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ZircoBen

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jul 12, 2015
184
200
Utah, USA
I‘ve now done a few battery replacements for myself and for family. First, I did my iPhone XS, which was at 81% battery health.

Battery life seemed unchanged from the 81% BH original battery, and then I had to deal with the warning messages about the third-party battery.

This last week I put in another third-party battery into a family member’s iPhone 8; which was at 78% health. She now reports that her battery is the same, if not worse than before.

I’m just kind of baffled - I bought these batteries from large and reputable eBay sellers, and they’re brand new? How can a brand new battery be worse than a 4-year old Apple battery with nearly 1000 cycles on it? Is iOS just “rejecting” the batteries or are they fundamentally cheaper and worse batteries?

What are your experiences with third-party batteries?
 

JPack

macrumors G5
Mar 27, 2017
12,573
23,342
Third party batteries, especially the ones that look the same as an OEM battery often have poor QC. They are likely manufacturer rejects.
 

Fatus_Asticus

macrumors 6502
Oct 24, 2021
281
252
They are cheap Chinese **** batteries that are probably refurbished and sold as new with overstated capacities.
 

Graham Caracas

Suspended
Jun 24, 2020
229
356
Six Toe, MO
What made you decide to go with a "large and reputable" seller for such a vital component? As stated above, these are likely cheaply manufactured or second rate OEM rejects. If you were looking to save a few $, consider the old cliche but still true, you get what you pay for.
 

Andeddu

macrumors 68000
Dec 21, 2016
1,641
2,039
3rd party batteries are a complete lottery. I suggest you just book an appointment at your local Apple store for an authorised replacement.

I had a third party replacement battery in my SE1 and it was quite good. I was able to get a solid 5 hours of screen on time after 6 months of use.
 

Paddle1

macrumors 601
May 1, 2013
4,816
3,135
I replaced the battery in a 2016 SE with a 3rd party one and it was definitely better than the worn out OEM one.

For the XS though I just got an official replacement. I didn't want to deal with error messages and a broken water resistant seal.
 

ZircoBen

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jul 12, 2015
184
200
Utah, USA
3rd party batteries are a complete lottery. I suggest you just book an appointment at your local Apple store for an authorised replacement.
I totally get just going through Apple for the replacement, but it becomes increasingly hard to justify when the phone value has gone down so much. An iPhone XS that cost me $150 on eBay will cost half of what I paid for it to replace the battery?

What made you decide to go with a "large and reputable" seller for such a vital component? As stated above, these are likely cheaply manufactured or second rate OEM rejects. If you were looking to save a few $, consider the old cliche but still true, you get what you pay for.
If a "large and reputable seller" doesn't sell a good part, then where are you supposed to buy a good battery from?
 

Andeddu

macrumors 68000
Dec 21, 2016
1,641
2,039
I totally get just going through Apple for the replacement, but it becomes increasingly hard to justify when the phone value has gone down so much. An iPhone XS that cost me $150 on eBay will cost half of what I paid for it to replace the battery?
I know what you are saying but a battery is a battery so why should an XS’s battery be any cheaper than a 12’s? The labour costs to replace the battery are the same as the technician has to do the exact same job also.
 

JPack

macrumors G5
Mar 27, 2017
12,573
23,342
If a "large and reputable seller" doesn't sell a good part, then where are you supposed to buy a good battery from?

Large and reputable sellers don't sell on eBay. They sell direct through their website.

 
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