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Apple Admits Defect with Some iPhone 5s Batteries

By - Source: NYT Bits | B 17 comments

iPhone 5S users experiencing shortened battery life should be hearing from Apple.

Image Credit: iFixitImage Credit: iFixit

If you bought an iPhone 5S and are confused as to why the battery life is disappointing, then the latest word from Apple might interest you. The company has confirmed that a limited number of iPhone 5S models shipped with a manufacturing issue that resulted in shortened battery life.

"We recently discovered a manufacturing issue affecting a very limited number of iPhone 5S devices that could cause the battery to take longer to charge or result in reduced battery life," Teresa Brewer, an Apple spokeswoman, told the New York Times in a statement. "We are reaching out to customers with affected phones and will provide them with a replacement phone."

The iPhone 5S was announced last month at an Apple event in San Francisco and the updated iPhone is supposed to have better battery life than the last generation of iPhone. Apple didn't go into detail regarding the manufacturing issue, nor did it specify how many customers were affected by the problem.

Apple's iPhone 5S has a 1560 mAh battery, while the iPhone 5 has a 1440 mAh battery. The iPhone 5S also packs Apple's new 64-bit A7 SoC with M7 co-processor, an updated camera, Touch ID fingerprint authorization, 1 GB of DDR3 RAM, up to 64 GB of storage, WiFi 802.11 a/b/n, Bluetooth 4.0, and LTE.

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  • 4 Hide
    nebun , October 30, 2013 12:22 PM
    what does this have to do with battery life???

    "Apple's iPhone 5S has a 1560 mAh battery, while the iPhone 5 has a 1440 mAh battery. The iPhone 5S also packs Apple's new 64-bit A7 SoC with M7 co-processor, an updated camera, Touch ID fingerprint authorization, 1 GB of DDR3 RAM, up to 64 GB of storage, WiFi 802.11 a/b/n, Bluetooth 4.0, and LTE."
  • -1 Hide
    fat_panda , October 30, 2013 12:46 PM
    The title should be "Battery Life" not "Batteries"
  • 1 Hide
    cmi86 , October 30, 2013 1:05 PM
    It's just fun watching the media turn on apple as they crumble back down to the ground. A nice turn of pace from the "apple can do no wrong" standpoint of past years.
  • Display all 17 comments.
  • 5 Hide
    lp231 , October 30, 2013 1:24 PM
    Wait Apple actually admits they're product has a defect?!
    Normally they would say it's not a defect, but a new feature.
  • -3 Hide
    craciunator , October 30, 2013 1:31 PM
    I thought it said "Apple admits defeat with iphone 5s" and i got super excited and rushed to read Apple admitting defeat and just a defect, which might as well be admitting defeat.
  • 0 Hide
    danwat1234 , October 30, 2013 2:32 PM
    So I wonder if it's power consumption, like portions of the computer not sleeping as much as it shou, processes taking unnecessary computing power, or if it's a physical problem with the battery chemistry?
  • 0 Hide
    tecej2518 , October 30, 2013 2:49 PM
    Just wondering but if the problem is with the battery why is apple replacing the entire phone
  • -1 Hide
    tecej2518 , October 30, 2013 2:52 PM
    Just wondering but if the problem is with the battery why is apple replacing the entire phone
  • -1 Hide
    actsai , October 30, 2013 3:50 PM
    Those specs do have some bearings, @nebun, higher specs requiring more electricity to support them, especially so with nicer screens, and 1560 mAH is toward the lower end of what Androids pack, so the battery performance is already piss-poor to start with.

    And @tecej iProducts have batteries internal like Palm's not Android phones where it is interchangeable like Windows Mobile <6. So under warranty it is faster to replace, not providing service credits and end up having to go without phones for a day.
  • 0 Hide
    halcyon , October 30, 2013 4:29 PM
    I haven't noticed anything wrong with my unit's battery life...yet anyways.
  • 0 Hide
    halcyon , October 30, 2013 4:32 PM
    I don't use my 5s that much, I use my Note 3 more but the battery life on my 5s seems to be really good and that's from someone who actually has one.
  • -2 Hide
    halcyon , October 30, 2013 5:10 PM
    I don't use my 5s that much, I use my Note 3 more but the battery life on my 5s seems to be really good and that's from someone who actually has one.
  • 2 Hide
    mman74 , October 30, 2013 8:25 PM
    3 words. User replaceable battery.
  • 0 Hide
    Darkk , October 30, 2013 8:31 PM
    Apple haven't made a product that allows user replaceable battery in YEARS! Two reasons: encourage people to buy NEW products and easier to make the devices slimmer.
  • 1 Hide
    seinfeld , October 31, 2013 3:31 AM
    apple are done! with the new macbooks being held together by glue. issues like this. there is even a defect with the 5C, the gyro in all 5 varients! and an OS that looks like it was made in the 1990's im so glad I switched to android, and learnt . much more freedom, I can install what I want, watch what I want without apples bloatware. just let it happen Iphone users. it hurts at the start. but after that initial bit, it starts to feel good to use an android!
  • 1 Hide
    JD88 , October 31, 2013 5:59 AM
    Perhaps they're holding it wrong?

    In all seriousness, defects can happen with any product that is mass produced on the scale that these things are. However, this does prove that all of the comments about Apple justifying exorbitant prices for "quality and craftsmanship" are nonsense. They are no better than anyone else in these areas.
  • 0 Hide
    JustinCox22 , November 1, 2013 3:42 PM
    Sounds great!