back to article iOS upgrade swells iPhone battery-suckage grief

If you've experienced runaway battery suckage on your brand-spanking-new iPhone 4S, you won't be alone if you're still cursing your Cupertian smartphone after updating to Apple's supposed battery-fixing iOS 5.0.1. Apple admitted battery-life problems with the iPhone 4S and the new iOS 5 earlier this month, and released the iOS …

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  1. Test Man
    Stop

    Battery problems? Really?

    I'd go so far as to say that a lot of the complaints' assertions are completely subjective - they get update that is supposedly better with regards to the battery so they use it more, then act surprised when their battery is caned.

    1. Gordon 10

      Indeed

      5.01 has barely been out for a day at time of writing - how many of these muppets have actually tested it long enough to prove its worse?

      1. hplasm
        Happy

        By 'Muppets'....

        You mean iPhone owners, I take it?

      2. D@v3
        FAIL

        testing

        Upgraded to 5.0.1 on friday, charged phone saturday night. sent maybe 10 text messages on sunday, didn't use for anything else, had to charge again last night as charge had dropped to around 25%.

        I don't really think much more testing is needed.

    2. Tchou
      Paris Hilton

      Wow...

      Can't you see you're making this up to jutify YOUR choices, as a pure Apple puppet?

      Paris icon, it's getting that low.

    3. Geoff Campbell Silver badge
      FAIL

      Yes, of course.

      After all, it's not likely that Apple would get something wrong, is it?

      GJC

  2. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Hmm

    No problems for me!

  3. s. pam Silver badge
    Paris Hilton

    What a giant cluster fuck

    My used to be very happy iPhone4 is NOW eating 13% battery every fucking HOUR vs the 5% per hour it was sucking down before 5.0.1

    What's even more fucking galling is my ipad2 with 3G and the same fucking settings and network connection eats less than 1% every few hours,

    Fone fuckage I'm really not impressed with. Hookers in Hamburg or Amsterdam don't suck this much as quickly...

    Where the hell is Paris?

    1. LarsG

      Siri, Siri....

      Siri, why is my battery keep going flat?

      Siri, Siri, SIRI, SIIIIIIIIRRRRRRIIIIIIII!

      OH no my battery is flat......

      Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

      The cry of the Apple owner.

      1. Thomas 4
        IT Angle

        "Open the pod bay doors, Hal."

        "I'm afraid I can't do that, Dave."

        "Why, have you got some sort of hidden mission objective that results in the termination of all the humans on board?"

        "No. You upgraded me to iOS 5.0.1 and now I don't even have enough battery life to continue talk-"

        1. Basic

          Daisy, Daisy

          'nuf said

  4. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    It wouldn't be more expensive for Apple

    ...Because in the end they have a tendency not to care at all about certain customer rights.

    I don't know how things are going in other countries but in the Netherlands its demanded by law that people who buy an electronic device such as an iMac or iPhone are entitled to 2 years of warranty.

    There is however one company who obviously doesn't give a damn about the law and sells its stuff with 1 year worth of warranty. If you want more you'll just have to pay up for "enhanced warranty". Something which is totally in violation with Dutch law. This has been known for years now, and only recently did a Dutch consumer TV program report about this through usage of hidden camera's and the likes. The result is quite shocking to say the least.

    The impact even went so far that one employee apparently got tracked down and fired. Only because he mentioned (unrecognizable before the hidden camera) that the customer was right about being entitled to 2 years worth of warranty but that the one year was an "Apple policy" so they couldn't help her.

    The obvious problem here is simple: being right is nowadays something totally different from getting your rights acknowledged. If you have a defective iMac for example and Apple refuses to help you I guess you could take it before a court. But at what costs? For the price that will cost you you can easily get yourself a new PC. So people don't bother...

    It wouldn't surprise me if this end in the same way as the antenna issue; "Consumers are dumb and only need to change the way in which they operate their phone".

    Needless to say, but as long as stories like these continue to surface time and time again then I'm really not in the very least tempted to try out any Apple hardware.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Cool story, bro

    2. FutureShock999

      The law doesn't make sense....

      As someone who works and lives abroad constantly, I can say that one thing I have noticed about Apple is that they are one of the most consistent tech companies when it comes to pricing their products internationally. Sure, Apple stuff in the UK costs more than in the US, but VAT is 20%, and the cost of doing business is higher in the UK. So Apple charges 20%-30% more. But companies like HP charge 50% more, and sometimes even lower the product's specifications for the non-US market (like HP's Envy laptop screens having 60% the resolution in the UK market, but costing way more than the US).

