Even though iOS 15 is two months away, Apple has been busy churning out iOS 14 updates. Most recently, the company released iOS 14.6. Battery drain, however, is a significant problem with the recent update.
So while the iOS 14.6 update contains a few new features and performance enhancements, you might want to hold off on downloading the update for the time being. According to users on Apple discussion boards and social networking sites like Reddit, the battery drain associated with the update is significant.
What iPhone users are saying
The battery drain issue appears to be an equal opportunity offender. In other words, it’s plaguing older devices like the iPhone 7 and newer devices like the iPhone 12 Pro. One user on an Apple discussion board said his iPhone 7 now loses its charge after just two hours of moderate use.
One iPhone 12 user said that the battery on his phone went from a full charge all the way down to 30% with minimal use. The user added that his iPhone battery health is at a robust 96%.
MacRumors astutely points out that unusual battery drain is to be expected after an iOS update “due to the system reindexing Spotlight and conducting other housekeeping tasks.” Still, the battery drain issue is impacting users who updated to iOS 14.6 weeks ago.
How to fix the iOS 14.6 battery drain issue
While there’s not an overarching quick fix just yet, there are some things you can do to alleviate the issue. One user on an Apple support forum said an Apple specialist told him to do a full restore with the iPhone plugged into his computer. After restoring from an iCloud backup, the battery issue curiously went away.
It’s obviously a pain to do a full restore, but there are some other avenues you might want to explore as well. For instance, go to Settings > Battery and see if any particular apps are responsible for a disproportionate amount of battery usage. Some users, for instance, noticed that the Apple Music and Podcasts apps in particular were eating up a lot of battery life.
Aside from that, you can try some tried and true battery preservation techniques. For example, adjusting the brightness of the display and working in Low Power mode are two options.
Will there be a fix from Apple
One iPhone user on Reddit said his issue was escalated to an Apple technical specialist. The specialist said Apple is aware of the issue and that it’s definitely a problem with the software.
“I’ve spent over 5 hours on the phone with apple the last few weeks and they took long recordings of my phone and all sorts of diagnostics,” the post reads in part. “They confirmed that it’s definitely a software issue and was unrelated to bluetooth or hardware (for me at least) and to basically just wait for the next update.”
Looking ahead, it stands to reason that iOS 14.7 is coming soon. The iOS 14.7 beta is relatively new, so there’s a good chance a fix is on the way.
