iPhones seem to run out of battery pretty quickly. This is a problem which many iPhone users face, and they seem to drain more than any other brand.
The good news is that there are ways to fix this rather than merely getting rid of the phone for a new model, and in most cases, the problem isn’t the battery itself, but certain apps working away in the background.
In this article, we delve into the world of iPhone batteries to help you discover the ways in which you can save your phone’s battery and find out exactly what’s causing the problem. We will also show you how to check the battery life, and other ways to use apps without draining the battery.
How to Check iPhone Battery Usage
So first things first, how do you actually check the battery usage? Knowing the usage of battery is vital to understanding where your battery life is being used.
To find this out, go into your settings, and tap the battery icon. Wait for a few moments as the battery usage calculates, and when you get into this section, there should be a breakdown of how much power is being used by each of your apps, or by a service on the screen.
If you then tap the ‘show detailed usage’ button, this will give you a description of both foreground and background battery usage. If you are interested in seeing the usage over the past week, you can tap ‘last 7 days’ in order to receive a more detailed look at the power consumption.
Checking Battery Usage in iOS 12
Perhaps you are using iOS 12? Checking the battery works in the same way; however, there are a few small changes you should be aware of, including the battery readout.
To begin checking battery via iOS 12, open the settings just like before and tap battery. It will probably take a few minutes for the data to calculate. Then the button ‘show activity’ can be pressed to reveal a breakdown of both background and on-screen activity. If you tap ‘battery usage,’ this will take you back to the analysis of your usage by percentage.
Again, just like before, you can also look back by tapping the last 10 days, to get a more in-depth look at what your device has been using.
Checking iPhone Battery Health
When it comes to checking your iPhone’s battery health, it hasn’t always been possible. In fact, it was only made available after iOs 11.3. It is said that batteries with over 80% of their capacity are considered healthy, while those with less than 8% can be eligible for a replacement from Apple.
If you are interested in finding out how to check the health of your phone’s battery, here’s how it’s done.
First, open the settings on your phone, and then tap battery. You should see a ‘battery health (Beta)’ setting, and this will lead you to find out the maximum capacity of your iPhone’s battery. This will show you the capacity in comparison to when it was first bought, and will also indicate the performance level that your iPhone supports.
Understanding Battery Usage
Some of the biggest culprits when it comes to battery drain on both iPhone and iPads are the screen lighting, music and radio, and chip processing. Apple shows you all of these as being ‘on screen’ factors, for example, the screen lighting up and ‘background’ as music, radio or processors which work when the screen isn’t even lit.
Even if an app uses a large amount of power, whether on screen or working in the background, it doesn’t mean there is an issue. If you are on Instagram or watching videos on YouTube, for example, specific videos may show a high ‘on screen’ usage. Similarly, if you download many videos, music or podcasts from the internet, or stream for an extended period, this may show up as a high background usage.
When the numbers, however, don’t tend to match with what you are doing on the phone, then this is where there is likely to be a problem. For example, if one app is showing a high level of battery usage, yet you have never opened it, then you should focus your attention on this.
One way to check which apps are taking your precious battery life is to look at the percentages and see what uses what. Instagram, for example, doesn’t take too much time to complete actions, and the percentage between on screen and background is relatively similar.
Larger apps like Facebook, however, can use twice as much battery working in the background as it does on screen which is not a positive sign. Apps like this can possibly take too much at times and are best to use on the laptop if you want to save your phone’s battery for its usual duties.
The Power Usage Readout – iOS 12
In iOS 12 there is the option to see a complete power usage readout. This is very useful when understanding exactly where your battery life is being used. Like the app-specific breakdown shown previously, this readout is presented in two charts. These charts will display information from the past 24 hours during the last ten days.
The first chart is, of course, the battery usage, which is pretty simple. However, the chart will change based on the exact time that you are receiving the information. When it comes to viewing your battery usage over the last 24 hours, you will see how the battery reacted, including periods when it drained, as well as when it was charged. Looking at the past ten days, this will instead show you a day-per-day description of the battery’s percentage that has been used. Therefore, if you used almost all of your battery, decided to charge it and then use again, your usage would be over 100%.
The second chart is all about activity and shows you exactly how much time your device was being used, and is broken down by hour or day. This activity chart has a dark blue color which represents activity when the screen was on, and light blue to represent off screen activity, which helps to understand the two differences.
