I’ve had an iPhone 12 mini since launch and the battery life has become pretty abysmal. However, I’m reluctant to replace it with a newer, bigger model. My battery health is sitting at 86%, which really doesn’t sound that bad, but I feel like the actual battery life is way worse than when I bought it. Has anyone replaced their battery around this percentage, and did it give a noticeable boost?
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If your battery health is below 80% and you plan on not buying a new phone within the next year then you absolutely need and should get a battery replacement. Both for function, and safety. Don’t want an expanding battery in your pocket!
Oh man I just checked and I’m at 78% 😭
78% is basically dead. I’d replace that.
F
72%, the only thing keeping this 7 Plus’ battery alive is powercuff.
I’ll probably get something in the iPhone 16 lineup next year, since I do understand I’ll eventually have to give up on the small form factor. Battery health shows 86%. Also downloaded CoconutBattery on Mac and it says the phone is at 88.5% design capacity. I’m torn between spending $89 on the replacement or just sticking it out for another ~14 months, maybe using a portion of that money on a portable battery pack which could be used with another device once I retire the 12 mini.
If battery health is the ONLY problem with your phone and it is in otherwise great shape then yes it will get you another 2-3 years out of your phone and apple typically supports full OS updates for 4-5 years. Again only if you are fully happy with your phones performance etc…
I got 4+ years out of my iPhone 7
Oh man, my 7 was a TANK. No case, battery lasted forever (or I didn’t notice it), just had a scratch on the screen.
Yes I’ve done it, absolutely worth it… but not at 86%. Wait until it drops town to 70-something. Make sure it’s a genuine Apple battery - a lot of cheaper batteries are total garbage.
I suspect you have a software problem. What apps are using all your power? Can you configure those apps to use less?
Or maybe you’re just too heavy of a user for your phone. The iPhone 13 Mini battery is about 10% larger and the CPU also uses less power. And larger iPhones are even better again.
Perhaps you should upgrade? Or you could buy Magsafe battery pack (the Apple one is better than third party ones - better software integration causes the phone to use less power while it’s connected to the battery, which allows the battery to be smaller/lighter for the same benefit).
I agree with Magsafe Battery Pack. It’s a lifesaver for me especially when I’m out the whole day. Another thing with Magsafe pack is you don’t have to plug your phone anymore. Just charge the pack once it’s empty then put it back of your phone again whenever you need it
There isn’t a specific app with suspicious battery drain. Mostly it’s just Safari with considerable screen on time, which correlates with my actual observed usage. I think you’re right that for my use case, I’d ideally want a bigger battery. And if Apple ever makes a new Mini with a much improved battery, I’ll be first in line!
I’ll check out the MagSafe battery, thanks.
I replaced the battery in my iPhone 6s+ when the phone was a few years old. It was like getting a new phone. I kept it as my daily until the 12 came out. The 6 still works fine, I use it for drone flights.
It’s worth it if you plan to keep your phone a few more years and notice either diminished life or performance.
Batteries are weird. Once they get into the 80s when it comes to maximum battery health/capacity they need to be replaced.
I had an older iPhone 8 battery replaced at a battery shop near me before I sold it and it allowed me to ask for another price. I’ve got an “older” iPhone 12 that I gave to my mom and I’m planning on passing it down to my little brother this year but before I do I’ll probably have the battery replaced. But this time I’ll have Apple do it. It’s possible to do it myself but the price to effort ratio isn’t there, especially since I care about keeping the water resistance.
Changing your battery will add significantly to your phone’s life. I usually have the battery on my phones replaced at least once in its lifetime.
I use an iPhone 8 Plus and replaced the battery twice at around 79%. The first was cheap—$29, I think, because Apple was caught throttling performance unbeknownst to users, so they had to make it cheap. The second upgrade was $49. Both def well worth it because performance & battery life were noticeably boosted, the phone still rocks, and it beats the hell out of having to buy a $1000+ every few years.
I did a battery swap on a four year old iPhone 11 Pro that did not make it through the day sometimes, despite battery health at 88%.
This did fix it, the phone feels like new. Did the swap at an Apple store, walk-in with appointment and wait two hours.
The battery health percentage is not an accurate health measure. My battery was done, even with showing 88%. The Genius guy told me the number of charging cycles is relevant as well, and he recommends a swap after 750 cycles. Mine was at around 800 cycles.
All in all: recommended.
Good info about the battery cycles. Just checked mine and I’m sitting at 676 with 88.5% capacity as reported by CoconutBattery.
How do you see the number of cycles?
It’s also in the iPhone Analytics in settings app. You can Google it and there is a Siri Shortcut to easily find the cycle count.
I got a replacement just short of 2 years and it feels like I just got the latest model. I have an iPhone 13 and it feels like I got a little bump even though I’m just back at where I started.
I have a 12, and I’m at 85% health. Don’t know the cycle count though. I plan get a new 15 later this year, replace the battery on the 12, and hand it down to another family member.
Even if it’s prolongs just a year of life to the phone it’s really worth it. I got my XS battery replaced 1-1.5 years ago and I’m planning to upgrade this year. It went from charging 1-2 times during the day + at night to lasting full day almost every day.
I have replaced it myself when it hit 82%. The difference was quite noticeable and definitely worth it. I use my phone lightly (phone calls + messaging), thus it would last around 1 and half a day. Now it easily lasts almost two full days without recharging! 12 mini is still a beast and I personally love it a lot due to its size and performance capabilities :D
Nevertheless, I’ve ordered the part on my own and would not recommend it if you have never opened phones before
Yes, and it works.
I would only replace it when the phone’s battery degrades such that performance becomes limited, unless you really need that extra juice during the day.
Yes, and yes. I did this with an iphone 8, I think, which basically gave it a few more years of functionality before the advances to cameras and processors became too great to ignore. I used a kit from iFixit which was pretty easy to use.
FYI: I think the way to gauge your battery is to look up the number of charging cycles it has had. If it’s over 1,000, that battery is past its operational lifetime.
I’m currently sitting on a 75% iPhone 7. Gonna run this sucka into the ground! Phone is solid outside of having to live within arms reach of a charger.
