Is there something wrong with my iPhone 12 battery?

I feel like there's something wrong, I have never experienced this much battery drain from a device before, ever. Especially a brand new, 100% battery health, barely used iPhone directly from the Apple store. My phone has no SIM, no gaming, just a couple of apps for files and photos and instagram, and I mainly use it for the camera and certain functions. I put it on airplane mode a few months ago, I got it in January 2023 it's now almost September 2023, still 100% battery health, up to date iOS 16.6. Using original and genuine charger combo. I barely use it, maybe once or twice a month at most right now. Most of the time I either keep it on and idle on my desk, or I turn it off and store it away. I have another phone for daily use and calls etc.


It drains 10% every 24 hours from just sitting idle and nothing open. And it drains 12% in 15 minutes of using the camera, 21 mins screen time total. It drained 9% from me just scrolling on instagram and photos app for 30 minutes. Is this considered normal for the iPhone? In comparison, my Amazon Fire tablet only gets charged once every 2 weeks while being idle and can go for hours with screen constantly on without significant drain, and my Samsung S10 had an amazing battery before and now it has very bad battery health, and it drains as fast as the iPhone when in use which would be normal for a dying battery. Even my brother-in-law's iPhone 12 mini didn't drain this much and I used to borrow it for photos/videos very frequently.

Windows, Windows 10

Posted on Aug 29, 2023 5:19 AM

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6 replies

Aug 29, 2023 5:27 AM in response to KandieM

Storybookmoth wrote:

It drains 10% every 24 hours from just sitting idle and nothing open. A

If your iPhone's battery is draining even when it's not in use, there could be a few possible reasons for this issue. Here are some steps you can take to troubleshoot the problem:


  1. Go to Settings > Battery and see which apps or processes are consuming the most battery. If you notice any particular app using an unusually high amount of battery in the background, it might be the cause of the drain. Check the iPhone battery health and usage - Apple Support (IN)
  2. Some apps refresh their content in the background, which can consume battery. You can disable background app refresh for specific apps by going to Settings > General > Background App Refresh and toggle off the apps you don't need to update in the background. go to Settings > General > Background App Refresh and turn on Background App Refresh. -->Switch apps on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch - Apple Support
  3. If you have multiple email accounts set up on your iPhone and use the push email feature, it can drain your battery. Instead, consider changing your email settings to fetch data manually or at longer intervals. Go to Settings > Mail > Accounts > Fetch New Data and adjust the settings accordingly.
    1. Push Mail: Whenever possible the email client will push mails to all your devices.
  4. Fetch Mail: You need to set How you want it to be fetched, Automatically, Manually , Hourly,Every 30 mins, every 15 mins
    1. Automatically: will fetch when the iPhone is powered and on WiFi
  5. Manually: with fetch when you open email, open Inbox and swipe down
  6. You get an email notification as soon as the client server receives an email and your device is connected to internet, irrespective of whether the mail is in your device's Inbox or not
  7. Some apps constantly track your location in the background, which can use significant battery power. You can manage and restrict the location access for apps by going to Settings > Privacy > Location Services and adjust the settings for individual apps.
  8. Keep an eye on Wi-Fi and Bluetooth settings. Sometimes, if Wi-Fi or Bluetooth is left on even when not in use, it can contribute to battery drain. Make sure to turn off these features when you don't need them.
  9. Sometimes, a simple restart can resolve temporary software glitches. Turn off your iPhone, wait for a few seconds, and then turn it back on.
    1. Restart the device. That's it.
    2. Still not solved --> Force restart iPhone - Apple Support
  10. If the issue persists, you can try resetting all settings on your iPhone. This will not erase your data but will reset all personalized settings to their default values. Go to Settings > General > Transfer & Reset > Reset > Reset All Settings and confirm the action. Note that you will need to reconfigure your settings afterward. All settings—including network settings, the keyboard dictionary, the Home screen layout, location settings, privacy settings, and Apple Pay cards—are removed or reset to their defaults. No data or media are deleted.
    1. Reset All Settings: Return iPhone settings to their defaults - Apple Support:- Return iPhone settings to their defaults
    2. You can return settings to their defaults without erasing your content.
    3. If you want to save your settings, back up your iPhone before returning them to their defaults. For example, if you’re trying to solve a problem but returning settings to their defaults doesn’t help, you might want to restore your previous settings from a backup.
  11. Make sure you have the latest updates installed.
    1. Update Over-the-Air (OTA) —> Update your iPhone or iPad - Apple Support (IN)
    2. Update using iTunes/Finder —> Update your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch - Apple Support (IN)


If none of the above steps resolve the issue, it is recommended to reach out to Apple Support or visit an authorized service center for further assistance. They can provide specific guidance based on your device model and iOS version.



Aug 29, 2023 5:26 AM in response to KandieM

The measure of battery health deterioration/drainage is subjective and can vary depending on individual usage patterns. There is no universal standard to determine whether the battery health deterioration/drainage is normal or abnormal because it heavily relies on how the battery is used and maintained.



Protect & Prolong the Life of your iPhone's Battery:

  1. About the battery usage on your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch ...
  2. Batteries - Maximising Performance - Apple (IN)
  3. iPhone Battery and Performance



Try some of these options too.

