Battery Health

The phone I am using daily is an iPhone 13 Pro Max, which has been with me for almost 3 years. At the same time, when I got mine, I also got an iPhone 13 for my wife.

Straight after purchase, I opted for AppleCare+ with the monthly payment option. Thanks to the recurring payments, my device is still covered under AppleCare+.

I am considering an upgrade later this year, possibly in September 2024, but I am not rushing into it. My phone is performing well for its age and is still in pristine condition, which is important for potential resale value. The only thing that is showing signs of age is the battery.

After over 33 months of daily use, I started noticing that the battery is not as good as it used to be. With the built-in Battery Health feature, I can see that it’s at 87% of design capacity. It’s not bad for its age.

However, after the same period with her iPhone 13, my wife began to notice that her phone needed to be plugged in much more often.

Recently, we even noticed that the battery surprisingly jumped from 59% to 61%, only to return to 59% shortly after.

This made me start thinking, so I quickly checked her battery health. From Settings > Battery > Battery Health & Charging, we can see that her health is at 80%.

It’s not a bad result after over 33 months, but also not great from the customer’s point of view, especially when you got AppleCare+ purchased.

According to AppleCare+ terms regarding the battery, you are entitled to have your battery replaced free of charge when it falls below 80%.

Exactly, it states “below” 80%, which currently you may think is not met, as the battery health in settings shows exactly 80%.

But what if that value is inaccurate?