      If Apple were to honour the whims of every country that wanted to pass an extended warranty, it would throw their international pricing way out of alignment - their product prices in the Netherlands would suddenly have to be higher than in, say, France, to the point where people would simply buy their Apple products from Amazon.fr and have them shipped. And yet Apple (unlike many vendors) honours warranties internationally, meaning that a French-bought iPad would still get covered by whatever whimsical warranty the Netherlands passed...

      You see the problem here, don't you? There is no way for Apple to be fair to it's local customers with pricing, be fair to local stores selling their products, of predicting the actual warranty support costs, and honouring a government decreed warranty periods. No one course of action can accomplish all of these things.

      When Apple brought their computers to market, the industry standard warranty for all computer products was 90-days. Steve Jobs personally ruled that it should be raised to 1 year for all Apple products, no matter how much it cost, or what it did to their pricing. For the government of the Netherlands to unilaterally decided that, lo and behold, we can mandate any warranty we want, is basically nonsensical - because it ignores the fact that Dutch stores will be forced to sell at higher prices than their close neighbours, and will lose business to the large international sellers like Amazon. And probably close more local stores and shops. Hardly the outcome that people really want, I think.

      1. Anomalous Cowturd
        WTF?

        Re: The law doesn't make sense....

        EC Directive 99/44/EC states that all consumer items sold within the EEA "should" come with a two year warranty. Good for the Dutch, (and most of the rest of Europe,) for passing this into local law!

        Shame the U.K. hasn't quite got round to it yet... Still, it's only been twelve years...

        Heaven forbid, it may damage our thriving "extended warranty" scam artists ^W^W businesses...

      2. Stacy
        WTF?

        Bloody hell! You work for Apple don't you?

        For the amount of money an apple gadget costs I would expect it to last me a lot longer than the two years mandated by the Dutch goverment! I was quite happy when they brought that it, and remember Apple being on the consumer programs because of their attitude.

        It's unreal that any private person would seriously say 'No, please, I want LESS warrenty and protection not MORE! Let me give my money to Apple releatedly - after all it's only fair!' Wow.

        Reading riddiculous statements from Apple owners is really making me think that I made a mistake buying the MB Pro I got in the summer. The kit sucks (no more than windows kit of the same cost, but certainly no less) and I get lumbered in the same category as people like you!

      3. Basic
        Terminator

        I see your point but...

        I can see your point and understand that it's a difficult situation but the bottom line is that Apple must comply with the law. If that means that local vendors are disadvantaged because apple prices the product higher to include the extended warranty, that's a problem between the vendors and the law makers.

        Apple can't just decide to ignore a law simply because it's inconvenient.

    3. Prag Fest
      Stop

      Say what?

      What on earth are you rambling on about? The issue here is a bug in iOS, which they have acknowledged and attempted to resolve quickly. What does that have to do with warranty and consumer rights??

      And for the record, I did once have a faulty iMac. Apple customer services were in a different league to any other tech company I have dealt with (Dell, HP etc). They couldn't have been more helpful and apologetic, sent me a replacement next day UPS without any sort of argument and gave me £200 as a good will gesture.

      Facts eh? Who needs 'em.

      1. Stoneshop
        FAIL

        @PragFest

        The key phrase regarding the two-year EU warranty requirement is "Fit for use". Whether that's hardware, software, firmware or whateverware doesn't matter.

        And one anecdote (yours) does not a trend make.

    4. I_am_Chris

      Not in the UK

      Strangely, here in the UK, the dept store John Lewis automatically gives you 2 years warranty on all electrical goods. Including Macs.

      Plus the sale of goods act, puts no time limit on when you can return faulty goods.

      There doesn't seem to be an issue here.

      1. N2
        Thumb Up

        John Lewis

        Recognise the EU directive regarding the sale of consumer goods

    5. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      @ShelLuser

      Apple doesn't have any retail stores in the Netherlands so I'm wondering what use a hidden camera would be.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        FAIL

        It has loads. Use the inter webs and be educated.

      2. Stacy
        Thumb Down

        They have lots of official partner stores - complete with Genius bars etx, and are currently destroying momumental building in Amsterdam to have a full blown Apple store.

