Apple’s eagerly awaited new iPhone operating system, iOS 18.3, brings important security fixes to protect your phone against hackers.
It also includes some much-needed improvements to parts of Apple Intelligence – Apple’s fancy suite of AI features – including notification summaries and Visual Intelligence.
However, some tech enthusiasts have been left disappointed as they complain that the update is ruining their battery life.
On X, formerly Twitter, one furious iPhone user wrote: ‘Battery life sucks in the iOS 18.3 update.’
Another commenter wrote: ‘I was forced to update to iOS 18.3 because of the many bugs I’m facing.
‘I hoped they were fixed! No!! And the battery is now dying so fast!’
A third simply wrote: ‘ios 18.3 Battery Killer so Upset with Update.’
So, if you’re among those affected, here’s what you can do if it feels like your battery is draining faster.
Apple’s release of iOS 18.3 brought new features and vital security fixes for the iPhone, but some users have complained that the update has ruined their battery life (file photo)
On X, formerly Twitter, iPhone users vented that their smartphone’s battery had become significantly worse after installing the update
One commenter complained that iOS 18.3 had not fixed the bugs they faced and that their battery was dying quicker than usual
Following iOS updates, iPhone users often report experiencing significantly higher levels of battery drain.
This means that the device needs to be plugged into power and charged up more frequently than it would otherwise.
This often happens after an iOS update because of the intensive background recalibration tasks which use up a lot of extra power.
On X, one Apple fan wrote: ‘iPhone 15 Pro’s last update made my battery life go from lasting 24 hours to less than 10 hours immediately after the update.’
Another added: ‘iOS is getting worse and worse. It’s so buggy, text input is slow, animations are behaving weird, battery draining faster than ever!’
‘First day after iOS 18.3 update on my iPhone 16 Pro Max and battery life is definitely worse, hopefully it stabilises over time,’ added one Apple fan.
One commenter joked: ‘Upgrade to iOS 18.3: Because your phone clearly needed another reason to overheat. Featuring groundbreaking bugs and revolutionary battery drainage.’
While one angry commenter simply wrote: ‘iOS 18.3 have completely and utterly ****** up my iPhone. Cool great.’
One commenter wrote that their iPhone 16 Pro Max was showing decreased battery life in the days after installing iOS 18.3
One user joked that iOS 1.3 featured ‘groundbreaking bugs and revolutionary battery drainage’
One furious commenter complained that the update had ‘completely and utterly’ ruined their iPhone
However, not all iPhone users have had a bad experience with the recent update.
One commenter even said: ‘Battery life has also been noticeably much better compared to all previous versions of iOS 18 so far.’
If you are one of the iPhone users who has found their battery draining faster than normal, the main thing to do is be patient.
Increased battery drain is common after a big iOS update so any changes should be temporary.
Sometimes it can take hours and even days for software changes to finalise, which means that battery health can plummet or fluctuate.
‘If you notice that your battery life has decreased after updating your iPhone, wait a few days and then check again,’ Apple says.
‘Even though you can use your iPhone immediately after an update, certain tasks related to the update continue in the background and might affect battery life and thermal performance.’
However, if issues last for longer, it may be a good idea to check your phone battery’s maximum capacity, located in the Battery tab in Settings.
However, not all iPhone users reported experiencing issues. One commenter even said that their battery had become ‘noticeably much better’
If you are experiencing increased battery drain, this is likely to be a temporary issue caused by the ongoing installation and recalibration tasks going on in the background. Simply waiting should be enough to restore full functionality (file photo)
If you are feeling put off by the reports of battery drain, it is important to remember that iOS 18.3 contains some critical security fixes. iOS 18 is notable for the inclusion of Apple Intelligence, its suite of AI features
An iPhone’s capacity to hold charge decreases as the battery chemically ages, which may result in fewer hours of usage and worse performance between charges.
If your battery needs replacing, an ‘important battery message’ will pop up indicating that its health has significantly degraded.
Users should also check if the Wi-Fi Assist setting is switched on, which keeps devices connected to the internet when the Wi-Fi connection is poor but can drain the battery too.
If you are feeling put off by the reports of battery drain, it is important to remember that iOS 18.3 contains some critical security fixes.
Those security updates include more than 20 patches to vulnerabilities which had been detected in previous versions of iOS.
Apple says that one of these issues has already been used by hackers to gain control of some user’s phones.
Updating your phone promptly to the latest software will ensure that you stay safe from hackers.
