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A NIFTY battery charging trick for iPhones has been quietly developed by Apple, and is set to land on devices with iOS 18.
Apple recently unveiled heaps of new iPhone features, as well as its highly anticipated AI offering.
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As always, Apple headlines with what it thinks are the biggest and best features.
But some smaller, equally useful updates don’t get the same air time.
One of those features is Apple’s upcoming slow charger warning.
The feature wasn’t even announced by Apple at WWDC 2024.
Instead, eagle-eyed Reddit user, freaktheclown, stumbled across it in the beta version of iOS 18.
What is an iOS beta?
An iOS beta is a pre-release of the Apple software to a large group of testers.
These beta testers trial the iOS before it gets rolled out to the general population.
They find flaws, and make recommendations, that often result in design changes.
According to Apple, “The feedback you provide on quality and usability helps us identify issues, fix them, and make Apple software even better.”
iOS versions “may contain errors or inaccuracies and may not function as well as commercially released software,” says Apple.
That is why it’s generally not advised to download them, unless you’re a tech wizz or developer.
After installing iOS 18’s beta, the Reddit user noted a new amber warning on the battery page in settings.
In the graph showing your battery deterioration and power ups throughout the day, there are new orange segments,
The segments are periods of time when the iPhone is being charged with a cable that has a wattage too weak for the device.
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During these ‘amber’ periods, the beta tester admitted they were connected to a 5W charger.
A 5W charger is the traditional Apple charger that used to come with iPhones.
But as Apple handsets have grown more powerful, so have their chargers.
The iPhone 14, for example, is not listed as a compatible device with the 5W charger – due to the fact that it requires the power of Apple’s newer 20W cables.
The 5W and 20W chargers have now been dubbed ‘Slow’ and ‘Fast’ chargers.
These terms will now be reflected in Apple’s battery tracking, helping customers see where they can be getting a speedier charge.
It means users are less likely to waste their time waiting for a slow charger to slugglishly power up their device.
A brief history of Apple charging cable changes
Here’s everything you need to know…
- When the first iPhone launched in 2007, it featured a charging port designed from the ground up by Apple
- This was called the 30-pin dock connector, and survived on Apple handsets for years
- But in 2012, Apple introduced a new Lightning port for charging phones (from the iPhone 5 onwards)
- The move sparked outrage as it made everybody’s old charging cables useless
- In 2019, rumours began to circulate that Apple was planning to change the iPhone’s charging port a second time
- Then in 2023, Apple switched to USB-C for the iPhone 15, as it did with the 2019 iPad Pro
- Now USB-C appears on most of Apple’s new gadgets
