Series 6 Battery Life - How long does your S6 last?

[Mercenary]

With AOD turned off, handoff mode turned off, raise to wake turned off, and a good number of apps turned off from background fresh. This is puzzling that I am already down to 96% and I took it off the charger at like 7:15 AM and it's 9:52 AM. I mostly just been sitting at my desk at work. What in the world is draining it so fast?

That’s a good loss. 2% per hour is really good. Maybe aod and everything you’ve turned off doesn’t drain the battery as much as you think.

I have everything on and get 40 hours standby. Which is way above the quoted time. Use the damn watch to it’s fullest.

 

[itsmilo]

I took mine off the charger at 9ish am this morning. It’s now at 58% by 2 am.

 

[bluegt]

Added more details on charging speed results in the first post. The latest test resulted in 30% in 30 minutes, slower than I had hoped.

 

[Eduardboon]

Day one

unboxed and set up the watch at 18:00 then had to go somewhere. I don’t know the battery percentage. Next day at 15:00 had to charge (includes sleep tracking).

day two:

charged fully at 10:00, usage for 32 hours (around 19:00 the next day).
no workouts or anything, but a few oxygen scans and ecg scans. Also used navigation on the phone, so that probably used up a bit of power as well. Had 50 percent for today and had to charge it at 15 for sleep tracking. Usage stat was at 4h usage 32 h standby. Didn’t take a photo, maybe next cycle

i guess it’s fine, my old S4 did the same with a 89 percent healthy battery.

settings:
44MM series 6 Aluminum GPS
Everything turned on except sound environment, that killed my series 4 battery so I left it off on the 6.

also have to mention that battery optimalisaties (the option that the watch learns your usage pattern so it won’t charge past 80 percent) is turned on as well

Edit: next morning after ten hours of sleep tracking I’m at 90 percent

edit2: now, 3,5 hours later im down to 77, which is around 3,7 percent an hour. Didnt do anything with the watch. 13 percent for 3,5 hours of standby.

usage is at 1h16m and standby at 14h2m. Usage after waking up was 30m. Havent used the watch at all, just checking time.

 

[edlex]

My S6 definitely drains much faster than my S4 did. Took it off the charger at 5:30am and it’s currently 9:30am and it’s at 42%. With my S4 I would be at over 50% at about 7pm so I’m sure the AOD is making a huge impact. I just set up the watch less than 2 days ago so I’m hoping that the battery life improves over time.

 

[deeddawg]

My S6 from yesterday. Just over 3%/hr. One hour Other/OpenGoal “workout” to capture yard work. Everything on.

As good as if not better than my S5, which was on par with my S4.

 

[Eduardboon]

Took quite a bit of oxygen readings today since I cant find a consistent way to take them. They do take a lot of juice, around 2 percent per reading. Automatic readings are done about every half hour. Though during sleep mode they seem to take less power.
Ive got an indent on my wrist from wearing a watch and it needs to be a bit tighter to even work and not give me a “failed” result. So maybe it is trying to get a good result on standby but cant make it work, giving me worse battery life in the process.

I‘m trying to set up the watch as a new watch instead of using a backup tonight and we’ll see if it has any impact in the coming days.

 

[tivoboy]

Took quite a bit of oxygen readings today since I cant find a consistent way to take them. They do take a lot of juice, around 2 percent per reading. Automatic readings are done about every half hour. Though during sleep mode they seem to take less power.
Ive got an indent on my wrist from wearing a watch and it needs to be a bit tighter to even work and not give me a “failed” result. So maybe it is trying to get a good result on standby but cant make it work, giving me worse battery life in the process.

I‘m trying to set up the watch as a new watch instead of using a backup tonight and we’ll see if it has any impact in the coming days.

There is no way the Sp02 sensor takes 2% per reading. if your watch is doing that I would return it. It’s broken. My watch takes about 3-5 per hour in background, plus I’ll do an additional 2-3 per hour in some hours. I just took four in a row, manually and the % battery life didn’t change at all. no real additional experience of shorter battery life with same config, compared to my AW 4.

 

[bluegt]

Finished another cycle on a new watch (first calibration cycle) and got 38.5hrs with ~5h33m of usage time.

