Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Ultra Battery life
- Thread starter Zonck
- Start date
-
- Tags
- apple watch ultra
- Sort by reaction score
I fully charged my Watch Ultra last night after it was last charged on Monday at 830am central time. Took it off the charger at 10:15 this morning. It just lost 1% after 4 hours of light usage it is at 99%. For me this has to be the best battery life I have experienced with any watch I have owned and I have owned every one since the first.
Last edited:
So I think it's kinda cool that Apple advertise this with a figure of 36 hours for battery life, when actually, what they seem to mean is it'll last 36 hours if you're using it really intensively and basically pushing it to the max.
Kudos to Apple for under-promising and over-delivering, rather than doing it the other way around.
If you're like me, and you're actually pretty sedentary and just like having nice things, then this is an absolute battery beast. I got 59 hours of use out of one charge this week. That's almost the same as the 60 hours of low power mode but I didn't have mine in that mode.
So, how long DOES it last in low power mode?
And what about the Ultra-specific low power mode we've been told is coming later? What'll that mean to people like me who just use it as a replacement for a series 7 and not a triathlon companion?
Kudos to Apple for under-promising and over-delivering, rather than doing it the other way around.
If you're like me, and you're actually pretty sedentary and just like having nice things, then this is an absolute battery beast. I got 59 hours of use out of one charge this week. That's almost the same as the 60 hours of low power mode but I didn't have mine in that mode.
So, how long DOES it last in low power mode?
And what about the Ultra-specific low power mode we've been told is coming later? What'll that mean to people like me who just use it as a replacement for a series 7 and not a triathlon companion?
Depending on the usage, even more! I got 74 hours without regular power saving (although no GPS or cellular) so for those who occasionally really need to push it, we’ll see 100+ easily I expect!
What watch face? What complications on the watch face? Low power mode? This apparently makes a big difference on battery drain. You have great success with the battery, so I’m curious. I am using the wayfinder face with white background and get consistently 4-5% battery drain per hour. That’s only a 20-hour battery with my setup. No cellular on, AOD is on.
Not that any of this really matters as my watch sits on a charger every night. If I was out in an environment where I did not have access to power, then I would obviously be away from civilization and need either gps or cellular which makes all of this a moot point as the battery would only last a day or so with these on and actually being used.
Last edited:
I assume these have an auto-brightness function -- I had a long-sleeve shirt on yesterday that had one of those "thumb holes" in the end of the sleeve (hey, I like wearing Lululemon, okay? LOL) I noticed through the hole that the AOD is quite dim (simulating a darker room) but when I pulled the sleeve up it slightly brightened -- not waking up.
I wonder if this has any effect on longevity too?
And I'm genuinely curious on this "new" Low Power Mode coming to the Ultra this fall -- I feel like the regular LPM shuts down a lot of the stuff I like having handy, like heart monitoring, etc...
I wonder if this has any effect on longevity too?
And I'm genuinely curious on this "new" Low Power Mode coming to the Ultra this fall -- I feel like the regular LPM shuts down a lot of the stuff I like having handy, like heart monitoring, etc...
Around 60 hrs and at 18%. Looks like it will get to 72hrs for me before needing charge. Very pleased so far. Battery life is one of the main reasons I upgraded to the AWU.
After 24 hours (everything on but AOD) there is 71% left. No need to even think about charging it today or tonight.
I've been getting around 40-42 hours before the 10% warning.
AOD on
All sensors on, sleep tracking 7 hours/day
Each 24 hour period includes
- wearing the watch 24hrs
- cell service
- 3 30-35 min walking workouts, gps, connected to APP2 listening to audiobook (on watch)
- notifications as per mirrored iPhone settings
- occasional phone call - not often so negligible
AOD on
All sensors on, sleep tracking 7 hours/day
Each 24 hour period includes
- wearing the watch 24hrs
- cell service
- 3 30-35 min walking workouts, gps, connected to APP2 listening to audiobook (on watch)
- notifications as per mirrored iPhone settings
- occasional phone call - not often so negligible
So is everybody using it for sleep tracking?
Mine died on 40 hours today. Very impressed overall.
Mine died on 40 hours today. Very impressed overall.
Picked my ultra up on Wednesday and charged it to 100% that evening. Currently on 45 hours and 18% charge left. Brightness on 50%, few hours of walking workouts, music and various notifications amongst other things. I’m happy with that!
The first couple of days I wasn't impressed, but like everyone else has said, give it time. I'm now at 33 hours and still have 52% battery left! Love this watch
Some general observations to add to my previous.
The Ultra will use about 40-50% battery in 24 hours depending on what its being used for. That actually super good.
What I've done the last couple days, I've charged the watch for about 15-20 minutes in the morning when I'm getting ready, and thats the only time I ever really need to charge it. It charges so fast I get to about 80% or more and then depending on use, that morning top off just about gets me to the next morning. Its just about perfect. I don't have to worry about what I have turned on or off or what is running. Every once in a while ill probably end up having to top it off more to make up for +/- of uses, but the battery life is impressive even under hard use.
The Ultra will use about 40-50% battery in 24 hours depending on what its being used for. That actually super good.
What I've done the last couple days, I've charged the watch for about 15-20 minutes in the morning when I'm getting ready, and thats the only time I ever really need to charge it. It charges so fast I get to about 80% or more and then depending on use, that morning top off just about gets me to the next morning. Its just about perfect. I don't have to worry about what I have turned on or off or what is running. Every once in a while ill probably end up having to top it off more to make up for +/- of uses, but the battery life is impressive even under hard use.
36 hours with everything on except AOD. I am at 52%. Another 36 hours before charging perhaps? 3 days? I have only charged the watch 3 times last week. I have underestimated just how much I appreciate having stellar battery life. Will report back after 2 days with AOD off.
I must be doing something wrong. I don’t see anything close to these battery usage stats. After 12 hrs of use I’m usually around 65-66% left. And I don’t even really use the watch throughout the day. The only thing its usually doing is buzzing my wrist throughout the day because I use my phone to navigate a lot at work.
The Maps connection when navigating to the Watch is a battery hog. If you don't need it (it's on by default even if you use CarPlay), try turning it off.
Only owned the watch for 14 hours...so I'll check in a few days. I know I have to wait.
But wearing this all night, even sleeping with it - (First time I tried sleep tracking..and it looks like I goofed in the setup I guess. 😞), I am only down to 96%.
My Series 4 which I kept, yeah the original battery nothing like it used to be...will literally lose 5% in 10-15 min. running on the new OS9. So this new battery so far is pretty nice for a change!
But wearing this all night, even sleeping with it - (First time I tried sleep tracking..and it looks like I goofed in the setup I guess. 😞), I am only down to 96%.
My Series 4 which I kept, yeah the original battery nothing like it used to be...will literally lose 5% in 10-15 min. running on the new OS9. So this new battery so far is pretty nice for a change!