, if I force reboot the phone, the battery percentage will go back up to nearly 100%, but will quickly drop to 1% within minutes.

Lawrence-Thanks for the information

While this information from Apple Support about upcoming iOS 14.5 is interesting and relevant to some users, it does not seem to address false readings by the battery meter (which indicates the state of charge of the battery). Rather this bulletin talks about battery health indicator (maximum capacity at full charge).  Most of the community seems to have a problem with the battery meter.

Also it is specific to iPhone 11 series whereas the problem as relayed by the community includes units from iPhone SE 1st edition forward.

Yes, that why I posted it only in response to an iPhone 11 user.

But this may be a first; Apple acknowledging a known problem before the fix is released. I’ve never seen that happen before. And I suspect, based on private information I have, that the the release will not be next week. I hope I’m wrong.

I have an iPhone 11 Pro so tell me how this issue is about my “old phone”. You clearly answered before reading what the actual issue is. The issue is the battery indicator is showing a false drain. It’s several months later and this just started happening with my phone. Your answer was very unhelpful.

Go to Settings/Battery/Battery Health and see what it says. The symptom you describe is an indication of a failing battery. If there are no other issues with the phone Apple will replace the battery for $49.

I did not have the 1% issue but it would go from high 80s to switching off, on switching back on would be very high still. In hindsight it was though the software couldn’t’ the evaluate or manage the failing battery output.

I doubt anybody on this forum is going to be able to resolve this. The first thing to do is to have Apple test the hardware to isolate the issue. Since your're up to date, so they probably won't give you the update your software line. Just woke up to my 8s at 1%; it was at 80% after plugging it back in after 5 minutes. I'll be following my advice assuming Apple is open again; haven't tried since they closed for the pandemic.

resalg wrote:

I doubt anybody on this forum is going to be able to resolve this. The first thing to do is to have Apple test the hardware to isolate the issue. Since your're up to date, so they probably won't give you the update your software line. Just woke up to my 8s at 1%; it was at 80% after plugging it back in after 5 minutes. I'll be following my advice assuming Apple is open again; haven't tried since they closed for the pandemic.

The only thing that will resolve it is replacing your battery. That’s a clear symptom that the battery is close to failing.