Featured Image Credit: Apple / dragana991/ Getty
iPhones are complicated devices, even if we're all used to them just working without many issues the vast majority of the time.
In particular, when an iPhone gets quite long in the tooth, its battery can start to degrade.
This is something that happens to basically any device that runs on a lithium-ion battery (which most modern tech uses) but it's particularly prevalent in phones since they're charged daily in most people's routines.
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As its battery loses overall capacity, though, iPhones actually have a whole host of methods they use to try to maintain decent battery life each day, and some of these could clue you into the fact that your phone is in need of a replacement battery (or being put out to pasture).
You might recognise this idea as being part of the massive lawsuit that hit Apple in the US a few years ago as people accused it of "slowing down" their iPhone when it got older, something Apple always maintained was just one facet of the system it designed to eke out proper battery life rather than forcing them to upgrade.
Well, it turns out there are a few interesting ways the iPhone can stretch its battery, including a surprising volume trick.
When it's got really bad battery health, you might notice that your iPhone's speaker is a lot less loud than it used to be - this restriction on speaker power helps it save on battery.
Another tell might be if you notice that your screen's frame rate is a little lower than normal in certain apps, making it a little choppy, or if apps are slower to open than you might expect.
If your battery is truly on its last legs you could even find that the camera app has no option for you to use the LED flash, and is really slow to take photos.
Apple's own documentation on battery issues lists these and a few other potential hints, and they all suggest that you should check your iPhone's battery health, which is thankfully very easy to do.
Just open the settings app, then tap on battery. Here, you can tap on battery health to see a summary of how your iPhone's battery is holding up.
If the battery health reading is anything other than normal, you might want to look into a repair or replacement, while you'll also be able to see your phone's maximum charge capacity, to see how much that number has gone down since the phone was new.
A recent update means this page will also show you how many charging cycles your phone has gone through in its lifetime, which is a really useful way to understand why your phone's battery might not be in tip-top shape anymore.
Sadly, while battery replacements are pretty easy to get (especially if you still have AppleCare+) they're often a little bit pricey, so if your phone is really old it could also be a good option to just upgrade, as annoying as that might seem.
