December 2, 2023

There was a wave of concern within the weeks previous the discharge of the iPhone 15, as some iPhone 14 Professional customers found the well being of their batteries degrading considerably sooner than with earlier iPhones. All of it occurred in mid-August, prompting me to analyze the well being of my very own iPhone 14 Professional’s battery.

Whereas different iPhone 14 Professional customers reported battery well being drops of round 10% in lower than a 12 months, my battery well being was nonetheless at 100%. I additionally famous that I take advantage of my iPhone continually, and the battery often lasts greater than a day. I don’t even have to recharge my cellphone in a single day.

I defined the battery methods I take advantage of to deal with my iPhone battery. I’ve the At all times-On show function disabled, and I take advantage of optimized charging to not often hit a 100% cost.

Then, in October, I spotted I forgot to undo a small settings change which may additionally clarify the stellar battery life and battery well being I’ve been experiencing on my iPhone 14 Professional. I turned off the ProMotion function a couple of 12 months in the past, limiting the dynamic refresh price to 60Hz. I did it once I was testing one thing for work after which forgot to alter it again.

In late September 2022, I gave you many suggestions and methods to enhance the iPhone 14 Professional battery life. A type of suggestions involved ProMotion.

I confirmed you easy methods to cut back the body price on the iPhone to 60Hz to preserve power. As a reminder, the iPhone 14 Execs and their successors assist dynamic 120Hz refresh charges (or ProMotion). The refresh price strikes between 1Hz and 120Hz, relying on what apps you’re utilizing. If you happen to select to restrict the body price, it would proceed to fluctuate, however solely between 1Hz and 60Hz.

Restrict body price to a most of 60Hz on iPhone Professional fashions. Picture supply: Chris Smith, BGR

The explanation we didn’t have ProMotion on iPhone 12 Execs involved battery life. On the time, Apple didn’t have chips as environment friendly because the A16 Bionic. And it couldn’t use an OLED panel able to supporting dynamic refresh charges. Or so the rumors stated.

Conversely, the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus function the environment friendly A16 chip however are caught to 60Hz. That has to do with the worth of the bottom fashions.

Getting again to the guidelines and methods story, I set the utmost Restrict Body Fee to 60Hz so I may take a screenshot. I then determined to see whether or not I may inform the distinction between 60Hz and 120Hz. So I believed I’d use the iPhone at 60Hz for a number of days to see the way it feels. I should have forgotten to disable the Restrict Body Fee possibility from the Accessibility settings.

Subsequently, I’ve been utilizing the iPhone 14 Professional with the dynamic refresh price set at 60Hz for a 12 months. This should have definitely boosted battery life. And consequently, it additionally may’ve protected the well being of the battery. I decreased battery well being degradation by charging it much less ceaselessly.

I found the setting by accident a number of days in the past, as I used to be truly contemplating enabling this very setting. It seems that my iPhone 14 Professional’s battery life has dropped after the iOS 17 launch. However that’s a narrative for a unique day.

My iPhone 14 Pro went through 209 cycles in 330 days.
My iPhone 14 Professional went by way of 209 cycles in 330 days. Picture supply: Chris Smith, BGR

My expertise proves some extent I made proper after shopping for the iPhone 14 Professional. I may have gone for the cheaper non-Professional model with out skipping a beat.

Whereas I won’t have realized that I wasn’t getting the total 120Hz therapy throughout this primary 12 months of iPhone 14 Professional use, there was one incident the place a display stutter was current. It occurred throughout a sizzling summer time day when the iPhone overheated whereas charging wirelessly in the course of the day.

The A16 Bionic chip was throttled and stayed throttled for hours after I took the cellphone off the charger. I didn’t consider checking the display settings. I carried out benchmark assessments as a substitute. A restart fastened the problem, and the display scrolling points have been gone. The scrolling stutter knowledgeable me one thing was improper with the iPhone, and I blamed the chip.

Since discovering my ProMotion blunder, I thought-about enabling ProMotion, a function I solely ended up utilizing for lower than two weeks once I first obtained the cellphone. However since I by no means realized I used to be getting a 60Hz expertise within the first place, I don’t suppose I’ll. As a substitute, I’ll accept higher battery life.