What if you ran Low Power Mode on your iPhone all of the time? That’s the question that Matt Birchler asked, and he was curious enough to try the experiment for himself. The results are quite eye opening. Low Power Mode doesn’t necessarily have to be a feature that you only use to eek by on a small percentage of remaining battery…
Here’s a preview of Birchler’s results from his always on Low Power Mode test:
There is a definite separation between the days where Low Power Mode is used and the days when it is not. Even the best day in normal mode pales in comparison to the worst day of Low Power Mode. On average, my iPhone chewed through battery 38.7% slower when in Low Power Mode.
And then there’s this:
After work, I have a lot more “screen on time” and the productivity apps clear out as games and social media apps take over. During work hours, with the screen off most of the time, Low Power Mode chewed through battery 44% slower than normal mode. Yes, that’s nearly cutting battery usage in half!
Obviously, Low Power Mode has its drawbacks. For instance, you can’t use Untethered Hey Siri with Low Power Mode enabled. iOS 9 will also throttle the CPU speed, and prevent visual effects like Live Wallpapers from functioning.
But here’s the real exciting thing: Even with Low Power Mode enabled, you still have a remarkably usable phone. As Birchler points out, Low Power Mode on iOS isn’t like similarly-named functionality on Android phones. It doesn’t turn your iPhone into a brick that happens to make phone calls. You can still browse the web like normal, download apps, send messages, and pretty much everything else you’re used to.
If battery life is a huge deal for you, or if you have trouble making your phone last through a day, it may be worth it to enable Low Power Mode at the start of your day instead of at the last minute when things get dire. I know it’s just an experiment, and your results may vary, but it’s worth a shot.
Be sure to read Matt’s full breakdown for all of the details. It’s a very interesting read.