I also noted down a few charging speed measurements. On the latest test, I was able to charge 48% in 30min and 87% in 60min.

Full details in the first post.

 

[Eduardboon]

There is no way the Sp02 sensor takes 2% per reading. if your watch is doing that I would return it. It’s broken. My watch takes about 3-5 per hour in background, plus I’ll do an additional 2-3 per hour in some hours. I just took four in a row, manually and the % battery life didn’t change at all. no real additional experience of shorter battery life with same config, compared to my AW 4.

wish it was the case. The background readings don’t really ding the battery. But just tried 6 in a row (5 failed, 1 succeeded) and was down 5 percent. So around 1 per reading now.

I did reset the watch and paired as new. Have everything enabled (noise, aod, hand washing, falling etc). Brightness at 2/3.
10,75 hours in now, sleep tracking for 7,5. Down to 84. Was at 92 after sleeping. Would consider it pretty good, since AOD only kicked in after sleeping, which brings usage to around the average 2,5 percent an hour which I think is pretty good. I don’t have the noise complication on my face tho.
Infographic with calendar, date, temperature, activity, timer, contacts, home and digital time. Pretty simple.

 

[edlex]

Well I have 9 minutes of usage with 2 hours and 29 minutes standby and it’s at 67% !?!?!? I have no idea what’s going on.

 

[bluegt]

Well I have 9 minutes of usage with 2 hours and 29 minutes standby and it’s at 67% !?!?!? I have no idea what’s going on.

That's very strange, I'd suggest the following if you haven't done it already:
1) Remove any 3rd party complications from your watch face
2) Unpair and Repair
3) Let the watch fully discharge (0%) and then recharge back to 100% without taking it off the charger, then let is fully discharge again
4) Give it 2-3 days to stabilize
5) Some people have had luck updating to WatchOS 7.0.1 - you could try that as well

You shouldn't need to turn off any features... check out the first post as a reference.

 

[edlex]

That's very strange, I'd suggest the following if you haven't done it already:
1) Remove any 3rd party complications from your watch face
2) Unpair and Repair
3) Let the watch fully discharge (0%) and then recharge back to 100% without taking it off the charger, then let is fully discharge again
4) Give it 2-3 days to stabilize
5) Some people have had luck updating to WatchOS 7.0.1 - you could try that as well

You shouldn't need to turn off any features... check out the first post as a reference.

I’ll try it. The only third party complication I have is Carrot Weather and it’s always been good about battery management. I will remove it and follow the process you outlined. Thanks

 

[deeddawg]

I’ll try it. The only third party complication I have is Carrot Weather and it’s always been good about battery management. I will remove it and follow the process you outlined. Thanks

Do - there's likely a confused/stuck app chewing up your battery or perhaps something else.

See my earlier post - Saturday from 7:30am to 11:48pm, with an hour non-GPS "workout", I still had 53% battery left. Then Sunday, from ~8:30am to nearly 11pm, with a 45 minute non-gps "workout" and a 50 minute gps-on outdoor walk, I had 44%.

These are with no features disabled. AOD on. Infograph watchface. One third-party complication (MyNetDiary).

I'm finding battery on my S6 is slightly better than I was getting with my Series5, and also on par with what I used to get with my Series4.

 

[bluegt]

I’ll try it. The only third party complication I have is Carrot Weather and it’s always been good about battery management. I will remove it and follow the process you outlined. Thanks

I've noticed some complications not playing very well with WatchOS 7 - not sure about Carrot though, maybe others can comment. If those suggestions don't work - could be you have a bad battery (but unlikely I think). Either way, you have 14 days from purchase for Apple to swap it with a new one so make sure to do that if nothing else works!

 

[jdb8167]

I've noticed some complications not playing very well with WatchOS 7 - not sure about Carrot though, maybe others can comment. If those suggestions don't work - could be you have a bad battery (but unlikely I think). Either way, you have 14 days from purchase for Apple to swap it with a new one so make sure to do that if nothing else works!

Carrot Weather seems fine. I think it is something else. Since I resolved my battery issues I get over 36 hours regularly and I use Carrot Weather with a complication every day.

