Although it was recently dethroned, the Apple Watch was the most popular watch in the world for many years, despite one major flaw—a short battery life. I’ll teach you how a few changes in habits and settings can improve your battery life and upgrade your overall Apple Watch experience.
1. Average Apple Watch Battery Life
The newest Apple Watch 11 got a battery boost and lasts up to 24 hours, and the Apple Watch Ultra models can last 42 hours or longer with Low Battery mode. However, most models last around 18 hours on average, and certain features and habits will shorten battery life over time.
2. When Should You Charge Your Watch?
Most of us charge our phones overnight, but that isn’t the best practice for an Apple Watch. Firstly, Apple claims that keeping your watch plugged in after it is charged can damage battery life in the long run. Secondly, not sleeping in your watch makes you miss out on all of the amazing sleep-tracking features that offer important insight into your overall health. I recommend charging your Apple Watch first thing in the morning while you are drinking your coffee/tea or taking a shower. If you need to charge your watch twice a day, which I sometimes do if I use it more than usual, I’ll charge it right before bed while I brush my teeth and read. If you have an Apple Watch Series 7 or newer, make sure you take advantage of fast charging and charging reminders, which I will cover next.
3. Fast Charging & Charging Reminders
The newer your Apple Watch model, the quicker it charges, with the newest Series 11 charging from 0-80% in just half an hour. This also means that you can charge enough for sleep tracking in 10 minutes or less. To make the most of fast charging, use an official Apple Watch charger and turn on Charging Reminders in your Settings. Charging Reminders will let you know if you don’t have enough battery to last the night, and you’ll get a notification that your watch is done charging. To enable this feature, open the Watch app on your iPhone, scroll down and tap on Sleep, then toggle on Charging Reminders.
4. Tweak Settings for Better Battery Life
Some Apple Watch features are big battery drainers. Toggling off Listen for “Hey Siri” and Environmental Noise Monitoring can be a big help. But you should also keep your watch running the latest software, delete apps you don’t use, limit notifications you receive on your watch, and turn off automatic downloads. All of these tweaks can make a big difference, too!
When is your favorite time to charge your watch, and what have you tried to extend your battery life? Email OntheWatch@iphonelife.com and let me know!
