Battery

Even more Apple Watch details revealed in new report

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 30, 2018

You will find yourself using your iPhone a lot less, once you've purchased an Apple Watch, according to TechCrunch. The publication has spoken with a number of people who have used the new wearable extensively, and one person even said they "nearly stopped" using their iPhone.

This is because the Apple Watch is built to handle alerts and other matters much more efficiently than your smartphone. Notifications are seen right away and acted on quickly, so they don't pile up, and apparently they're auto-disabled when the Watch is removed or reaches 10% battery life.

Apple Watch: new details about battery life, apps, features and more emerge

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 30, 2018

Apple has managed to improve the battery life of the Apple Watch to support 5 hours of heavy application use, reports 9to5Mac. Ahead of Monday's event, the site has heard this and other previously unknown details from sources who have hands-on experience with the wearable.

The improvement in battery life should ensure that the Watch will last a full day with mixed heavy and passive use. However, the site makes it clear that users will still need to charge the device every night, as the battery is not strong enough to last a full second day without renewal.

Poll: thinness vs. better iPhone battery

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 14, 2018

Handset vendors stubbornly insist on making their gadgets thinner at a time when consumers have largely been craving for better battery life.

Apple, like no other company, is a poster child for the industry's obsession with thinness. Whenever a new iPhone comes out, its slim profile gets prominently featured and communicated in ads.

This point was especially brought home for me in a recent Wall Street Journal article which argues that “survey after survey reveals there is one thing consumers wish manufacturers would change about their gadgets” and it's better battery life.

Our poll today deals with this issue as we seek to learn whether you, our loyal readers, would rather have a millimeter or two thicker device with a stronger battery or as thins a phone as possible with a good enough battery.

Rumor: Apple poaching Samsung’s semiconductor and battery experts

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated August 4, 2016

Apple is luring Samsung Electronics' engineers, including chip experts who specialize ”in next-generation technology” related to signal and visual-processing management and battery technology, offering raises and competitive benefits, according to a report Monday by The Korea Times.

In addition to highly-competitive benefits and large annual paychecks, Apple is said to be luring Samsung experts by promising them greater independence, according to unnamed officials.

Electric car battery maker suing Apple for poaching critical employees

Cody Lee ∙ Updated May 17, 2018

Electric car battery maker A123 Systems filed a lawsuit against Apple earlier this month for poaching its employees, reports Law360. The company says the Cupertino firm began an "aggressive campaign" around June of last year to recruit some of its most critical staffers for a new large-scale battery division.

This directly violates the company's noncompete and nondisclosure agreements, says A123 Systems, and the poaching has resulted in a substantial loss of investment and left them scrambling to find replacements. It's asking the court for undisclosed damages and a 1-year order, barring them from moving.

New report sheds light on Apple Watch battery life

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 30, 2018

For its upcoming Watch, Apple is shooting for somewhere between 2.5 and 4 hours of active use and 19 hours of passive use, according to a new report from 9to5Mac. The site says sources with knowledge of the project have offered up new details regarding the wearable's battery life.

Battery life was one of the many things left out of the initial Apple Watch unveiling last September, but Tim Cook has since said that the device will need to be "charged every night." The vague explanation has left many users wondering how long the Watch will last in the real world.

CES 2015: Mophie out with Juice Pack battery cases for iPhone 6 and 6 Plus

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated April 8, 2017

Renowned accessory maker Mophie is out of the gate with the first 'Made for iPhone' licensed battery cases for Apple's iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.

Their new Juice Pack protective battery cases promise to boost the run time of your iPhone 6 by 120 percent, or up to sixty percent in the case of the larger iPhone 6 Plus which already packs a notably stronger battery than its 4.7-inch sibling.

The California-based company said the new cases for Apple's last handsets are now available for pre-order.

The Kodiak Power Bank will keep your iPhone charged in the rain, snow, or sand

Jim Gresham ∙ December 16, 2014

Samsung called us iPhone users wall huggers in their recent commercial attacks. Sure, we charge fairly frequently, but iPhone owners just like using their device more and do it more frequently. Right? Sometimes that leads to a low battery. Even with an iPhone 6 Plus touting about 10 usage hours before depleting, I sometimes find myself in scenarios where additional charge is critical.

There are loads of battery backups on the market. Just walking into a 7-11 convenient store will reveal small stick sized charging devices for a few bucks. But, a backup is one of those you-get-what-you-pay-for experiences. Take a look inside for details on Outdoor Tech's Kodiak Power Bank.

Predix: predict when your iPhone’s battery will fully charge or die

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

Predix is a new jailbreak tweak that presents the time until your device's battery is scheduled to die or fully charge. It does so by means of a heads up display in the center of the iPhone's screen.

If you're looking for an easy way to keep tabs on battery life, including handy predictions on charging and discharging remaining time, then you'll want to look into this thoughtful jailbreak tweak.

Rumor: Apple switching to Samsung-made Apple Watch chips, iPhone 6 battery and flash storage

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated September 26, 2016

The latest scuttlebutt fresh out of Korea has it that Apple is considering switching to Samsung-made components for the new iPhones and Apple Watch, including iPhone 6 batteries manufactured by Samsung SDI and NAND flash manufactured by Samsung's component making arm.

The story matches up nicely with a BusinessKorea report earlier this month which claimed Apple was considering changing its flash storage provider due to alleged issues with some 128GB iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus units.

How to unlock Apple’s hidden battery usage menu in iOS 8

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

Developer Hamza Sood, well-known for his innate ability to uncover hidden items in iOS, has discovered another hidden feature, and created a tweak out of it. Dubbed DetailedBatteryUsage, this new tweak allows you to unlock the hidden battery usage menu that Apple uses internally during development.

Want access to hyper-verbose details on your iPhone battery usage? Have a glance inside to see what it looks like on video...

New iPhones use two accelerometers for better power management

Cody Lee ∙ September 27, 2014

Apple is using two accelerometers in both the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, Chipworks has discovered in its extensive teardowns of the two handsets. The first is the three-axis BMA280 accelerometer, made by Bosch, and the second is believed to be InvenSense's six-axis MPU-6700.

Why two? Interestingly enough, Chipworks believes that Apple decided to go with two accelerometers to improve power management and overall user experience. The InvenSense is more sensitive, and can do more things, than the Bosch, but it also draws a lot more power.