        A hidden camera would be very useful...

        http://www.apple.com/nl/buy/locator/map.html?tySearch=1&viaProduct=4&viaSpecial=-1&strCountry=NLD&lat=52.2336066&lng=5.1794274&gCountry=NL

  5. LarsG

    IPHONE 4.......

    iPhone 4 single core

    iPhone 4s dual core

    What's the fuss of course the battery life won't be as good.

    Probably all the upgraders complaining, and all the updaters moaning because the update on iOs was optimised for the new phone.

    1. DrXym

      Cores has nothing to do with it

      Cores aren't turned on unless they're being used and I assume the OS would take pains to avoid doing this except when the foreground app needed the CPU. So unless the iPhone has botched this setting the power draw shouldn't be especially different.

      It's far more likely that something in the background is needlessly waking up, polling or doing something which is making the device drain power more than it should.

      1. LarsG

        Desire v Sensation battery

        IPhone 4 v iPhone 4s

        Rest my case m'lord.

      2. Basic
        FAIL

        FAIL

        You're using logic in a "Flame Apple" thread. Nothing good will come of it.

        Now, where's my blowtorch...

    2. mego
      Thumb Down

      Cores make no difference in Android so..

      Unless it's shitty design, Apple should be at least equivalent.

  6. Ed 11

    Not my experience

    Whilst I freely admit it isn't statistically significant, my battery life is much improved. 60% when I got home from work compared to c. 40% pre update and that is with similar use.

  7. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    aha.. Ah ha, ahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

    Ooops.

    Fanbois, just don't bother, I know, it's childish but when you're looking in from the outside it is funny.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Thumb Up

      Right there with you!

      It's good to be childish sometimes. And it is more than funny...it's hilarious.

      It's also good to see Apple is still using its customers as BETA TESTERS! What a company...NOT!

  8. Ralthor

    Optional you say?

    "If every single person posting to this forum started calling Apple, then they would be forced to do something about this total screw up of a release."

    Yes they wiyld be forced to >null

    1. Ammaross Danan
      Coat

      Apple

      Yep. > /dev/null for them, just like The Reg's requests for comment or support for the AntennaGate issue.

    2. Dr. Ellen
      FAIL

      Nope -- they just would quit answering the phone.

      1. Field Marshal Von Krakenfart
        Joke

        "HI, thank you for calling Apple support, sorry we can't take your call at the moment as the phone battery has run out"

    3. Matt Bryant Silver badge
      Happy

      RE: Optional you say?

      LOL! I can guess what the answer is:

      APPLE: "Hello, this is Apple Support, how can I help you?"

      SHEEPLE: "Hey, my iPhone4S has awful battery life, what are you going to do about it?"

      APPLE: "We're very sorry to hear you are not completely happy with your Apple product, but we insist it must be the way you're using it."

      SHEEPLE: "What!?!"

      APPLE: "Don't worry, we have a fix for all the user-generated issues in the coming iPhone5, would you like to pre-order one today at full price?"

      SHEEPLE: "Baaaaaa! Of course!"

      1. Shane Orahilly
        Joke

        The traditional way to deal with consumer issues by telephone

        A: Hi, Apple Customer Support. How can we help each other?

        C: Uh, my 4S battery life seems to be dramatically short.

        A: OK Friend, we've had a lot of calls on this alleged issue, so we've set up a special "Battery Response Line" to deal with it. The number is 09000- IPHONE. Calls are charged at £1.50 a minute.

        C: Uh, can you transfer me through yourself?

        A: No Friend, that's against Company Policy. Good Day! >clik<

    4. TeeCee Gold badge
      Joke

      It wouldn't be a problem for them, here's why:

      Apply type: "Good morning and welcome to Apple support. How may I help you?"

      Mug punter: "I've upgraded my iPhone and now the battery doesn't last long enough to make a phone ca...........<CLICK>"

      Apply type: "This upgrade is working wonders for our call response times........"

  9. Henry Blackman

    How someone can, less than 24 hours later, that the battery life is 'worst' means that that they have, in fact, not tested the fix. I didn't have a big issue with my 4S battery life, however I have noticed that it is improved after a day of use as I have at least twice the remaining as I have in the past.

    1. Fred Flintstone Gold badge

      I think that's partly the problem

      It appears there is no definitive answer why certain iPhone 4S' suck (power) and others don't.