To learn how to keep on top of your battery usage, it’s essential to understand how to read these charts and do it daily in order to better preserve your battery in the future.
Is it Possible to Reduce Background Activity?
The good news is, yes, it is possible to reduce your background activity. If you want to minimize the on-screen battery, it’s pretty straightforward – reduce the amount of time you spend on the app. You can also reduce the background activity of an app if you want to.
Simply launch the settings from the home screen and tap general. Then you should see a setting which reads ‘Background App Refresh.’ Once you are in here, you can switch off any app with background access that you wish to minimize. However, keep in mind that when you turn off the background app refresh, this can often make apps a little less convenient. For example, if you decide to turn off background app refresh on a messaging app such as WhatsApp, you may still receive all the notifications, but not the messages themselves which can be less useful.
Another thing many apps do in the background is to use your location. This is something which can slowly drain your battery if you let it. You can too prevent this by removing automatic access. Just go to settings, tap the privacy icon and continue to location services. You should then see a list of apps which are currently using your location and can change the setting to never or while using the app, which means they will only use the battery while the app is open.
Keep in mind that turning off location means your apps won’t be able to alert you when you are near friends, or if there are specific offers or events nearby. It also means it won’t be able to track you and some apps might be harder to use for navigating when finding your way around, i.e., Google Maps. This is where you need to decide on what is most important for you. The best recommendation is probably to turn things off when you aren’t actively using them, and only turn them on when you require them – that way you will save in the long run.
Force Quitting Apps
There are some apps which have been accused of cheating on background access. The big names include apps such as Facebook, which take up a lot of space as well as battery life. If you think an app has begun to take up too much power, then there is a way you can stop it.
Force quitting an app is a simple, yet effective way of stopping apps from consuming too much background battery. In order to force quit an app, press the home button twice (when the phone is unlocked), and you should see a minimized selection of apps and services which are still running in the background, and consuming your battery life.
To force quit, all you need to do is swipe the page you want to close, and this will shut down the app completely.
Resetting your iPhone
If you still feel that after all these measures, there is always something draining your battery’s life, or if something isn’t working as it should be, then you can resort to performing a full reset. This isn’t something you should often do, however it can really clean out your phone and bring it back into shape.
To carry out a reset, start by holding down the on/off button on either the top or right side of the phone depending on the model you have. Then, at the same time, press and hold down the Home button which is on the front of the iPhone. You should keep both buttons pressed until the screen turns off and then back on again and the Apple logo appears. When this happens, it means the phone has successfully been reset.
An Alternative Option
As we mentioned, some of the larger apps such as Facebook and Snap Chat tend to destroy battery life, and sometimes there is not much you can do to change that. If you have tried using the apps less, removing location access and force quitting more often yet still feel it hasn’t improved, there is another alternative you could think about.
- Uninstall the problematic app and use the website instead. This means you could delete Facebook, and open it in Safari instead.
- Another method is to uninstall the app and then re-install it when you need to use it. An example could be deleting Google maps and reinstalling it before you know you will be using it.
To keep on top of apps, make sure to download their updates as soon as they are made available, as they are always improving. If you decide to delete some, always check up on them to see if anything has improved for the better.
Conclusion
Battery life is vital for your iPhone to function well, and it is essential if you want your phone to last when out and about. Therefore, knowing how to read your battery usage and see where the usage is going will help you to maintain it for longer, and in turn, save more battery for when you really need it.
To conclude, we hope that this article on how to check battery life iPhone has helped you to become more aware of the various settings available on the iPhone or iPad, and hopefully, you will be able to free up some extra battery space from unwanted apps, as well as understand how to read your iPhone’s usage in the future.
These days, it’s hard to imagine how anyone ever got by without a smartphone in their pocket. Our reliance on gadgets is ever-increasing as these advanced mini-computers take over more and more tasks from our hands. In line with this, our need for a portable power bank to top up our device’s battery throughout the day also increases.
If you have a trip coming up that requires air travel, then you might be asking: can I bring a power bank on a plane? After all, a power bank can save you from a lot of stress about having access to your device during and after a flight.
Keep reading to find out once and for all whether power banks are allowed on flights, a little bit more about power bank safety, and some factors you should consider before investing in a new power bank for your next plane journey.
