Q: 5.0.1 update--even worse battery life

Battery drain is a pain and the reasons may be difficult to detect. two days ago i changes my password for my Apple Id causing all ICloud clients to ask for the new password to connect. The last client to update was my wifes IPhone - I actually forgot it - and only because she complained heavily about battery excessive drain (100% to 0% in less than 24 hours) I realized that the ICloud client could be the reason. After giving it the new password the battery life is back to normal (4-5 days with normal use of the phone).

There is information out there. It's not necessarily mainstream because the software is in beta. You aren't going to see it announced in CNN but if you check the phone blogs, you will find information. Apple has acknowledged the issue and has released 2 betas since 5.0.1. These have been released to app developers and are not for official release until after testing is complete.

News blogs include tipb.com, modmyi, gizmodo, Engadget, macrumors, the verge, 9to5 Mac, boy genius report, tech crunch, phonedog, techno buffalo etc.

I do follow those blogs and requesting the previous poster to post links that says Apple has issued new beta to fix the battery issue after, i repeat after they release 5.0.1. Instead of just listing the blog sites, please post valid links and so far none of them are official from Apple. If Apple is trying to fix something, why not come out in public and say that? why are they so discreet about it? what are they hiding and why should we rely on unofficial blogs and runors about a fix?

Apple issued a new build of the software to fix sim card issues. After that the only beta that is official out there is 5.1 which doesnt have any notes regarding fixing battery life. so instead of just listing those blogs, it would be better to list the actual links that talks about fixing battery issues AFTER 5.0.1 was released.

Apple issues the statements directly to the blogs in most cases.

http://mobile.theverge.com/2011/11/11/2554961/iphone-battery-life-apple-says-a-f ew-remaining-issues-persist-in-ios/in/2297929

I experienced the battery drain suddenly, after about a week of being updated to the 5.0.1. I tried what was recommended here-- hard reset-- and in the process of resetting up everything, I wondered about iCloud being a problem, so I deleted my account. I never used it, don't plan on it, have no need for it. My battery charge improved considerably. From a full charge, the battery will last close to 48 hours. I can live with this, but I don't feel it is where I used to be, which was near 3 days easy. I do not have very many apps, either, mostly preschool learning apps for the little ones. I appreciate all the knowledge shared on this forum. It's really helped.

I think most of the people that have iCloud have no idea what it is capable of and that's why they have no need for it. Trust me, the first time your phone takes a dump and you lose all of your contacts, you'll wish you had it for that reason alone. I need all of my 292 contacts, and to have iCloud back my phone up everynight I plug it in without me worrying about it, is priceless.

I understand iCloud. But what's the use if it drains my battery dry in 8 hours or less. Also, Apple may release information to blog sites, but that's not the same as issuing a press release on apple.com. There is a problem that needs fixed anD Apple needs to step up and admit it to customers that have spent a lot of money for their product.

It sounds very werid.. a multi billion dollar company which a customer centric business model i.e. selling products to cusomter will talk to customers only through bloggers and not come out and issue a public statement. And if that is true why did they come out in public to acknowledge the antenna issue when iPhone 4 was released.

Just a theory. But maybe the acknowledged the antenna issue because AT&T got so many calls about it. 

Limegrntaln wrote:

 

There is information out there. It's not necessarily mainstream because the software is in beta.

But none of the changelogs or the "information" released to various blogs contains any confirmation that Apple even acknowledge there is a battery issue, let alone that there is a fix coming in any future update.

So all these posts from people saying "oh it'll be fixed in 5.1" should be taken with a pinch of salt. It's unfounded rumours like that which will cause people to miss out on being able to return their phones to retailers within time to get a refund.

