iPhone 5 Users Experience Battery Issues With iOS 6.0.2 Update
Michael Harper for redOrbit.com – Your Universe Online
When Apple released the latest update to iOS 6 this week, some users noticed that their battery life began to suffer, in some cases significantly so.
iOS 6.0.2 was issued on Tuesday and meant as a fix for some persistent Wi-Fi problems on the iPhone 5 and iPad mini. Yet, according to some AppleInsider readers and other Apple customers on their own forums, this new upgrade did more harm than good.
Some users now say that once they upgraded to the latest version of iOS 6, their batteries would drain quickly, even when the device was not in use. In one instance, a user claimed their iPhone’s battery lost 40% of its power in 3 hours while in standby mode.
Some of these users also note that they continued to have the same Wi-Fi issues as before, a problem which 6.0.2 was supposed to address.
Adam Engst of the long-standing TidBITS blog has written up his theories about why an update meant to resolve a connectivity issue might have also introduced a battery issue.
“Our speculation…is that the problem is related to a change in Wi-Fi behavior, which maps with Apple’s sole release note for iOS 6.0.2: ‘Fixes a bug that could impact Wi-Fi,’” writes Engst.
According to a brief and informal test conducted by Michael Cohen, Engst believes the iPhone could be trying to connect to any and all Wi-Fi access points, placing a strain on the phone’s battery. He then suggests those who aren’t experiencing the Wi-Fi issues Apple has tried to fix in this version should wait to upgrade until more is known about this problem.
“If you are experiencing Wi-Fi weirdness, it may be worth the as-yet-unquantified risk to battery life to improve your wireless connectivity. And if you have already upgraded, be a little more aware of your battery life in case you need to charge more often to get through a long day,” writes Engst.
So far, the iPhone 5 has been the only phone mentioned in the forums as experiencing these sorts of issues. There has yet to be any mention of battery issues with the iPad mini.
Battery issues are common amongst all kinds of electronic devices. And while each and every unit might not have significant trouble holding a charge, it’s likely there will always be a few outliers who cannot keep their battery resuscitated.
With every release of new Apple hardware or software, there is almost always a small contingent of users who begin to experience a battery issue they’ve either never experienced before or have been struggling with since the day they bought their device.
If a battery issue persists after a change in software, it’s always best to return the phone, especially when it’s still within the 1-year warranty.
Other times, a battery issue can be resolved with something as easy as a simple reset or as tedious as a full DFU Restore.
Any sort of issue experienced with any Apple product within the first 90 days especially should always be addressed to the Apple store. Not only do the store employees gather this data to improve their services, they’re likely to quickly replace the device.
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2012-12-21 17:17:47
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