iPhone 6(S)/Plus Weird battery situation with iPone 6s

[Racineur]

Hi, the battery on my old iPhone 6s has been changed by Apple on January 2018. The level was at 100% for about one month then it dropped to 94% and has stayed at 94% since. It's July 2021. I notice though that a full charge now powers the phone for no more than 10 hours. 6s is on 14.4.1 now and the battery was changed when the phone was on iOS 11. So 11,12,13 and 14, battery at 94% all the time. I know I know, it's rather time to move on with a new phone and I'll do it soon but this bug "bugs" me. Anybody have a hint?
Thanks

 

[Phil77354]

It sounds like you still have the original battery, is that right? If so, then why not have it replaced? That is a whole lot less expensive then getting a new phone, if you are still satisfied with what you have and think you would continue to use it for another year or two (or more) if you didn't have the battery issue.

I replaced the battery in my iPhone 6s Max in November, did the same for my wife's 6s Max, and we'll continue to use them for as long as they still work well.

 

[Racineur]

No. Read my post. Apple changed the battery on a replacement plan in January 2018. The original one was around 80%. In a nutshell, the new battery went from 100% to 94% in a month only. Since 2018, it's stuck on 94% which is impossible. BTW, whites a 6s Max? Never head of that model. Thanks.

 

[Phil77354]

Sorry, Xs Max, not 6s.

My previous phone was a 6s Plus, replaced the battery in Oct 2018 under same arrangement as you did, I think. That phone is still in use in the family.

I don't know what the explanation might be for having the battery % stuck at 94%, but I would still suggest replacing the battery. I purchased my Xs Max in Sept 2018, replaced the battery last November. Your battery is 3 ½ years old, it is not unreasonable to replace after that length of time. That is what I would do, just my opinion.

 

[Racineur]

Hi again, still a mystery. Think there are only 2 options: replace the battery of my old 6s or go for a new iPhone. Problem is I do so little with a phone. Go for a used one? I'm in Canada, Apple Canada doesn't sell refurbished iPhones. Adds? I don't trust what sellers would say to me. I tried but most of sellers have confused answers, not sure of this of that, don't remember this and that. What will I do? Thanks for your replies. Appreciated.

 

[Phil77354]

Battery replacement is very inexpensive. If your phone is otherwise working fine and satisfactory then that is straightforward. If you have an Apple Store located close by, they will do it and you'll have the confidence that it is being done with the right parts, etc. As I mentioned before, that is what I would do in your situation. If you use your phone infrequently then you can even send it to Apple for the battery replacement, if you don't have a store close by.

Apple charges $49 to replace the battery for an iPhone 6s in the U.S. I would expect that it would be similar in Canada.

iPhone Battery Service - Apple Support

Need more power? An Apple Store or Authorized Service Provider near you can replace your iPhone battery. See the associated cost by coverage type.

support.apple.com

 

[Racineur]

Oooh. Don't expect the lw prices of US being the same in Canada. I checked. Apple Canada charges 65$ and a iFixit kit is 37,99 CDN. A local business well regarded does the job for 50$. But would I have the courage to dissect my phone? That's the question. BTW, I dowloaded Coconut and it show my iPhone 6s battery state: full charge capacity 98.4%. Design capacity: 81.8%. Looks like the real number is 81.8%. At least I have a Mophie external case. Thanks again. P.S. Would you trust Apple more to replace the battery? Maybe a matter of orignal pieces? Wonder.

 

[GumaRodak]

I have similar problem. My iphone 6s goes from full charge to 20% in like 6-8h, phone activity very low, see attache chart.Battery is new, so the replacement didnt helped at all. I have disabled vpn, closed all aps…i only use bluetooth nonstop with apple watch..

 

[alpi123]

I have similar problem. My iphone 6s goes from full charge to 20% in like 6-8h, phone activity very low, see attache chart.Battery is new, so the replacement didnt helped at all. I have disabled vpn, closed all aps…i only use bluetooth nonstop with apple watch..

Sadly that's normal, the same thing with my 6s. The battery is very small, you shouldn't expect it to last that much compared to today's devices. Get a battery case.

 

[GumaRodak]

Well, i agree battery is not so good but 2y back i didnt have such problem even with older original battery. I will try to just reset to defaults and keep the old ios and check if the battery last longer…i think its ios related too…

 

[jav6454]

Quick question OP, do you have to be on a 6S? OEM batteries for those devices are hard to find...

 

[JBGoode]

I no longer use it but my 6s behaves the same way. Battery health has been stuck at 95% for 2 years even though it clearly is not. (Coconut battery pegs it at 70%) Battery Health is more of a gimmick than anything. My current phone shows 100% after almost 400 charge cycles. Coconut battery also puts it at 100%. I doubt either of those is accurate.

 

[Racineur]

Hi and thanks to you all for your help. "Glad" to read I'm not alone with this problem. I upgrades my 6s to iOS 14.7.1. same thing. Battery health stuck at 94%. Called Apple. same stupid answers: update, update, update, update. They have nothing in mind but updating. Gee, I'm not saying the phone isn't working properly, I want to know why the damn battery is stuck at 94% since 2018. I guess I'll never have and answer. Now, the battery foes from 70% before going to bed to 35% when I wake up. I have a Mophy Case, I'm using it and will drain the 6s' battery and Mophy's battery Then good night Irene for the 6s.

 

[cynics]

As you alluded to initially, you iPhone is a bit long in the tooth.

This is the problem with a keeping devices up to date.

You're iPhone is using features later phones have been optimized for. So even if the battery was brand new you'll still be making an iPhone do a lot more things like software decoding and encoding videos and pics (vs hardware), background task (that have dedicated low power hardware on newer devices), API's that weren't even considered when the 6S was created like ARkit, and various things of that nature.

Newer iPhones can record in Dolby Vision fairly effortlessly which requires a tremendous amount of bandwidth throughout and gobs of processing power by even standards from 6 months ago. I know your iPhone can't do that but I'm using that as an example to show the disparity in horsepower. Difficult battery intensive task for your iPhone don't even register on the latest and great, yet you are using the same OS.

Only thing I can suggest is to monitor your usage when you see large battery drops and minimize those task. Hopefully its something you don't need to be doing, or doing as often.

Good luck.

 

[Phil77354]

. . . Now, the battery foes from 70% before going to bed to 35% when I wake up. . .

Low Power Mode (in Settings, under Battery) is useful to avoid that type of problem, I think. Unfortunately it is something you need to manually initiate each time the battery is 70% or lower, but it makes a big difference in battery drain during the evenings.