# The SBHonline Community Daily > Digerati Discussions! >  >  Watch OS 3.1 greatly  improves battery life

## JEK

*Apple Watch Series 1 and 2 Owners Noticing 'Great' Battery Improvements in watchOS 3.1*Monday October 31, 2016 7:38 AM PDT by Mitchel Broussard
One week ago, Apple released watchOS 3.1 to the public, bringing various bug fixes and performances improvements to the first version update of watchOS 3. Over the past few days a hidden advantage of 3.1 has been discovered, with users on the _MacRumors_forums and Reddit mentioning that they have vastly improved battery life on their Apple Watch Series 1 and Series 2 following the new update. 

In a thread that started last Wednesday, forum member tromboneaholic posted a topic about the "great battery life" found on their Series 1 Apple Watch after updating to 3.1. Sixteen hours after charging the device, it still had 75 percent battery, even "with everything turned on like location services and background app refresh." Series 1 and Series 2 Apple Watch owners note the same beefed up battery life in 3.1, with one forum member saying that they "can now comfortably skip charging every other night" if they wanted. 

I read reports that beta users were getting great battery life under 3.1. I wasn't prepared for how big the improvement would be. I have a Series 1, and I had 75% battery left after 16 hours yesterday. After charging it over night, I have 97% battery after 6 hours. This is with everything turned on like location services and background app refresh. So far I haven't had any strange reboots like I had under 3.0. I would say this is an amazing update for the watch.My field test with watchOS 3.1 on my AW S2: took it off the charger Friday at 5:00 am and it lasted until Sunday 7:00 pm. Great! I think I'll go for a charge every other night and see how that works. For once a great software update, Apple!Some users have even managed to get a Series 2 Apple Watch on 3.1 to last all weekend. Most Apple Watch owners have known in the past that Apple's recommended 18 hour battery life could get them through at least one day without a charge, but now it appears watchOS 3.1 has improved that to a point where users can easily get to the two day mark, as long as there aren't many intensive tasks running on the wearable. Understandably, some apps -- like Apple's stock Workout app -- increase battery loss when running in the background, which offsets the statistic for users working out heavily throughout the day. 

Some owners of the original Apple Watch, known online as "Series 0," appear to not have gotten the same battery boost, however. One forum member said their Series 0 "has actually gotten a little worse" on 3.1, with the end-of-day battery percentage down by 10 percent on average. Another user worried about their iPhone 7 potentially being the culprit behind major battery drainage issues, but 3.1 doesn't seem to have helped their case. That forum member mentionedtheir battery "drops like a stone" after each workout, so it's most likely a specific hardware issue and not a widespread bug. 
My series 0 has actually gotten a little worse. I even unpaired/repaired. In WatchOS 2 I generally finished my day with roughly 25-35% left, with a 1-hour workout. Now i'm down to 10-15% with a 25-45 minute workout.Sadly my 3.0 and 3.1 experience with original watch is very different. Have unpaired, repaired, reset, restarted but still battery drops life a stone after a workout has run. Have removed all but the one face, background refresh off, handoff off. Genius Bar went through diagnostics and reported all ok. Have a worry that it could be my iPhone 7 causing the problem as the few days with 3.0 on old iPhone 6 I didn't notice the drain.Still, the battery improvements for the newer Apple Watches appear to be one of the more notable changes to watchOS for most users. As one Redditor shared yesterday, on a 42mm Series 2 Apple Watch they managed to keep a battery of around 82 percent after 11 hours of standby and 1 hour of usage. That percentage was with prominent haptics, max brightness, and background app refresh all turned on, as well. Since posting, many have shared similar experiences. 

Check out the full watchOS 3.1 battery improvement thread over in the _MacRumors_ forums to see more stories related to the update.

_Related Roundups: Apple Watch Series 2, watchOS 3 
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Buy Now)_


42 comments

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## Bart -my real name-

I suppose this is to counter the battery drain on the phones with the new iOS.

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## andynap

> I suppose this is to counter the battery drain on the phones with the new iOS.



You can add iPad mini to that list.

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## JEK

My 7 Plus has awesome battery life.

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## Bart -my real name-

> My 7 Plus has awesome battery life.



That answer was as predictable as Mike bemoaning the current mainstream-ness of the island.    :Devilish:

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## JEK

Old worn out gear is always old and worn out. Newer processors use less power. YMMV.

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## stbartshopper

Probably an inane question- if one has an early watch- is there any trade in value to upgrade to a new one?

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## Bart -my real name-

> Old worn out gear is always old and worn out. Newer processors use less power. YMMV.



Maybe so, but the worn out gear was functioning perfectly well before the software "upgrade".  Either this change in performance is the greatest coincidence in the history of the world, or it's a result of the new and improved iOS.

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## JEK

*iOS 10 Issues: 'Bug' Causes Poor Battery Performance In Older iPhone 5s, 6 and 6s*

22 September 2016, 3:03 pm EDT        By _Alexandra Burlacu_ Tech Times








Apple's latest iOS 10 seems to have a bug that dramatically reduces the battery performance of the iPhone 5s, iPhone 6, iPhone 6s, and iPad. Apple has yet to acknowldge the issue or provide a fix, but here are a few temporary workarounds to help conserve battery life in the meantime.  ( Lam Yik Fei | Getty Images )

ADVERTISEMENT


The latest iOS 10 packs a lot of cool tricks, but it's also a battery hog for older smartphones such as the iPhone 5s, iPhone 6 and even the iPhone 6s.
Apple unveiled iOS 10 with all the bells and whistles on Sept. 7 at its iPhone 7 launch event. As soon as the latest OS became available for download, however, reports started piling up, with a bevy of users complaining about battery life issues following the upgrade.
It seems that instead of further optimizing battery efficiency to make it last longer, the new iOS 10 does the opposite, and users are now getting shorter battery life out of their devices.