      If I were Apple I'd bring out a diagnostic App that could dump a state and compare the hungry ones with each other. I'd look at Apps running, settings of gadgetry such as location services (off), use of iCloud (not enabled, I like my data to remain in Europe), use of WiFi or not and if 3G is enabled (I almost doubled battery ice by switching that off when I only use email).

      I only care because the 4S appears a sensible upgrade to my 3GS, but I think I'll wait a little bit longer. There are HUGE advantages to not being first, and that's not just by not having to stand in a queue..

    2. Zaphod.Beeblebrox
      Trollface

      Pot, meet kettle.

      "How someone can, less than 24 hours later, that the battery life is 'improved' means that that they have, in fact, not tested the fix. "

      There, fixed that for you.

      1. MrCheese

        Really?

        You sure?

    3. Zippy the Pinhead

      It's not hard to figure out

      Upgrade to the new iOS and use the iPhone exactly the same.. if the battery doesn't last as long then the issue wasn't fixed.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Given that the complaint is that it's lasting much less than the 24 hours of many other smartphones, testing the fix takes a maximum of 24 hours - the faster the discharge, the faster you know it's still broke.

    4. This post has been deleted by its author

    5. BristolBachelor Gold badge
      FAIL

      @Henry

      On my phone I'd agree with you, but then the battery normally lasts for most of a week. These people are saying that the battery goes flat in less than a day. If my battery was going flat in less than a day, I think I would be able to tell in 24 hours.

  10. banjomike
    WTF?

    millions of iPhone 4S users are not complaining ...

    ... well, no, they probably feel honoured that the worlds most amazing hardware company is allowing them, mere users, to field-test the new iPhone beta before the release of the next version will will have different bugs.

  11. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Is there a basis for a false advertising claim in regards to the battery life?

  12. uhuznaa

    Get real

    Problems are problems, but a few thousands of several million users are just background noise. 0.05% of users complaining is nothing. I would expect it's awfully hard to get a yield of fully working batteries of 99.9% or so -- if you had and still have problems go to Apple and change your phone for a working one. Problem solved.

    (My iPhone 4 had no problems with 5.0 and still has none with 5.01. 75% battery after 11 hours standby and 2 hours active usage is totally fine in my book.)

    1. James O'Shea

      my brand new (I got it on release day, from Sprint, took 45 minutes) iPhone has 78% battery as I type this. I charged it to 100% last night before going to bed. I've made several calls today, checked the Map app a few times, checked weather (there's a chance that the temperature may fall below 18°C here in sunny South Florida tonight) and did a few other things. I figure that I can get at least two days on a charge, probably three, and if I cut back on some things, four.

      I do not see the problem. I really don't.

      1. jeffdyer

        why waste the dollars ??

        ... on a Jesus phone if that's all you use it for? seriously.

        1. Ted Treen
          Flame

          Plonker

          That's all I used it for on that particular 12hr period.

          If you made one small trip in your car over a 12hr period & I slated you for buying it would you consider that criticism valid?

          More knee-jerk crap from the "We must slate Apple & all their users" brigade.

          Some people hold different views to yours - live with it and (try to) stop being such a knob!

      2. MrCheese
        Facepalm

        Well of course not

        "my brand new (I got it on release day, from Sprint, took 45 minutes)"

        "checked weather (there's a chance that the temperature may fall below 18°C here in sunny South Florida tonight)"

        With comments like those your obviously too busy showing off to notice practical shortcomings like that

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Facepalm

      Just swap the battery in that case.

      Not that big of a deal?

    3. Ted Treen
      Thumb Up

      Same here...

      12 hours since switch-on, 4 or 5 calls, a few texts and maybe half-an-hour eradicating "Stupid Zombies", and my iPhone 4 shows 86%.

      I'm content with that.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Really?? Some low standards you have there Ted...

        1. Ted Treen
          Facepalm

          @AC 17:12

          Some people live in the real world - I'd recommend it to you...

  13. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Oh,

    "If every single person posting to this forum started calling Apple, then they would be forced to do something about this total screw up of a release."

    Presumably not using their IPhone. You never know if you might be cut off due to the battery failing.

    Hah!

  14. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    my battery is fine

    I got great battery life before the update and I continue to get great battery life now.