I’m not usually one to post intreads but I’m a bit upset about the iphone 4s battery life.  Is there way to evaluate whether or not thebattery life has to do with the phone or the software?  First off, I really don’t think I should havethe need to change my entire settings just to make the battery significantly better.  I had a iphone 4 and iphone 3g before handand the battery life at the time was 2x better as compared to the 4s.  I’m not sure if it has to do with the newhardware, since there is a lot going on from what I think. 

is my software constantlysearching for a internet provider when I’m in a poor cell phone servicearea?  I’ve tried just about everyonethat people has tried, and for the most part nothing has worked.  I feel like I’m holding an android phone nowwhere I would run out of battery within 6 hours or so when maybe turning thephone on and off for a few seconds to check the time.  I also notice apps that I would turn off inthe notification center are still loading notifications when I clearly turnedthem off.  I also noticed when I turnedoff the weather/stock option when you swipe down, I gained roughly 30 minmore. 

I just don’t know if I have arequest to check my phone out in terms of battery, how can that even be evaluated?  Maybe certain shipments contained different batteriesthan others?  I just know this situation Igetting frustrating and I do hope there is some sort of way to fix it.

Hotphil, you replied with an intelligent answer. So hopefully I can explain this to you correctly so that you understand. Unfortunately, most people that own these phones know nothing about electronics or technology. If you were a company, like apple that sold this phone and there was a problem that affected 5% of users like this one. And you made an announcement which the news channel picked up and broadcasted, you'd have millions of people, that have no idea whether or not they have battery issues or not, taking their phones to the Apple store because people don't listen. The news channel could say "if you are seeing X the phone may be defective" then 80% of people that saw that broadcast that owned an iPhone would just bring the phone in anyway regardless of whether or not it was defective, because they don't know and didn't listen. "I'm going to take it in anyway and demand my phone be replaced because it doesn't last 240 hours of advertised standby" I moderate a forum that fields hundreds of tech questions and I will tell you that people have had an iPhone 6 months and have no idea how they locked the screen rotation. Or sometimes I accidentally hit the top and home button at the same time and the screen makes a sound and blinks, I think my phone is defective. No that's how you take a screen shot.

It would be a nightmare if they made an announcement that only affected a small percentage of people.

Limegrntain - First of all you got to be careful when you put blanket statement like this "Unfortunately, most people that own these phones know nothing about electronics or technology". This statement itself proves your level of competence. People may not know anything about electronics or technology. but if explained clearly everyone will understand. May be you are one of those people who run like a chicken without a head after hearing half baked news.  All we are asking is simple and that is to get Apple acknowledge that they are working on the fix. That DOESNT mean everybody who owns an iphone will run to the store asking for a replacement and i dont think any sane person would panic and go crazy if Apple just acknowledged the issue and put out a statement that it is working on a fix.

Also most of us like Apple and their products and that is why most of are finding it frustrating that Apple is keeping quiet. I do see you are a big support of Apple but that doesnt mean we have to put with any stupidy you say. So please if you have any valid solution or answer then reply, dont waste people time by trying to justify why Apple is not doing something when it should really.

Yep, same here.  I have the iPhone3 and after being coerced for many days by my iTunes to install an update, I finally agreed to it.  My battery drains faster than I can charge it.  I also get an error everytime I plug in the charger, that it's not supported by my device.  It's the original charger that came with the phone.  The Apple "genius" that I spoke with at the store, dismissed me with "you have water damage" and gave me the bum's rush out the door.  Now my battery is completely dead, so I can't even turn my phone on.  This leaves me to wonder if Apple just forced a situation where I have to spend hundreds on a new phone.  I don't appreciate business practices like that!  S Jobs should be rolling in his grave!  Who knows if it'll ever even charge enough to allow me to turn it back on.  Is Apple planning to address this problem caused by their "update"?  I'd rather just have the old operating system back.  At least my phone could be turned on then!  I'm waiting to hear from you Genius!

After going through 2 days of having 40% battery drain on my iPhone 4 after updating Yahoo Fantasy Football app which kept crashing, now I have no battery drain whatsoever. I just checked email, sent and received a dozen texts and made a call, and battery still showing 100%. I originally upgraded to 5.0.1 right after it was offered, and had no problems with battery drain until updating the Fantasy Football 2011 app a few days back. Then battery showed marked drain even with light phone usage. Yahoo since has offered another quick update, which was supposed to fix the problem of its app crashing .... and it did. So, for me, it was an app problem draining my battery, and not a 5.0.1 problem. Maybe someone else out there has experienced a similar effect. Just my observation.