*iOS 10 Battery Issues: iPhone 5s, 6, 6s and iPad*

Older models such as the iPhone 5s are often the ones most affected by new OS issues, but with iOS 10, there are also some reports of battery drainage on the newer iPhone 6 and iPhone 6s after upgrading to iOS 10.
"Has anyone noticed any problems with battery life since updating to iOS 10? My 6s has been down to 10 to 20 percent for several days in a row by 4 p.m. with only 2 to 3 hours of usage. Safari took 32 percent of my battery today in 39 minutes. I'm on iOS 10.0.1," writes a user on Reddit.

Another user says their iPhone's battery dropped to 30 percent after 2 hours of use and 4 hours on standby. While the user doesn't mention which iPhone model they own, they do note that, prior to the update, one charge per day would suffice for their demands, but now the smartphone requires charging twice per day on iOS 10.

Other users also report a dramatic drop in battery performance following the iOS 10 upgrade, with Safari particularly power hungry. Scattered among the complaints are also a few positive reports of good battery life on the iPhone 6s Plus and iPhone SE, and significantly worse battery life on the fourth-generation iPad.

It remains unclear at this point whether this is a widespread issue or it's affecting only a few users, as Apple has yet to acknowledge any issues or bugs. Until Apple provides a fix for this issue, there are a couple of temporary workarounds that might help preserve the battery life of your iOS 10 device.

*iOS 10 Battery Fix: Temporary Workarounds To Extend Battery Life*

First of all, you can try a hard reset, or even a factory reset. For the latter, make sure to make a backup so you can later restore it with iTunes.

Another thing you can try is to follow the "Battery Life Suggestions" found under your device's Settings > Battery. Simple things such as reducing screen brightness can have a significant positive effect.




Other tricks you can try include disabling location services when you're not using them, disabling background app refresh, or using "Reduce Motion" (found in Settings > Accessibility > Reduce Motion). It's worth pointing out, however, that "Reduce Motion" will affect iMessage effects.

If nothing works, as a last resort, you could downgrade from iOS 10 back to iOS 9.3.5 until Apple sorts things out and fixes the issues marring the iOS 10 experience. iOS 10 has caused plenty of other issues, including bricking some iPhones and iPads, but Apple should patch things up soon enoug


- See more at: http://www.techtimes.com/articles/17....DB2oPPHq.dpuf

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## Bart -my real name-

Thanks!  If they don't release a fix for this before I head to Le island, I may have to Le downgrade to 9.3.5

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## JEK

Too late to downgrade.

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## Bart -my real name-

> Too late to downgrade.



Perfect.

You know how Steve Jobs was tyrannical about eliminating any free space in the phone and supposedly throwing one in a fish tank and being outraged when bubbles came out?  I wish someone over there would adopt that attitude to the battery life issue!

No matter what the "improvement" is or how great the new feature is, it shouldn't be released if it negatively affects battery life.  It's a universal complaint of the phone and yet they seem to go out of their way to not only not address it, but to ensure that every new release makes the situation worse.  In the short term, they'll probably sell more phones, but in the long term (and especially once the competitor's phones stop blowing up) it's going to drive people away.

JEK - can't you call in a favor with the Cookster to get this fixed?!?!

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## JEK

Nothing to fix. Keep upgrading.  Steve would be pleased

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## Bart -my real name-

Can I borrow $700 or whatever the price is?

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## Bart -my real name-

Let me rephrase that.  Can I have $700 or whatever the ransom is?

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## JEK

Apple Upgrade.

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## Bart -my real name-

Ahhh.  I'll have to look into that again.

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## jayhawkgirl

> Ahhh.  I'll have to look into that again.



My husband was told by the Apple Genius at our local Apple store that there is only Apple upgrade if you bought the phone insurance.
It cost him $866 to buy a new Apple phone, when, after complaining about his battery on his iPhone 6, the operating system crashed for the "genius."  I asked him what other company can create a problem with its product and then make you buy a new one.  He didn't have an answer, but said he had to have a phone.

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## JEK

Anyone, whether you own an iPhone or not, can enter into the Apple Upgrade program. One pays monthly and then every year one is eligible for the next model. Applecare (insurance) is included in the financing charges. 

http://www.apple.com/shop/iphone/iphone-upgrade-program

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## Bart -my real name-

> My husband was told by the Apple Genius at our local Apple store that there is only Apple upgrade if you bought the phone insurance.
> It cost him $866 to buy a new Apple phone, when, after complaining about his battery on his iPhone 6, the operating system crashed for the "genius."  I asked him what other company can create a problem with its product and then make you buy a new one.  He didn't have an answer, but said he had to have a phone.



I feel like they're trying to kill the goose laying the golden egg once again.  And this time they don't have Steve Jobs to throw them a life line

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