    Having said that, I've got a Samsung Galaxy S2 so that might have something to do with it...

    It's quite amusing that after years of accusing android of being a battery killer, iPhone users are struggling with battery life.

    1. Jason Terando
      Meh

      Yeah... Right... that patented Android Battery life

      Not an Apple fan, I like my Evo, but if there is anybody who should be shot for providing crap battery life it's HTC and Google. If I actually have the temerity to use the thing as an actual phone, I can almost hear the sound of the battery draining like air being left out of tires.

      In an office full of geeks, most of us with smartphones, I don't know of any of us who consider the battery life on any of them acceptable, except for the Blackberry users. Those damned smug Blackberry users with their little Blackberry Messenger network and their multi-day battery life...

      1. Dapprman

        Agree there

        Among the various issues that plagues the Gingerbread upgrade of the Desire Z is that battery life is much worse. In the 2.2.4 days I used to get back home (with an extended battery) with ~40-50% left, not I'm lucky if I have 20%.

        Perhaps in the Apple/Google war Apple have decided to copy Google on more than just the status bar ....

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        I'd agree

        HTC battery life is abysmal. I *can* squeeze up to four days out of it if I turn off background sync and unnecessary stuff like actually using any apps -- I might as well just go back to having a dumb phone with a battery life of damn near a fortnight,

  15. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Not (only) a hardware issue

    My iPhone 4 went from lasting two full days on average between charging under iOS4 to barely making it one full day under iOS5. That seems to imply that it isn't just a hardware issue (though there may be one with the iPhone 4s, I cant' say.)

    Along the same lines, 5.0.1 doesn't seem to have helped much, if at all - though it has only been one day so it will take somewhat longer to know for sure.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      my iphone4 before and after ios5 had pretty much the same battery life. Using it on and off to browse internets, listen to music all day at work and make 15 minutes of calls, about 2 and a half days if I push it.

      If I listen to tune in all day at work, about 9 hours battery life.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Nope, iOS 5.0.1 didn't help

      Battery life still horrible with iOS 5.0.1 on my iPhone 4. Disabling most of the System Services under Location Services helps a lot, but even then the battery doesn't last as long as under iOS 4.

  16. JDX Gold badge

    you could take it before a court. But at what costs?

    Nothing, small claims court is very straightforward.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Do you really think Apple would leave it at that when they were told wrong ?

      They'll appeal.

      And the more courts you pass the higher the costs and the stakes will become. It wouldn't be the first time where someone cancelled their complaint procedure simply because of the always present risk that they'd have to cough up all the costs.

    2. Jan 0 Silver badge

      Last time I used the Small Claims Court it was 50* quid to file the complaint. Is it really free now?

      (*I got it back when my complaint was upheld.)

  17. Andrew_b65
    Devil

    You're doing it wrong..

    It's the way you're charging it. Other users are not having battery issues. The people with problems are charging it the wrong way. iCustomers don't know what they want, they have to be told what they want. Apple have already made this clear.

    This is the battery life you were looking for, you can go about your business, move along.

  18. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Not had problems before and with 5.0.1 get even a few more % at the end of the day.

    Do hope Apple figures out the problem affecting the other users, sounds like it depends on the 3G radio environment. Nasty stuff.

  19. Slappy Frogg

    They "dismissed" Antennaegate because it affected a very small number of users who could be taken care of through standard warranty processes.

    1. M Gale

      It affected everyone who had the iPhone 4 and tried to use it as a phone. Maybe only a small number bothered to complain about it, but I'd reckon nearly everyone with an iPhone 4 has had to deal with "Network Error [dismiss/cancel]" every single time their fingers or palm wander over that special black band.

      Why do you think one of the things that every review site on the web is saying is that the 4S has had its antenna fixed (and that there may be Samsung patents involved, cue drama and lawsuits)?

  20. Ian Ferguson
    Gimp

    I give it a couple of weeks

    before Apple announce that, to their complete shock and horror, the iPhone has been reporting battery usage incorrectly. Update 5.0.2 will totally revamp the way battery usage is reported for all models of iPhone. But there isn't a problem with the hardware, oh no, of course not.

    Myself, I'll still buy another iPhone. Why? Even though the company is arrogant, the products are locked down and light on features, and the fans are twats, the iPhone is still the easiest smartphone around to use, and the most fun. I don't really care about anything else.

