Some iPhone 14 Pro users complain that the “Maximum Capacity” rating of their phone's battery has already dropped to around 90% after less than a year

iPhone 14 Pro users are growing increasingly concerned about the state of their iPhone's battery health.

9to5Mac 2023-08-13 Chance Miller

Context & Ripple Effects

Reports of steep battery-health readings on a recent premium iPhone sharpened a product-quality issue that had already been mitigated in older models through software and hardware designed to limit aging-related performance effects. Subsequent coverage made battery durability a clearer point of comparison, with Apple revising the iPhone 15 line’s stated capacity retention estimate to 1,000 charge cycles.

The concern also sits alongside reports of iPhone 15 heat during charging and prolonged use, while later supply-chain reporting pointed to higher-density cells and a battery case intended to support replaceability requirements for the iPhone 16 Pro Max.

First-order effects

Affected iPhone 14 Pro owners may see lower usable runtime and need to charge more often sooner than expected, making the battery-health reading a visible source of dissatisfaction.
Apple faces immediate scrutiny of whether the reported readings reflect normal battery aging, usage conditions, or an issue with the health estimate itself.

Second-order effects

Battery longevity becomes a more salient upgrade and retention criterion, increasing pressure on Apple to substantiate durability claims as newer iPhones are compared with the 14 Pro.
Reports like these raise the value of battery design, thermal management, and serviceability work; later coverage of a higher-density battery and replaceability-oriented case shows those choices becoming more strategically connected.

Third-order effects

If early degradation concerns persist across premium devices, battery health will shift from a back-end service issue to a front-line product-specification and purchase decision.
The direction of travel is toward phones designed around both longer-lived cells and easier battery replacement, particularly as durability expectations and repair rules converge.

The trend: Smartphone competition is increasingly extending from annual feature upgrades to provable battery longevity, thermal behavior, and repairability.

