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I replaced the battery on my 12 mini a few months ago and went from not being able to get through the day to (usually) only having to charge it overnight

It was at 85% iirc

They broke the scratched up old screen during the replacement so they replaced that as well for free, it was like getting a brand new phone for around $100
 
Bought an iPhone 13 Mini brand new about 3.5 years ago when it came out. I remember the battery was really good. Last year I had to get a screen replacement on it due to green lines on it and had the screen replacement done at the Apple store. I recalled leaving it with them for a bit and coming back later on and picking it up. I had considered getting a battery replacement as well since I had my phone for 2.5 years. I recall the battery health was around 86%. I read you should get a new battery only when the battery is below 80%. Is that true or false? Do people here get it when above that?


Now it's been like 9 months later and my battery health is 84%. Is there a reason it only dropped 2% during this entire time? Now the thing is I recently used my iphone 13 mini a lot while outside and used it in low battery mode while using my data. So this could be watching YouTube videos or using Twitter for a few hours straight. I recalled after doing that for maybe 3 hours or so, the battery went to about 30%. Is that normal when using data? I know data uses a lot of battery compared to wifi and obviously compared to wifi off. Now I used it sparingly a bit for less than an hour total and once the battery was around 20% or so, battery drained real fast. Then once it came to around 11%, the phone turned off. I would power it on and it does but can't click on anything that opens and it would turn off and it would show 8% and then 5% etc. Back when I had my iphone new or say a year into it, I recalled it was only when the battery was like 3% or so when the phone would shut off. It didn't have these issues at like 11%.


So based on this information, should I get a new battery replacement? I already spent money last year replacing the screen. I didn't want to buy a new iphone because I did not want a big size iphone. I prefer the iPhone 13 mini size. I don't recall how much it was exactly but it was over $250 or so. Does that sound right? I googled the price now and it shows Apple charges $229 so including tax, it comes to around $250 or so right or more less? So I googled and the price for battery replacement is $89 so including tax is about $100 right? So should I do that now or wait till it's below 80% battery? Now if I don't use my phone much while on data and just use it on wifi, the battery last pretty good.


The thing is I want to be able to use my phone's data a lot and use it for hotspot for hours. So with my battery now, it's not that good right? What I did recall was when my phone was new or close to new and battery health was 100% or high 90 percent, when I used it as hotspot and tether internet to my laptop, it would drain about 13% per hour. So essentially I could use it for 7 hours as a hotspot or so which is very good. Now it's much less but haven't tested it.


My phone is 3.5 years old almost. I should be getting a battery replacement for it?

I would recommend that you get a new battery for your iphone 13 Mini.


richmlow
 
My understanding is that Apple only replaces batteries when they are below 80%. You have to do a third-party replacement if you want to replace it prior to that.
If I was remembering right, they only change battery under 80% if you are in AC+.
Otherwise you can change it, even in a Apple store, but you have to pay for it yourself🙂

But maybe I remembering it wrong.
 
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There is no rule that states 80% is the moment to change the battery.
Well, there is, somewhat.
If you want a genuine battery and proper(ish) service you’d need to go to Apple or their partners.
And while I don’t know about their partners, Apple themselves will not service a battery unless it reads 80% health or less.

Edit: apparently that’s only true if you have Apple Care Plus for that device, which is odd but well
 
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Well, there is, somewhat.
If you want a genuine battery and proper(ish) service you’d need to go to Apple or their partners.
And while I don’t know about their partners, Apple themselves will not service a battery unless it reads 80% health or less.
That’s a myth which is only true in relation to AC+.

If you’re willing to pay for the battery service, they’ll replace your battery no matter what the health is at. I went to 2 separate Apple stores for 3 different battery services (OGSE @ 92%, 6S @ 82% and 8 @ 84%) and they replaced my batteries with no questions asked.

I’ll be organising a battery service for my 13 as soon as the battery health reaches 86%.
 
Well, there is, somewhat.
If you want a genuine battery and proper(ish) service you’d need to go to Apple or their partners.
And while I don’t know about their partners, Apple themselves will not service a battery unless it reads 80% health or less.
This is only true for a battery replacement covered under warranty. There is no limit for a paid-out-of-warranty replacement.
 
Yea so others here say you can replace the battery if it's over 80%. I recall only if you want it free and you are in warranty that you can do it only if you are under 80% battery. My battery is around 84% and it is noticeably worst than it was years ago. Again, the screen seem to go out when on 5g data and it's at 10% battery. That didn't happen a while back.


So does everyone here agree should replace battery? I had the phone for 3.5 years already. Are there people here that still use their iPhone 13 mini or whichever iPhone and didn't replace battery after 3.5 years? It seems 2 years is when you should replace the battery? I think after 2 years, my battery was still like 88% or so and thus I didn't change it.


But it should get close to 80% in another 6 months right?
 
My battery is around 84% and it is noticeably worst than it was years ago.
So does everyone here agree should replace battery?

If it’s noticeably worse, it sounds like now is a good time to have it replaced. Some people may have batteries last longer, or even less, but if it doesn’t do what you need it to I’d recommend replacement.
 
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Well if it I don't get it replaced now, it won't be until like 6 months later at least. So it's still fine then at 84%? I am surprised it's stiil at 84% when I have this phone for 3.5 years almost?
 