To prolong the life of your iPhone battery, you can follow these tips and best practices:


To prolong the life of your iPhone battery, you can follow these tips and best practices:

  1. Optimize Battery Charging: Enable the "Optimized Battery Charging" feature on your iPhone. It helps reduce the wear on the battery by slowing down the battery aging process. You can find this option in Settings > Battery > Battery Health. About Optimized Battery Charging on your iPhone - Apple Support (IN)
  2. Avoid Extreme Temperatures: Extreme temperatures, both hot and cold, can negatively impact your battery life. Avoid exposing your iPhone to excessive heat or cold, such as leaving it in direct sunlight or in a freezing car.If your iPhone or iPad gets too hot or too cold – Apple Support (UK)
  3. Use Original Chargers and Cables: Always use Apple's original chargers and cables or certified third-party accessories. Low-quality chargers or cables can damage the battery and reduce its lifespan. Identify counterfeit or uncertified Lightning connector accessories - Apple Support (IN)
  4. Avoid Draining the Battery to Zero: Charge it whenever the charge becomes lower than 20%. The rest is up to you when to charge. how long to charge, how often to charge, which adapter to use starting from 5W to 140W USB-C Power Adapter etc.
  5. Optimize Display Settings: Adjust your display settings to optimize battery life. Lower the screen brightness, enable auto-brightness, and use shorter screen timeout durations. Adjust the display and text size on iPhone - Apple Support (IN)
  6. Minimize Background App Refresh: Limit the number of apps allowed to refresh in the background. Go to Settings > General > Background App Refresh and disable it for apps that don't require real-time updates. Switch apps on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch - Apple Support (IN)
  7. Disable Push Email: Push email notifications can drain your battery quickly. Instead, set your email accounts to fetch data manually or at longer intervals. You can change this setting in Settings > Mail > Accounts > Fetch New Data.
  8. Disable Unnecessary Notifications: Reduce the number of unnecessary notifications you receive. Go to Settings > Notifications and customize which apps can send you notifications.
  9. Limit Location Services: Some apps use GPS and location services in the background, which can drain your battery. Go to Settings > Privacy > Location Services and disable location access for apps that don't require it.
  10. Update iOS: Keep your iPhone's operating system up to date. Apple regularly releases updates that can include optimizations and improvements for battery life.
    1. Update Over-the-Air (OTA) —> Update your iPhone or iPad - Apple Support (IN)
    2. Update using iTunes/Finder —> Update your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch - Apple Support (IN)
  11. Enable Low Power Mode: When your battery is running low, enable Low Power Mode in Settings > Battery. It reduces power consumption by disabling non-essential features.
  12. Avoid Battery Drain during Storage: If you need to store your iPhone for an extended period, make sure to charge it to around 50% first. This helps prevent the battery from draining completely, which can be harmful.
  13. Disable Dynamic Backgrounds and Motion Effects: Dynamic backgrounds and motion effects use additional processing power and can impact battery life. Use a static wallpaper and disable parallax motion effects in Settings > Accessibility > Motion > Reduce Motion.
  14. Limit Widgets: Widgets on the Today View can consume battery life. Remove or limit the number of widgets displayed by swiping right on the home screen, scrolling to the bottom, and tapping Edit.
  15. Adjust Auto-Lock Time: Shorten the auto-lock time on your iPhone. Go to Settings > Display & Brightness > Auto-Lock, and select a shorter time interval to turn off the screen more quickly when not in use.
  16. Use Wi-Fi Instead of Cellular Data: When possible, connect to Wi-Fi networks instead of relying on cellular data. Using Wi-Fi consumes less power than using cellular data.
  17. Enable Airplane Mode in Low or No Coverage Areas: When you're in an area with low or no cellular coverage, enabling Airplane Mode can prevent your iPhone from constantly searching for a signal and draining the battery.


By following these tips, you can help prolong the battery life of your iPhone and maintain its overall performance over time.

Sep 4, 2023 6:04 AM in response to SravanKrA

Hi, thanks for the replies. I've tried all of your suggestions over the months, I've been trying many things. I included some basic information about my usage too, I only have about 5 apps that I downloaded, Instagram/google photos & chrome/one drive/cricut design space. And I barely use the phone at all (maybe that could be an issue somehow?) I don't have "always on display" and I noticed "Astronomy" was using a lot so I disabled that. But these apps weren't really using much, it was just that I wasn't using the iphone at all, so those were the only apps that were in use, so they came up at the top of the list. I also found out about constant cellular search because I have no SIM or network, so I put it on airplane mode, so this was happening before that, it's been happening since day 1. I only use WIFI because no network. No e-mail, no notifications, it's on "Do not disturb". There's literally nothing happening here, except those apps and the background refreshing, which I've also turned off, and still the problem persists. I've even had it on "low power mode", and it still drained way too much. I feel like the iphone I received or the battery it has is defective. I will try to reach out to Apple, I just wanted to ask first, and it looks like this is not normal, as I initially thought. Hopefully they can help me because it's too late to return this of course.

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Is there something wrong with my iPhone 12 battery?

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