    1. MrCheese
      Boffin

      No difference

      Having a Galaxy S2 (mine) AND an iPhone 4 (work) I can tell you there's bugger all difference in UX and from a techie's perspective the iPhone rapidly becomes impossibly frustrating to use since Apple decreed their tiny little screen is all you need for smartphone and about every five minutes thereafter when find a feature doesn't in the best way possible because the control freaks have thrown a roadblock in the way.

  21. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Charge your phone more often.

    Not that big of a deal.

  22. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    alternatively it could be bullshit and just a bunch of folk jumping on a bandwagon?

    My buddy is very happy with the improvement in battery life he had moving from a 3gs to a 4s

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      You may be on to something. Probably one or two of the highly dedicated Android lovers from around here posting at least half of them.

      1. Arctic fox
        Trollface

        RE: "...........one or two of the highly dedicated Android lovers.......

        ...............from around here posting at least half of them."

        Posting accusations of FUD-posting in the form of AC-protected FUD? I do hope that was deliberate irony and not a complete failure to see the contradictions in what you wrote and the way you wrote it.

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Arctic Fox

          If both are possible (and true) how is it a contradiction? Seems someone needs to go back to logic primary school.

      2. MrCheese
        Thumb Down

        Fanbois

        Apple fanbois know Apple tactics best, right? ;-)

    2. Richard 12 Silver badge
      Boffin

      One should expect a significant improvement

      After all, he's going from a tired, well over 500 charge/discharge cycles battery (almost 1000 cycles if he got it near launch) to a brand-new sub-10 cycles battery.*

      If nothing else changed, that alone would give you around a 25% increase in battery life - these kinds of cell are generally rated for 80% capacity after 500 cycles.

      You'll get the same improvement if you swap the battery in any other smartphone after two or three years of heavy usage.

      If it doesn't, then something is quite badly wrong - either they've put a smaller battery in there, the phone is drawing more power, or the battery is faulty.

      My guess is that Apple made a mistake in handling multi-core in the low-power environment and either spin both all the time or fluffed concurrency.

      The issues on older phones may well be user colouring - someone's mentioned battery life so the user tests and finds that it doesn't last like it did when new, they've put this new firmware on it, ergo it's the new firmware.

      Or it could just be an old battery. Easy test - replace the battery. Oh yeah...

      (*Assuming he used it instead of, I dunno, putting it in a shrine and praying to it.)

  23. Arctic fox
    Coat

    I have to say I am rather surprised.

    The Apple forums indicate very strongly that whilst the problem is not hugely widespread amongst 4S owners it is not *quite* the vanishingly small percentage that one or two here are suggesting. Given that the iPhone has been the market leader on battery-life for quite some time (typically 10 - 15% more than comparable rivals, depending on whose tests you believe), I am very surprise that Cupertino missed this one - especially since precisely that aspect of the phone has been one of their major marketing points. Never mind, the next time an iPhone owner passes remarks about the battery-life of our Android phones..... :-P

    1. FutureShock999
      Boffin

      Don't think they "missed it"...

      For you to have asserted that Apple "missed it" indicates that it is a design flaw.

      Far, far more likely is that this is a supplier parts problem, either in the battery itself or the circuitry surrounding it. The kind of thing which their outsourcing vendor is not fully testing for, but the kind of thing that the old Apple (which owned all their own manufacturing) WOULD have been checking for.

      The small number of users experiencing problems (as a percentage), and the fact that it does not seem to be affected by a software fix in all cases, is highly indicative of a supplier parts fault. And there is no way for Apple to have seen that during design or testing, given that the parts supplied for testing where probably highly QAed by the suppliers.

      1. Arctic fox

        I think that they *have* "missed" something.

        Nowhere in my post did I say that it was necessarily a design flaw. I would have thought however, that a company as famously "particular" as Apple would have ensured that there was some form of random "batch-checking" of manufactured phones (independent of their "fabber") that gave them a reasonably reliable picture (statistically speaking) of what they could expect, such that they were working on a fix from the get-go? It does indeed surprise me that this appears to have caught Apple on the hop. They have after all built their reputation on the quality of their hardware, have they not? That some duff parts may have got into the supply-chain may very well be the explanation (or at least part of the explanation) for this. That however does not explain why this appears to have come as a big surprise to Apple.