Can I Bring a Power Bank on a Plane?
The short answer is yes; you are allowed to take a power bank onto the plane with you. However, it’s not quite that simple as there are rules to follow about where you should store your power bank, as well as a limit on the battery capacity and the number of power banks you can travel with.
Below are the things to keep in mind if you plan on carrying a power bank with you on your air travels.
1. Power Bank Location
It’s vital for airline safety that you keep all lithium-ion batteries in your hand luggage and not in your checked-in luggage. This includes your laptop, smartphone, tablet, e-cigarette, and most other devices that contain a long-life rechargeable battery.
It’s surprising for many people to find out that it’s deemed safer to carry your potentially explosive items in the cabin area of the plane rather than in the cargo area. However, by carrying these items in the cabin, airline staff members are able to identify and manage a potential fire much quicker and easier than they would if one were to occur in the cargo area.
Since your hand luggage would also almost always be the preferred place to carry a power bank, this is great news for those of us with upcoming air travel planned.
2. Power Bank Capacity
Many people are unaware of the regulations surrounding a power bank’s capacity. Most airlines impose a strict 100 watts per hour (Wh) limit, and while the vast majority of power banks will fall under this limit, it’s probably safer to double-check your battery’s Wh sooner rather than later.
If you find out that your power bank is too large while you’re at security, then it’ll be too late to do anything but abandon the battery there and then to the security staff.
More often than not, your battery power will be listed as a four- or a five-digit number representing the device’s mAh instead of Wh. If you need to work out the device’s watts per hour, then you can do so quite easily by using your mAh and applying a simple formula.
Converting mAh to Wh
If you know your power bank’s mAh (milliamp hours) and voltage, then you can work out the watts per hour. Firstly you need to find out your amps per hour (Ah) by taking your mAh and dividing it by 1,000. Amps per hour multiplied by voltage is equal to Watts per hour or Wh.
A good rule of thumb is that an average power bank will be 3.6V or 3.7V. This means that it would have to be over 28,000 mAh before going over the allowed limit.
3. Larger Power Banks Need Airline Approval
Larger batteries, from 100Wh up to 160Wh, will always require airline approval. If you own a very large power bank, then it’s in your best interest to work out the watts per hour it carries. Remember to call the airline at least 72 hours ahead of your flight to tell them if your power bank’s Wh is above 100Wh.
Your airline will generally just need to be aware that you will have a larger battery on board. They will allow you through security with a power bank up to 160Wh, as long as you have told them about it ahead of time.
Batteries above 160Wh are another story altogether as they are classed as dangerous cargo and special permissions would be needed to fly with them. It’s highly unlikely that a power bank would ever be that large, so we won’t go into further details here. Nevertheless, we suggest you contact your airline directly if the problem arises.
4. Multiple Power Banks
Most airlines will also place restrictions on how many batteries you can have at any one time, including the ones in your phone, camera, laptop, and other devices. Delta Airlines, for example, allows you to carry up to 20 spare batteries but only two devices (or power banks) that carry between 100Wh and 160Wh of power.
How Dangerous Can Batteries Be?
Accidently packing a rechargeable battery in your checked-in luggage isn’t very likely to cause an accident. However, the airlines feel that it is an unnecessary risk that they’re not willing to take with yours or their crews’ lives.
If you’re wondering why the answer to “can I bring a power bank on a plane?” isn’t as straightforward as you may have thought, then the answer can be found by looking back to 2010, at a plane crash incident in Dubai.
A UPS Boeing 747 crashed in Dubai International Airport, and accident investigators were able to track the cause of the fire back to a large quantity of lithium-ion batteries. The crash was fatal for everyone onboard.
Ever since this accident, airlines have insisted that lithium-ion batteries be carried in the cabin instead. In this way, signs of a fire may be more easily identified by staff and then contained and managed. If it were to happen in the cargo area, then a fire would more easily be able to take hold before being spotted.
Traveling Safely with a Power Bank
If you are planning on taking a trip soon and the journey involves air travel, then follow our top tips below to ensure that you get to your destination safely and have your all-essential batteries and power banks with you by the time you land.
- As mentioned earlier, always pack your power banks and batteries in your hand luggage and not in your checked items.
