If your iPhone battery is draining faster than it usually does, and you might suspect your Apple Watch is the reason, that would not be surprising. Since the device is connected to your phone throughout the whole day, it makes sense that it would fatten and drain the battery, but it is certainly not the only reason. Let me elaborate.
Does Apple Watch Drain iPhone Battery?
It is true that the Apple Watch drains my iPhone battery, but not to a great extent. You see, when these two devices are connected via Bluetooth or WiFi, they share data such as notifications, sync health data from the watch to the Health app on the phone, music controls, etc.
How this data is shared is what the battery drainage depends on. All versions since Bluetooth 4.0 use Bluetooth Low Energy technology, which consumes a very low level of battery.
Provided your iPhone and Apple Watch are both connected to the same WiFi network and the Bluetooth connection is weak, the data is shared using slightly more battery from the phone as compared to a Bluetooth connection. However, this is still lower than the battery consumed by devices connected over a cellular network.
Factors Affecting iPhone Battery When Paired with an Apple Watch
- The model of your Apple Watch and iPhone
Newer models of Apple Watch, like the Series 8, 9, or 10, are, of course, more battery-efficient than the older models.
The same goes for the version of the iPhone you’re connecting your Apple Watch to, especially if its battery health is below 80%. For example: an iPhone 12 would anyway have a compromised battery life, and an Apple Watch could be further straining its battery.
- The apps and features on your Apple Watch
Using features and apps that use a significant battery from your iPhone, such as Workouts, making cellular calls and sending messages, GPS, etc., could be causing your iPhone to drain faster when connected to an Apple Watch.
- Lots of background apps open
Not closing your apps on the Apple Watch can also be a reason that your iPhone’s battery is draining faster. If a background app refresh is enabled on the Apple Watch, it could be consuming extra power. Consider heading to the settings and turning it off.
5 Tips to Prevent Your Apple Watch from Draining Your iPhone’s Battery
Tip 1: Enable Bluetooth and WiFi
As I mentioned above, a Bluetooth connection between your iPhone and Apple Watch causes the least strain on your iPhone’s battery, a moderate strain over WiFi, followed by the most strain caused via cellular connectivity.
Ensuring your Bluetooth and WiFi are ‘ON’ will use the least amount of battery from your iPhone, resulting in a longer battery life.
Tip 2: Disable notifications and close unused apps
Now, the main reason we buy a smartwatch is for the notifications it mirrors and we don’t have to constantly check the phone. I’m not asking you not to use this feature at all, but do we really need all the notifications on our watch? I don’t think so. By heading to the Watch app on your iPhone, under Notifications, select which ones you want under ‘Mirror iPhone alerts from”.
Also, deleting unused apps on the Apple Watch and closing them by pressing the side button and using the digital crown to scroll through all open apps will save battery on your iPhone.
Tip 3: Disable ‘Always on’
When the ‘Always-On’ feature is enabled on your Apple Watch, it takes updates from your phone more often. And this further leads to more consumption of battery on your iPhone. Turn off this feature by heading to Watch app > Display & Brightness > and toggle off ‘Always-on’.
Tip 4: Update your software
Keeping your phone’s and watch’s software up to date could help preserve the load on either of the device’s batteries.
Tip 5: Unpair and reset your Apple Watch
In case these tips don’t do anything to help your phone’s battery, try unpairing the watch from your iPhone and reconnecting it. As a last resort, erase and reset your Apple Watch completely and then connect again to your iPhone.
Bonus tip: Turn off your WiFi and Bluetooth at night, even if you’re using your watch to track your sleep, the data will be synced in the morning and preserve the battery on both devices.
Wrap Up
If you’ve come across this article after the rumored “Apple Watch takes 30% more battery from your iPhone”, I hope I busted that myth today. While any two devices that share information would consume a part of each other’s batteries, it is not as significant.
For whatever reason, following the tips mentioned above will only do you good, battery issue or not. And if your Apple Watch is experiencing a faster-draining battery, follow these tips.