 

[edlex]

Well I unpaired and repaired the watch yesterday and let it run to zero. Took about 2 hours to get back up to 100% but so far it’s drawing at about 4-5% per hour so much better.

One thing I did notice this morning at 100% went for a 30 walk with the exercise app in the background it went down to 87%. That app sure chews up battery life! Put it back in the charger to shower and I took it off at 7:15 am with 100%. It’s 9:34am and it’s at 91%, so far so good.

I’ll wait a couple of days and add the Carrot Weather complication to see if it makes a difference. Thanks for all the advice!

 

[ShadowGuardian87]

Yea I think with the new sensors and apps this watch just naturally drains faster. It's just a bit jarring for me since I was on a series 3 or the past 2 (nearly 3) years. But my battery pretty much still lasts me all day and probably through the night too (just haven't tried sleep tracking feature yet) but the watching draining 2-3% within like 10-15 mins off the charger is normal I guess.

 

[tivoboy]

Well I unpaired and repaired the watch yesterday and let it run to zero. Took about 2 hours to get back up to 100% but so far it’s drawing at about 4-5% per hour so much better.

One thing I did notice this morning at 100% went for a 30 walk with the exercise app in the background it went down to 87%. That app sure chews up battery life! Put it back in the charger to shower and I took it off at 7:15 am with 100%. It’s 9:34am and it’s at 91%, so far so good.

I’ll wait a couple of days and add the Carrot Weather complication to see if it makes a difference. Thanks for all the advice!

Did you have your phone with you or not and used the onboars GPS only?

 

[craigc_]

Just adding my own unscientific data point:

44mm Series 6 SBTi w/ charcoal braided solo

Pretty typical AW use cases for me. I put it on in the morning after shower/teeth brushing, and don’t take it off until I’m in bed (I do not track sleep yet). Typically in this wfh climate, that works out to about 8am-11pm off the charger.

Typical use consists of responding to messages/emails (typically using voice), ‘Overcast’ (playing on phone thru AirPods, adjust vol/chapters on watch), 2-3 breathing sessions, regular taps/checks/update on app complications like ‘Waterminder’ and ‘Deliveries’, and the occasional weather check, stock check etc.

Every evening I do a 30-40 min workout (using ‘Strong’ app), typically consisting of core exercises and traditional strength training in my basement (have a home gym).

I usually end the day with ~35% battery left. I believe the only time I’ve seen it drop below that was the first day when it hit mid-20s, but this was to be expected on day one. Hope this helps.

 

[edlex]

Did you have your phone with you or not and used the onboars GPS only?

I had my phone with me

 

[bluegt]

Just added more data to the first post.

Seems that the cellular model can pretty consistently get 38-40hours*. The charging circuitry is very intelligent, it will gradually ramp down speeds as it approaches 100% and also adjust charging speed for temperature. Both of these will preserve battery life.

Fast Charge works great, but in order to get the claimed speeds, room temperature needs to be 23C (73F) or below, presumably to maintain battery health.

*I don't recommend running the battery down to 0%, it's bad for battery life

 

[deeddawg]

*I don't recommend running the battery down to 0%, it's bad for battery life

One wonders though - is 0% really 0%? Or it 0% displayed when the battery reaches a low-threshold below which the watch won't go (or won't operate)?

 

[bluegt]

One wonders though - is 0% really 0%? Or it 0% displayed when the battery reaches a low-threshold below which the watch won't go (or won't operate)?

Hahaha, my guess is that it's a voltage cutoff... once the watch reads a certain voltage level it turns itself off to avoid battery damage - so probably not actually 0%!

 

[deeddawg]

Datapoint from yesterday that's encouraging should I pop a gasket and decide to do another full marathon ...

Watch battery dropped just 14% from a 1h 25m Outdoor Walk activity with my phone in my pocket. (which I'd carry for a half or full anyway).

Overall, ended the day at 36% battery with 18h39m standby, 3h49m usage.

Interestingly, my S6 rebooted halfway thru the walk when I was changing podcasts in the Outcast app. Full on Apple screen reboot. Then picked right up in the Workout app where it'd left off -- didn't lose the workout or any (apparent) data since I'd stopped walking while fiddling with the Outcast app.