iPhone 4S Users Complain Of Battery Drain

The new iPhone 4S is suffering from severe battery drain and overheating problems, according to reports.

The rapid battery drain has been blamed on software glitches in the recently released iOS 5, with users of other devices, including iPads and previous iPhone models, complaining about the same problem after upgrading to iOS 5.

A short list of suspects

Several reports are pointing the finger firmly in the direction of location services, claiming that the ‘setting time zone’ element runs constantly, and needs to be turned off to conserve power. Others claim that battery life is reduced if you are connected to Exchange and have too many calendar notifications, or that battery performance depends on whether the device connects through Wi-Fi or 3G, stating that 3G uses more battery power.

Macworld’s Christopher Breen, whose iPhone 4S suffered from severe battery drain, writes that his phone appeared to be in a crash loop from trying to sync his iCloud contacts.

The longevity problem has set the web humming over a solution, as users await a fix from Apple. The general consensus seems to be to just give up and start again – restoring the factory settings and starting from scratch, and then syncing data from iCloud one application at a time. Some users are also recommending disabling a wide range of apps and services to boost battery life.

Other problems found

Apart from the battery life issue, iPhone 4S users have also complained about yellow tinted screens, slow Internet, syncing problems, phones running extremely hot, as well as having problems with call quality when using a headset, including hearing echoes, voices being muffled or the volume jumping or dipping suddenly.

The latest iPhone problems follow last year’s antennagate fiasco, where users who complained about bad reception on the iPhone 4 were told by the then-CEO, Steve Jobs, to hold the phone differently – a comment that was not well received by consumers, and ridiculed by competitors.