Are you serious that Apple won't replace your battery unless it's under 80%? I don't think that is true? I am talking about paying for the battery replacement myself and not like my phone has a warranty and want battery replacement.

I don't think it's unusual for the phone to turn off while the battery is around 11%. I have an iPhone SE 1st generation that does that even at 20% battery or higher because it needs service and the battery is very old.
They will replace it at your request, and your cost.
 
Okay. Would you say it's worth it to replace it now at 84% battery? Or wait a bit until it gets to under 80%?

What I do notice is say when I'm outside and on data and turn on low battery mode at say 20% and I'm on data, the battery drains real fast. I notice when battery is at 11% or so and on data, it would then shut off. Previously a while back, I don't think it happened until battery is like 3%.

So you would replace battery now or a bit later?
 
Okay. Would you say it's worth it to replace it now at 84% battery? Or wait a bit until it gets to under 80%?

What I do notice is say when I'm outside and on data and turn on low battery mode at say 20% and I'm on data, the battery drains real fast. I notice when battery is at 11% or so and on data, it would then shut off. Previously a while back, I don't think it happened until battery is like 3%.

So you would replace battery now or a bit later?

Only you can be the judge of that Decision . . . if you are unable to tolerate the longevity of the battery-on-time, that may be rationale-enough.

If you have to sacrifice food, shelter or transportation to accomplish this Goal, I would suggest waiting until you can avoid negative-sum decision matrices.
 
Our local Apple store (in New Hampshire) refused to replace my wife's battery because it wasn't under 80%. It was very annoying, since it wasn't even under warranty, and we were willing to pay. The phone was literally shutting itself off whenever she went outside into the winter cold. We took it to an Apple store in Canada while on vacation, and they were more than happy to replace it. This was many years ago... I'm guessing this policy was aborted because it pissed so many people off.
 
Is that true with most people? I thought as long as you pay yourself and not in a warranty or anything, they would replace your battery for the regular cost?
 
Okay. Would you say it's worth it to replace it now at 84% battery? Or wait a bit until it gets to under 80%?

What I do notice is say when I'm outside and on data and turn on low battery mode at say 20% and I'm on data, the battery drains real fast. I notice when battery is at 11% or so and on data, it would then shut off. Previously a while back, I don't think it happened until battery is like 3%.

So you would replace battery now or a bit later?
Mine was 82% when I replaced it a couple of weeks ago- I'm getting more like 35%+ more battery life with the new battery.
 
This isn't true. I've paid for Apple to replace the batteries on several iPhones with battery health >80%. I just told them they weren't performing as well as they used to.
My iPhone 13 mini was running with lots of lag and the battery was failing. Performance was apparently optimised. Battery Health 84%.
I was tempted not to replace the battery because it was running so poorly. I had Apple replace the battery today and the OS is as snappy as it was when I first got it. There’s some degree of processor throttling even when they dont admit to it.
I can highly recommend getting Apple to replace the iPhone 13 mini battery.
 
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Is that true with most people? I thought as long as you pay yourself and not in a warranty or anything, they would replace your battery for the regular cost?
It isn't true with most people. I've had multiple batteries replaced by Apple over 80% at different locations. Under 80% only applies to warranty replacement not customer pay. Go to an Apple Store and get the battery replaced
 
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Okay. Would you say it's worth it to replace it now at 84% battery? Or wait a bit until it gets to under 80%?

What I do notice is say when I'm outside and on data and turn on low battery mode at say 20% and I'm on data, the battery drains real fast. I notice when battery is at 11% or so and on data, it would then shut off. Previously a while back, I don't think it happened until battery is like 3%.

So you would replace battery now or a bit later?
1. Don't use battery health as a symptom - use it as a tool to help diagnose real symptoms. For example, if you phone gets noticably lower battery life than it did a few months ago (with no change in typical usage) or if you fin it shuts off randomly with the battery far above 0%.
2. Do these symptoms matter to you? does it matter if you get to the end of the day with only 15% battery left rather than the 30% you used to get? If it does, there are far more affordable workarounds for these issues - can you do rapid top-ups over the day (e.g. at your desk at work/study, in the car)? Can you carry a small power bank to charge on the go (or, if you use a MagSafe/Qi2 power bank, in your pocket)? These aren't ideal, but a $30 power bank is a lot cheaper than a $100 battery replacement.
3. You mention that you want to use your phone for 5 years (with 1.5 years to go). What is your plan after that? It doesn't look like small 4-5" phones are going to come back, so it's likely that you will have to adapt to a larger phone in a year or so anyway. In this case, does it make sense to spend $100 on a new battery now if you will be changing your phone in a 12-18 months? I'd guess that the $100 for a new battery is around half of what the whole phone is worth. The alternative is to go with a 3rd party battery, but I believe this is always a lottery, unless you really trust a 3rd party store not to use junk batteries.

So, is it worth replaceing the batteries - only you can decide, based on whether you can live with/adapt to the symptoms of the current battery and what you see yourself doing when the 5 years you plan to own the iPhone for are up. If you are really averse to larger phones, don't like the idea of topping up over the day and $100 is not such a big deal, then go ahead and replace the battery. Otherwise, think about putting that $100 and the £200 or so your phone is worth towards a newer model.
 
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