      2. MrCheese
        FAIL

        Don't think it missed it? Depends what "it" is

        If "it" is their "superior" battery life or "exemplary" hardware quality then Apple have indeed, missed it.

        If you believe the marketing bilge then the massive price tag on Apple devices buys you a higher calibre of hardware, which shoddy battery components do not make.

  24. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Telecom veterans

    Apple are not

    1. FutureShock999
      Gimp

      They are now...

      Hard to remember, but they have been doing this for a long-ish time now. And have sold more phones than most other vendors.

      Conversely, you could buy an Alcatel mobile phone.. Alcatel have been in telecomms for decades, and have made most of the cellular network switching infrastructure that many of the telcos use. You can buy an Alcatel mobile for about £50, and it is barely worth even that. But boy, what experience...

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        long-ish compared to what?

        Motorola first handheld mobile phone: 1983

        Samsung first handheld mobile phone: 1988

        Apple first handheld mobile phone: 2007

      2. Richard 12 Silver badge

        Erm, Apple haven't really sold that many.

        They've a massive marketing presence, but they are actually still pretty small - less than 10% share of US mobile subscribers in Aug 2011 according to comScore, and that's an increase.

        Samsung (25%), LG (21%) and Motorola (14%) all have a bigger share.

        (Smartphones is a different matter - 27% Apple, compared to 44% Android.)

        That is from before the iPhone 4S launched, but I doubt it's really changed by much more than a percentage point either way - I'd be willing to bet that the vast majority of iPhone 4S owners were replacing a previous iPhone. They don't have a choice given the very high walls around the garden.

        That said, given recent events I wouldn't be surprised if a notable percentage of new iPhone 4S sales next year are to replace a Blackberry. When comparing walled gardens, most people choose the one that is not balanced on a pogo stick.

  25. Arctic fox

    It is to be hoped that in the event that it *is* duff components in *some* 4S phones.......

    ...........that the unlucky customers (however many/few there are) do not have to wait as long as American purchasers of defective first gen iPod nanos have had to - they are only now going to be compensated after a wait of five to six years (ironically enough the issue was faulty batteries -:P).

    http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/12/apple-to-replace-first-gen-ipod-nanos-in-the-us-due-to-faulty-ba/

    Apple are of course far from being the only manufacturer to have skeletons in their after-sales closet but given that their marketing lays such huge emphasis on the build-quality of their kit (and they charge accordingly) they must expect to "get some pepper" when issues like this arise.

  26. dssf

    Battery, circuitry

    Consider the circuitry of some tainted routers aimed at the US government. Consider the pissibiluty that backdoors in the phone are being probed by the users' government, or by black market/jackers testing data theft capabilities.

    Or, consider it possible that Apple is doing something, but lost control of an experiment. Or, consider that China may have rogue operatives who coerced the manufacturer to build in traps and such on the assumption that 60% of the rooted phones will escape scrutiny of the carriers, and maybe 25% of the backdoored phones will make their way into sensitive commercial and government concerns, and maybe the mics are on, or the cameras are on with the gyros, gps, and so on reporting info. If that is ever then true, imagine apple being forced to rep,ace those handsets AND return manufacturing to the USA. OTOH, the US intel operatives might be jealous and insist on covering up the matter so it can be further explored AND exploited if it is better than the current power trips foisted onto consumers worldwide.

  27. LarsG

    Have you noticed how.......

    The sound of all these big girls blouses are making a noise like the whine of a gearbox about to expire.

    Even those of us living miles from habitation are being disturbed at night by the

    Moaning

    Whining

    Crying

    Whinging

    Of the Apple-istas going on about the most important thing in their life, a battery.

    Please someone, take these sad lonely unfulfilled unimportant irrelevant people to a vet and have them put out of their misery. It would be a mercy.

  28. s. pam Silver badge
    Holmes

    I Think I may have found what's sucking like Paris in 5.0.1

    Turn off the Photo Sharing in iClud and your battery life stabilises like the iPhone4 was BEFORE 5.0.1.

    It appears it is constantly trying to sync, and turning it off my phone went from 13% drop/hour to less than 1%.

    Mail, Calendar, Contacts, etc are still syncing in iClud, it's the damn Photo Sync fucking the phone perhaps.

  29. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    People go out of their way to get the latest and greatest.....for what? bragging rights? It's common sense that you always wait to see how the product is evaluated by others before purchasing. I think AntennaGate would have at least taught them that.