- Do not keep your power bank in your pocket or in a bag pocket with any metal objects such as keys. Metal objects can short the output and cause over-heating. This, in turn, can potentially start a fire.
- It is also recommended that you tape up the exposed terminals on the ends of the power bank. Taping over the connectors on the ends and sides of your power bank will make it much safer to travel with.
- Limit your power bank size to 20,000mAh at 5V cell voltage or 28,000 at 3.7V cell voltage. If you have more than one power bank and are worried about the combined Wh, then a quick phone call to the airline ahead of time should be able to set your mind at ease.
- Again, declare anything over 100Wh to the airline you are flying with at least 72 hours in advance.
- Travel with your power bank in a protective pouch and have a separate carrier bag for each battery you’re carrying.
- Do not attempt to charge or use your power bank in-flight without asking your flight attendant first. Using your power bank while the airplane is moving is strictly prohibited on some airlines. Hence, you’ll have to charge your devices before you fly or after you land.
The Best Power Bank for Flying
If you’re looking into purchasing a power bank for flying, then there are a few things you should consider before choosing the model to suit your needs and your travel. In a nutshell, you would want something that provides you with all your charging needs while also remaining portable.
Weight
Many airlines these days, especially for domestic flights, have strict rules about weight limits on planes and this will include a hand luggage allowance. A large power bank will most likely be quite heavy and must be stored in your hand luggage.
Think about what else will be in your hand luggage and how much weight allowance you will have available for a power bank before making your purchase. Be sure to weigh your cabin baggage before you leave the house to check that it is within the allowed weight limit.
Size
When packing your hand luggage, it’s easy to run out of space fast. Your hand luggage needs to accommodate everything you’ll need while your larger bags are checked in to the cargo hold.
Again, power banks must be carried in your hand luggage. Hence, along with the weight aspect, consider how much physical space you have available before choosing the right size power bank to suit your needs and packing space.
Capacity
For ease of travel, make sure you keep your power bank devices to a maximum of 100Wh as this will save you having to remember to phone ahead for airline approval each time you fly. Also, choose power banks that state their capacity so that it can’t be brought into question.
If you desperately need more power, then you can buy and travel with two devices below 100Wh, which is much easier than traveling with just one device above 100Wh.
Charging and Recharging Time
The charging time is the amount of time it takes to charge your devices. Some power banks have quick-charging abilities. This means that they are able to charge your devices quicker by delivering power faster through a higher-powered output.
Some power banks also recharge a lot quicker than others due to faster input ports. Other power banks can take over 30 hours on a normal charge, for example, but charge in as little as 10 hours via a quick-charge port.
As you’re not allowed to use your power banks on some flights, quick charging will come in really handy to top up your device batteries before flights and during layovers. In this way, you can continue using your smartphone, tablet, or laptop during your next flight.
Number of Outputs
The number of outputs refers to the number of devices a power bank can charge at any one time. If you have multiple outlets, then you can charge both your smartphone and tablet during a layover, one of which may even charge at double the speed, depending on whether you have a quick-charge port or not.
Device Safety
Many power banks come with a carrying sleeve, which is not only handy to have but can also contribute to the safety of the device. Power banks that offer ways to cover the exposed elements of the charging ports can help protect it from shorting out and causing a fire.
Device Protection
It is also good to look out for a power bank that offers protection to your device when charging it. Many power banks these days will instantly recognize your device once it’s plugged in and will deliver the optimum power needed at the optimal voltage.
These power banks will also recognize when your device is fully charged and stop charging once the battery reaches 100%. This kind of intelligent charging protects your device from any damage that could be caused by over-voltage, over-current, and over-heating.
Conclusion
Who knew that traveling with power banks could be so complicated? Knowing that power banks are on the restricted items list, it’s understandable that you may have been left wondering whether or not you can bring one on a plane. As long as your power bank is stored in a safe place in your hand luggage, it’s unlikely that you’ll encounter any problems flying with it.
If your power bank capacity falls above 100Wh, then you should get in touch with your airline directly before you fly. You can also fly more safely by covering the exposed terminals on the ends of your power bank, using tape or a carrying case if it’s available.
Lastly, remember that while you are allowed to bring your power bank with you on the plane, you’re not always allowed to use it. Therefore, charge your devices at the airport before you fly!
Hi, I am Frank
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