Discussion

@trevorcroker Trevor Croker on threads
Always funny to see iPhone users worry endlessly about battery health percentages. https://9to5mac.com/...
@mgsiegler M.G. Siegler on x
Reading this thinking, “wow that's wild, I bet I'm at like 98%”. Nope. 🪫 [image]
@mgsiegler M.G. Siegler on x
We joke each year about Apple doing funny business to degrade old iPhones as a new one nears, and it is a joke. But it also happens each year. My phone starts to act a fool once about July hits...
@joannastern Joanna Stern on x
My iPhone 14 Pro is down to 88% battery capacity after less than a year. Is it because I use my phone too much and have already hit 450 charge cycles?! (That's what Apple Store says.) Is it from heat from fast charging? Is there something up with the battery? My newsletter...
@rozoro90 Zoro on x
@neilcybart I have an 11 pro max and battery life is at 79% after 46 months of use. 80% after 18 months for a phone that costs $1000+ is bad!
@neilcybart Neil Cybart on x
1) There are many issues found with comparing maximum capacity of different batteries (in different iPhones) from different years. Usage patterns probably not the same etc. 2) Translating 500 charge cycles into months will depend on your iPhone usage and charging habits.
@zollotech Aaron Zollo on x
I've been talking about iPhone 14 Pro Max Battery health for months in how it degraded more quickly due to betas, but now @MaxWinebach has me checking my day 1 14-inch MacBook Pro M1 Max...This is normally plugged into a Pro Display XDR most of time. [image]
@maxwinebach Max Weinbach on x
Ok now these are my full iPhone battery stats 424 charge cycles, 89.2% battery capacity [image]
@neilcybart Neil Cybart on x
This iPhone Pro battery thing has the makings of being another manufactured controversy (for clicks/views). 80% capacity at 500 charge cycles. That's the benchmark. Basically, 80% after 18 months. Seems more than adequate to me. Battery health degrades. https://support.apple.com/…
@gabbbarsingh Gabbar on x
iPhone 13 Pro battery now giving up. Just 86% max capacity now. Half of human stress in this age is caused due to a low battery while you are out. [image]
@andrewjclare Andrew Clare on x
iPhone 13 Pro Battery Health after almost two years 🫠 iPhone 14 Pro Battery Health after almost one year 💀 What's your current battery health? #iPhone14Pro #iPhone13Pro [image]
@leaksapplepro @leaksapplepro on x
My iPhone 14 Pro is now useless. 85% battery life. Time to buy a new one. [image]
@ianzelbo Ian Zelbo on x
iPhone 11 Pro had the best battery of any iPhone... hoping iPhone 15 Pro is the same way
@parkerortolani Parker Ortolani on x
@raywongy None of my recent iPhones have degraded this quickly. And all of them could get me through a day even with age. The 14 Pro has almost never gotten be through a day without multiple midday charges. And it's continuing to degrade rapidly.
@parkerortolani Parker Ortolani on x
Told y'all I wasn't alone! The 14 Pro has a real battery life problem. Cannot wait to get rid of it. Heck, my 13 mini lasted through a day and held up better over time!
@raywongy Ray Wong on x
@ParkerOrtolani How is that a real prob? This has happened to every one of my iPhones since like the XS. 88% ish after a year of heavy use. This is normal and also very circumstantial to every individual and how they use their devices / charge them
@maxwinebach Max Weinbach on x
@ParkerOrtolani @raywongy Battery life has been bad yes but health I think is a beta problem. Low 90s battery health is about par for the course, remember it's rated 80% for 2 years which is about 500 charge cycles. I think this is a non-issue [image]
@parkerortolani Parker Ortolani on x
@MaxWinebach @raywongy Oh gosh, I don't remember the exact number but it was in the low 90s. Even in previous years while running betas over the summer, battery life on older iPhones wasn't bad like this. Sure, betas could be playing some role maybe. But it was already this bad b…
@maxwinebach Max Weinbach on x
@pururajdutta ... That's what I think. I think battery health is downstream of the overall issues with display efficiency, maybe chip, and overall software.
@drbarnard David Barnard on x
Geez, I thought mine was bad at 94%. Joanna didn't explore it in the video, but I do wonder if wireless charging is part of the issue since it does heat up the phone quite a bit. This is the first iPhone I've ever charged almost exclusively via wireless charging.
@basicappleguy Basic Apple Guy on x
@Jon4Lakers That's the lowest I've seen on a Pro Max after 11 months. You're not the first to feel the health has deteriorated a lot faster on the latest iPhone.
@hillitech Wesley Hilliard on x
@ChanceHMiller That was a good bit on iPhone battery health nonsense. I have an alternative take: people are on their phones more than ever. The people complaining about having their battery health in the low 80s need to look at Screen Time. More use=more cycles.
@lonseidman Lon Seidman on x
@MaxWinebach I think there's something fundamentally off with the iPhone 14 batteries.. I've never had this much capacity loss after less than a year of use. I'm losing 1-2% a week and only at around 329 cycles. https://twitter.com/...
@greengart Avi Greengart on x
@MaxWinebach @JoannaStern Wild. My launch day -2 iPhone 14 Pro is still at 99%, which, frankly I wouldn't believe if I didn't have a screenshot [image]
@maxwinebach Max Weinbach on x
@JoannaStern This is my 14 Pro Max on my launch day iPhone My iPhone 13 Pro Max from launch day to Sept. 2022, about a year, was at 93% It's definitely going faster this year [image]
@maxwinebach Max Weinbach on x
Bad battery life on a phone leads to bad battery health. If you need to charge your phone mid day because it won't make it, that's 2 charge cycles per day rather than 1. That means the 500 cycles to 80% health the battery is rated for comes faster. It's not that the battery...
@hillitech Wesley Hilliard on x
No really, please. Stop obsessing over your battery health. It isn't some magic number you're in control of. It's physical chemistry that varies by a million factors. Just use your device, charge when you can, and use it a little less if you're going 0-100% multiple times a day.
@bytereview Tom on x
I've wirelessly charged my iphone 14 pm everyday since release and the battery is still at 100% capacity not bad 🔋 [image]
@tomwarren Tom Warren on x
@Jon4Lakers you're not alone [image]
@zollotech Aaron Zollo on x
iPhone 14 Pro Max is holding strong at a ridiculous 90% battery health. Never had it drop below 100% at this time in the year. [image]
@jon4lakers Jon Rettinger on x
Battery life on my launch day 14 Pro Max keeps getting worse. I've never had battery health like this after 11 months. I know I'm not alone. [image]
@milesabovetech @milesabovetech on x
What's wrong with my iPhone 14 Pro Max battery 🪫 86% Battery health in 11 months!!! [image]
@robertrosenfeld Robert Rosenfeld on x
@aaronjcash @Jon4Lakers It seems to be particularly bad on the 14 Pro Max this year. I've never had my battery health dip so low so fast. Less than a year! [image]
@matouecureuil @matouecureuil on x
@ByteReview I don't understand anything about battery health and I'm really pissed about this result less than one year after I bought my 14 Pro: [image]
@brandonbutch Brandon Butch on x
My iPhone's battery health dropped from 95% to 91% over the past couple of months... 🪫 I didn't do anything different. But what is the #1 enemy of lithium ion batteries? HEAT! 🥵 So with the unprecedented heat this year, keep these tips in mind: - Apple says 62°-72° is the... [ima…

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