Reading the charge cycles on an iPhone is a useful way to assess the health and lifespan of the battery. Since the battery is one of the most vulnerable elements in a smartphone, knowing how often the battery has been charged can provide crucial information about its state of wear.
What are charging cycles and what is important?
Understanding the charging cycles of an iPhone battery is essential to assessing the battery’s lifespan and health. A charge cycle refers to the process of taking the battery from a fully discharged state to a fully charged state. It is a widespread myth that the battery has to be completely drained and then recharged for a complete cycle. In reality, however, partial charges accumulate over time to form a complete charging cycle, as CHIP reports.
This principle is reflected in everyday use, where, for example, charging an iPhone from 50 percent to 100 percent is considered half a charge cycle. If the device is charged again from 50 percent to 100 percent the following day, this process adds up to a complete cycle, as it goes on to say. This cumulative concept of charging cycles takes into account the properties of modern lithium-ion batteries used in iPhones, which do not have a so-called memory effect. The memory effect, which occurred in older battery types, describes the loss of capacity that occurs when batteries are not regularly completely discharged and recharged, as GIGA explains.
The relevance of understanding charge cycles comes from their direct connection to the overall health and lifespan of the battery. Each charge cycle contributes a small amount of battery capacity loss, and over time this loss can become noticeable, especially after several hundred cycles, Apple reported in a blog post. This results in a reduction in overall battery life.
Apple also emphasizes that the capacity of the iPhone batteries is usually still around 80 percent of its original capacity after around 400 to 500 complete charging cycles. When the battery reaches 1000 charge cycles, it is often recommended to consider replacing the battery. This point is an important indicator that the battery may no longer be performing optimally and a change might make sense to ensure the best possible functionality of the iPhone, as they say. But how can you read the charging cycles on the iPhone?
This is how you can read the charging cycles on the iPhone
In order to read the number of charging cycles of an iPhone, it is first necessary to provide access to the relevant analysis data, according to GIGA. This process begins in the iPhone’s Settings app, where you need to enable the “Share iPhone analytics” option in the “Analysis & Improvements” section of the privacy settings, as it goes on. This activation initiates the collection of specific data about iPhone usage and health, including battery charge cycles. After this feature is activated, the system needs approximately 24 hours to collect the data and prepare it for access, GIGA continued.
The collected data on the battery status can be viewed the following day. To access this information, return to the Settings app, navigate to the Privacy section again, and then select Analytics & Improvements. Here you’ll find the Analytics Data section, which lists numerous files containing detailed information about various aspects of iPhone usage. Of particular interest among these files are those that begin with “log-aggregated” or a date label such as “Analytics-XXXX-XX-XX,” as GIGA reports. In these files there is an entry called “batterycyclecount”, which indicates the total number of charging cycles the iPhone has completed so far.
For users who prefer a different approach, there is the option of determining the charging cycles using a computer. This can be achieved through special software such as iBackupBot, it goes on to say. Once the iPhone is connected to the computer via a USB cable and recognized by the software, the “More Information” section reveals various details about the iPhone’s battery. This includes not only the number of charging cycles, but also information about the battery capacity originally intended by Apple and the current maximum capacity of the battery, according to GIGA.
In addition to these methods, there are also third-party apps such as “Battery Life Pro” or “Battery HD+” that offer comparable insights into the number of charge cycles the iPhone battery has, according to cellularnews.com. Such apps record the battery charging history and present the number of charging cycles completed. When using such apps, however, it should be noted that the accuracy of the data displayed may vary, as it concludes.
Finally, the question remains: How can you optimize the lifespan of the battery?
Optimize battery life
Optimizing battery life in iPhones can be achieved through a comprehensive approach that takes into account both charging behavior and overall usage of the device, Apple reports.
A key function in this context is “optimized battery charging”, which comes with iOS 13 was introduced. This feature learns the user’s individual charging habits and is designed to delay charging after reaching 80 percent charge if it predicts that the device will be connected to the charger for an extended period of time, Apple reports. This adjustment minimizes battery wear and tear, which has a positive effect on battery life. This function is activated by default, but can be individually configured in the iPhone’s settings, as it goes on to say.
Additionally, avoiding extreme temperatures plays an essential role in iPhone battery health. In particular, high temperatures above 35 °C can negatively affect battery performance and lifespan, Apple continues. The situation is similar at very low temperatures, although the reduction in battery life is usually only temporary and returns to normal as soon as the device is back in a moderate temperature range.
Another important aspect according to Apple is the management of apps and background updates. Apps that consume a lot of energy can be identified in the battery settings and, if necessary, uninstalled. There is also the option to disable or limit background updates for certain apps to reduce energy consumption, as further emphasized.
Apple also reports that reducing notifications and disabling automatic downloads and app updates helps conserve battery life. Activating the display too frequently due to notifications or background downloads can unnecessarily increase energy consumption.
On devices with OLED displays, dark mode can help save energy because dark screen elements use less energy. Additionally, adjusting the screen brightness, either manually or by activating the automatic brightness setting, helps extend battery life.
Finally, regularly updating the iOS operating system is an important factor for battery health. Apple continually makes optimizations and improvements aimed, among other things, at improving the energy efficiency of the operating system and the applications running on it.
D. Maier / editorial team finanzen.net