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AirPods Max Severe Battery Drain
- Thread starter VL_424
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Definitely seems to be the case for me, excuse the pun.
It’s a relief because I really like them, yet for a moment back there I was vacillating between seeking a replacement (and waiting until February), or throwing my hands up in a huff and returning them altogether.
Tldr: still experiencing drain after unpair/factory reset? - try not using the case.
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Another night, another test. They were fully charged last night and I used them for about two hours watching a movie on the Apple TV. When I put them in the smart case the battery level was at 95%. Today, 11 hours later, I took them out of the case… battery level 33%. This does not seem very smart. Again: firmware 3C16 and I did a hard reset yesterday.
Even if this (probably) will be fixed with a future firmware update… a €629 pair of headphones should not have these kind of serious and unexpected issues.
Even if this (probably) will be fixed with a future firmware update… a €629 pair of headphones should not have these kind of serious and unexpected issues.
If it is the case causing the drain then it will be interesting to see if the problem is repeated with the third-party smart cases that people are ordering
But completely unneeded and unnecessary. You shouldn’t have to do this. And you’re also discount and the fact that maybe you want to use other Bluetooth devices that you then now just turned off
I reset fixed it. But a pattern in its use triggers the bug again. We are tryin to figure out what is that pattern of use. I personally think is related to using them with several apple devices , especially the Apple TV 4K or MacBook.
If you reset it, and only use it with you iPhone you shouldn’t have the problem.
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Apple should allow you to turn off your AirPods Max power completely by holding down the Digital Crown for 15 seconds. I hope they add that with a firmware update soon.
the simple fix is: they disconnect after 5 minutes. they turn off after 1-2 hours. not this 72 hour 18 hour nonsense. case or no case.
Interesting.
Funnily enough, I havent had any connection dropouts, or switching issues. In this regard, they’ve worked perfectly. iPhone, iPad*, Apple TV 4K. Can’t speak for MacBooks, never used it with my old MBP. I do recall various AirPods problems in the past when using with my Mac, so much so I gave up. Bluetooth was always flakey full stop, 2013 MBP.
As said previously in this thread, experienced three drains. Been fine for a week now, since 3rd forget/factory reset, now using with iPhone, iPad, ATV4K.
*I have a second travel iPad which I disable BT on when in the house. Don’t know if this “solved” my issue or not, but I’m keeping it off.
Funnily enough, I havent had any connection dropouts, or switching issues. In this regard, they’ve worked perfectly. iPhone, iPad*, Apple TV 4K. Can’t speak for MacBooks, never used it with my old MBP. I do recall various AirPods problems in the past when using with my Mac, so much so I gave up. Bluetooth was always flakey full stop, 2013 MBP.
As said previously in this thread, experienced three drains. Been fine for a week now, since 3rd forget/factory reset, now using with iPhone, iPad, ATV4K.
*I have a second travel iPad which I disable BT on when in the house. Don’t know if this “solved” my issue or not, but I’m keeping it off.
I haven't seen or read much about what defines "stationary" when out of the case (referring to Apple's support article). So, the software is monitoring the accelerometer I assume for this. When my Apple Watch is on its charger on my nightstand it is very sensitive and wakes up with the lightest of taps anywhere on my night stand. So, if my APM are on the same nightstand unplugged and out of the case, are they waking up more than they should throughout the night thereby not staying in low power mode and then draining fast? For when the APM are in the case, Apple's support article doesn't say anything about being stationary so I assume the case turns off the accelerometer in addition to Bluetooth, which is good to ensure it goes into low power mode. So, leaving the APM sitting out of the case, such as on a headphone stand or loose on a table, needs to make the APM "stationary" enough to make it go into low power mode after 5 mins?
Interesting theory. I think it affects. Maybe that one some night I have a battery drain of 5-6 %, because I opened and closed the drawer where they are kept, while other nights only 1-3%.
They are definitely buggy.
update: put them in the case at 98% battery. 2 days later with no use, 1% battery left. this is a joke. $550? lmao wtf is this
We should all call apple support to push for a fix firmware.
I think in the mean time, the temporary solution is a factory reset before you put them away and not going to use them. So day next time they keep the battery.
I think in the mean time, the temporary solution is a factory reset before you put them away and not going to use them. So day next time they keep the battery.
i agree, the only way to fix this is to get their attention. without the battery issue these are virtually a perfect, expensive product. the good thing is that with software this can all be fixed, the problem is, it's Apple lmao. look how they handled the butterfly keyboard
Has the possibility of false battery readings been eliminated?
I ask because the AirPods Pro have had fluctuations in battery readings on the odd occasion for a while now - both will be on 80%, then one suddenly drops to 15% whilst the other is still around 80%, which is the correct reading.
If you see a drop, try switching to another IOS device & double check the battery there.
Also cross check that with the battery widget & ask Siri what the battery level is on multiple devices.
Also, keep using them when they’re at “1%” & see if they drain immediately or if they continue to work for a while.
I ask because the AirPods Pro have had fluctuations in battery readings on the odd occasion for a while now - both will be on 80%, then one suddenly drops to 15% whilst the other is still around 80%, which is the correct reading.
If you see a drop, try switching to another IOS device & double check the battery there.
Also cross check that with the battery widget & ask Siri what the battery level is on multiple devices.
Also, keep using them when they’re at “1%” & see if they drain immediately or if they continue to work for a while.
Well in my case, I turned them on in the morning (took out of case) and they said 1% and then I tried to use them and they died after like 2 minutes. So I suppose it wasn't a false battery reading.
I did… and they wanted to schedule a call with a genius. I feared spending hours of testing and figured out this is Apple's job, not mine. Also the return date for my AirPods Max purchase was about to expire… so UPS picked them up earlier today. I included a note though, with my battery draining experiences.
So I'm back using the Bose QC 35 II when I want noice cancelling and an olde Sennheiser HD 590 for my wired music consumption.
I have not experienced the battery issue with my APM. I have, however, had situations where they would not come on at all (had to plug them in for about 30 seconds, then they kicked over - still showing 95+% charge). I did the full reset (hold both buttons until the amber light, and then until the white light pulsates) and haven’t had any issues since. I don’t use the included case, so any issues that may have caused I seemed to have avoided.
Standby battery seems to be strong for me with these; actual usage battery leaves a bit to be desired, compared to some of my other wireless headphones, though.
Standby battery seems to be strong for me with these; actual usage battery leaves a bit to be desired, compared to some of my other wireless headphones, though.
I gotta say that subjectively there was no drain with the earlier version of the OS, which they shipped with. However, with the new one I see that they lose about 10% a day while in the case.
Also, yesterday I finally hit 1% and wanted to drain them completely, but after 35-40 mins they were still playing. So I couldn’t fully drain them. There are clearly some software bugs happening with them.
Also, yesterday I finally hit 1% and wanted to drain them completely, but after 35-40 mins they were still playing. So I couldn’t fully drain them. There are clearly some software bugs happening with them.
Ahh there you go - some evidence of misleading battery readings perhaps?
What I have found is that the battery display on my MacBook only updates when the APM are used again... otherwise it will keep showing an old reading... iOS devices are updated right away when showing connected. That fooled me in believing the APM suffered from drain, while in reality they did not.