Have you ever felt that frustrating panic when your Apple Watch unexpectedly runs out of juice? Or perhaps you‘ve noticed your once sturdy battery life slowing down, requiring more frequent charges.
As Apple Watch enthusiasts, we rely on these revolutionary little wrist computers to power through our days. That makes keeping tabs on battery life essential.
Come with me on a deep dive where we‘ll learn:
- Key Apple Watch battery specs and technology
- 3 simple ways to check your current charge level
- Expert techniques to optimize battery health
- And much more!
Arm yourself with the battery insights needed to keep your Watch working from sunrise to sunset and beyond. Let‘s get charged up!
Why Your Apple Watch Battery Matters
The Apple Watch packs remarkable capabilities into a device you can wear all day, every day. From activity tracking to notifications, apps to payments, it has become integral to many users‘ lifestyles.
But all of those productivity superpowers depend on sufficient battery life.
While battery technology continues advancing, current limitations mean most smart watches cannot run perpetually. The Apple Watch is no exception, with Apple citing "Up to 18 hours of battery life" based on normal usage.
Of course, factors like always-on display, frequent notifications, bandwidth-hungry apps, and workouts can quickly sap a charge.
Additionally, lithium-ion batteries lose capacity through repeated charge cycles as they chemically age. While Apple batteries are designed for hundreds of cycles, completely draining (0%) or overcharging (100%) your Watch accelerates wear.
That‘s why monitoring your Apple Watch‘s battery percentage and health should become second nature. Let‘s explore how.
Apple Watch Battery Specs Comparison
First, a quick crash course on Apple Watch batteries. Apple utilizes compact lithium-ion cells optimized for the Watch‘s tight contours and energy demands across four key models:
| Model | Battery Capacity | Battery Life |
|---|---|---|
| Series 8 | 308.8 mAh | 18 hours |
| Series 7 | 308.8 mAh | 18 hours |
| Series 6 | 303.8 mAh | 18 hours |
| SE (2nd Gen) | 308.8 mAh | 18 hours |
Higher capacity equals more stored energy for powering the Watch. But real-world runtime depends on usage. Checking your actual percentage helps gauge if your battery life aligns with Apple‘s 18 hour claim given how you use your Watch.
Now let‘s jump into the various methods for monitoring your current charge level and long term battery health.
Method #1: Check Current Charge via Control Center
The quickest way to view your Apple Watch‘s battery percentage is through Control Center:
- Wake your Watch‘s display with a wrist raise or by tapping the screen.
- Swipe up from the very bottom edge to reveal Control Center.
- Your current battery percentage appears in the top left.
I recommend memorizing this gesture because it lets you instantly check-in on battery level at any time.
Control Center also surfaces other data like iPhone battery, Wi-Fi status, do not disturb mode, screen brightness, and more. It‘s a tiny but mighty command station.
Method #2: View Battery Level When Charging
Need to monitor your charging progress without launching Control Center? No problem!
When your Apple Watch battery is below 100% AND it is actively charging, a tiny green lightning icon appears at top left on the watch face.
Simply tap it to view current percentage charged. The icon turns red if charging is interrupted.
This method provides convenient at-a-glance visibility into charging status. But once your Watch hits 100%, the icon disappears until next time it needs juice.
Method #3: Enable Battery Complication
Complications are mini widgets displaying quick tidbits like date, activity, weather, moon phase, world clock and more on your watch face.
Many faces include dedicated slots where you can enable a battery complication to persistently monitor power level:
- Open the Watch app on your paired iPhone.
- Go to the My Watch tab.
- Tap Complications to assign battery level to an available slot.
With this set, your watch face essentially sports a built-in battery meter!
Bonus: View iPhone Battery Level on Apple Watch!
Tired of pulling out your iPhone just check battery status? Add the iPhone Battery complication instead to glimpse level right on your Watch!
The process is the same as above. Simply choose "iPhone Battery" when picking a complication. No more fumbling around to visually confirm if your phone will last through evening plans.
Now let‘s move beyond monitoring present charge and discuss preserving long-term battery health.
Optimize Charging to Extend Your Battery Lifespan
Fully charging then completely draining an Apple Watch battery accelerates age-related wear.
Why? The lithium-ion cells are actually healthiest when maintained between around 20% and 80%. Naturally this is difficult to manually achieve in daily life.
Thankfully, Apple developed Optimized Battery Charging – a smart algorithm that handles this in the background:
- It learns your charging habits and inhibits charging past 80% overnight.
- Just before your typical wake-up time, it finishes off the last 20% to reach 100%.
This avoids damage caused from prolonged 100% charging states. Pretty clever!
Optimized Charging toggle resides at:
Watch App on iPhone → Battery → Optimized Battery Charging
I highly recommend leaving it enabled to keep your battery nimble for years.
But batteries have finite lifespans and will eventually require service. Read on for more pro tips…
6 Pro Tips to Maximize Your Apple Watch Battery Life
While the 18 hours of mixed usage Apple promises is decent, who wouldn‘t want to squeeze even more productivity out of their wearable?
I employ these advanced techniques to push my Apple Watch to the limit:
1. Reduce Screen Brightness
Dim your screen under Settings > Display & Brightness to scale back power consumption. I prefer around 40% brightness for comfortable outdoor visibility.
2. Minimize Always-On Display
The Always-On Display is gorgeous but taxes battery. Limit use under Settings > Display & Brightness. Or try raising wrist to wake instead.
3. Disable Background App Refresh
Apps refreshing data in background chew through juice. I disable battery offenders manually under Settings > General > Background App Refresh.
4. Engage Low Power Mode
This dial back performance to conserve power. Enable temporarily or automatically under Settings > Battery. I use conservatively to avoid compromising experience.
5. Force Close Active Apps
Apps left running drain power even when idling in background. Remember to force quit via app switcher.
6. Turn on Airplane Mode
When battery life outweighs connectivity needs, this disables battery draining radios. Toggle via Control Center when viable.
Master these techniques and your Watch will keep on ticking morning to night!
Now let‘s address some common battery-related questions.
Apple Watch Battery & Charging FAQs
Still have questions about properly charging and caring for your Apple Watch battery? Here I tackle some frequent inquires:
How can I see my iPhone‘s battery on the Apple Watch?
Add the iPhone Battery complication to your watch face as outlined above. Easy!
Why can‘t I view the battery percentage on my Watch?
First ensure you‘re swiping up from the very bottom edge to open Control Center where battery level resides. If it remains missing, try rebooting your watch.
How can I tell if my Apple Watch battery needs replacing?
Under the Watch app → Battery → Battery Health, current "Maximum Capacity" shows overall wear state. Generally under 80% means replacement time. Apple can replace batteries to restore performance.
How long should I expect my battery to last between full charges?
Apple promises about 18 hours of mixed usage before needing a charge. Factors like always-on display, notifications, media playback, and workouts impact this number.
Why is my Apple Watch dying so fast all of a sudden?
Begin troubleshooting by unpairing/repairing your watch, installing the latest software update, toggling battery saving settings like turning off always-on display. If poor life persists, contact Apple Support for next steps.
I hope these universally applicable tips help you monitor charge level, understand battery technology, and optimize standalone time. Now enjoy your Watch to the fullest!
We‘ve Only Just Begun
While battery limitations remain a fact of modern electronics, monitoring percentage and caring for chemistry allows us to minimize disruptions. Now built up with essential knowledge, you‘re primed to push your Apple Watch farther on a single charge cycle.
Our journey together only just scratched the surface about getting the most from your wearable. If you liked what you learned, stay tuned for my upcoming guides tackling other compelling Apple Watch topics. Until next time!