  30. Identity
    Go

    And yet...

    Admittedly, my experience is with an iPod Touch, but I have noticed (to the extent possible in 24 hours) better battery life. Improvements can also be gained by:

    •Turning off bluetooth

    •Setting mail, contact and calendar updates to manual, or at least lengthening the time between updates

    •Set auto-lock to one minute

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      My car gets better MPG if I coast downhills and walk all journeys <3 miles.

      The problem is, what is the point of gaving a "feature rich" phone if you have to turn off those features.

      1. Identity

        True, but

        while your MPG rating is not based on coasting and walking, if you really need to squeeze every extra erg out of your gas/petrol, you can use those methods. Note that I got better battery life WITHOUT those measures,

  31. Stuart Duel
    Meh

    Or a software problem

    It could be some odd interaction between some Apps and the OS or perhaps Apps which need to be updated and should have been updated three updates ago that are causing the problem.

  32. Lamont Cranston

    "If every single person posting to this forum started calling Apple..."

    If only their phones worked.

  33. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Maybe

    I think Apple is too busy suing some company that uses Androids rather than fix little problems like this!

  34. DF118

    Wow, there are a lot of really hyper-defensive apple fans in here. You can be such a nasty bunch when you get going. Chill out guys.

  35. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    317 pages of complaints and growing exponentially!

    Apple's support forums are overwhelmed with the sheer volume of complaints.

    To complain to Apple directly go to http://www.apple.com/feedback/iphone.html

    Apple has started sending some folks a utility to try to figure out what's causing the debacle at the weekend so clearly they're aware.

    More complaints via the URL the better

  36. Zot

    I've heard that this was to do with Siri running and checking incoming audio whilst doing speech recognition all the time, listening out for the user to say 'Siri - make me a cup of tea' or whatever.

    Turn Siri off so that you can only get it when holding the button. Also delete all the tasks from memory by double clicking the button then touch and hold the icons to bring up the delete icon.

    What's potentially scary is that when speech recognition is on all the time, it could be converting the audio to text and sending it back to apple, basically transcribing everything being said in the room. But they wouldn't do that now would they. Would they? ; )

  37. Alan Denman

    I imagine they know why.....

    and there will never be a fix.

    IOS 5 lost 33% standby life. It is a feature so get used to it.

  38. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Phandroid Attack force

    I see the atyplical response from a Phandroid in an IOS related thread is in full swing here.

    Of course, it's not just an isolated bug that is highlighted by a vocal minority of upset geeks on an internet forum thread, it's actually a conspiracy by a multibillion dollar corporation to steal you money with substandard products by hypnotizing it's fans into religious frenzies!

    Android fantards really amuse me most of the time with their cliche riddled conspiracy theories. Jealous much?

    1. MrCheese
      Facepalm

      Don't make me laugh

      "...a conspiracy by a multibillion dollar corporation to steal you money with substandard products by hypnotizing it's fans into religious frenzies!"

      Fanboi: Fan of a products, blinded to to any all faults and critiques thereof

      Apple: Mulitbillion dollar company, marketing strategy based upon false claims of superiority and inclusion, ethereal and narcissistic dialogue and music used in advertising

      I'd say that Apple's strategy is built upon making the customer evangelise them rather than convincing them of the quality of the product, to make the customer feel they are part of a superior clique to the rest of us...I'd also say it worked on you

  39. Kernel
    FAIL

    Try to keep up please

    "Conversely, you could buy an Alcatel mobile phone.. Alcatel have been in telecomms for decades, and have made most of the cellular network switching infrastructure that many of the telcos use."

    No, the company you're thinking of is called Alcatel-Lucent, who haven't made cellphones for several years.

    Not to be confused with some unrelated Chinese company who bought the name and rights to make 'Alcatel' branded cell phones.

  40. JDX Gold badge

    Apple forums indicate not *quite* the small percentage that one or two here are suggesting

    There are now millions of devices running iOS5. What % of users reported an error?

    Oh - is this a 4S issue only, or 4 and 3GS too?

  41. Nameless Faceless Computer User

    Your problem is obvious

    Wait until 5.0.4. before upgrading. Why do so many people insist on beta testing Apple firmware? I'm still at ios 4 here.

  42. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Not me gov

    Perceptively it would be perfect but for the supplier and the user.

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