Apple OS5 Cuts Into Battery Life, to be fixed

Apple OS5 Cuts Into Battery Life
By Jeremy C. Owens
San Jose Mercury News
Nov 3, 2011

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Apple Inc. has confirmed that its devices running the new iOS 5 operating system are experiencing shorter battery life than the company reported, and said it will release a software upgrade to fix the problem “in a few weeks.”

Apple released iOS 5 on Oct. 12, just two days before the debut of its newest iPhone, the iPhone 4S. In the weeks since the device premiered, users have complained on Twitter and other social networks that the iPhone 4S runs out of power far sooner than expected and much more quickly than Apple promises. Some have been saying that even with minimal use, the device can’t make it through a workday without needing to be recharged.

In a statement, Apple said “A small number of customers have reported lower than expected battery life on iOS 5 devices. We have found a few bugs that are affecting battery life and we will release a software update to address those in a few weeks.”

Various tech blogs have offered suggestions on how to extend the battery life of the phone, including barring particular applications from accessing the phone’s location and shutting off push mail.

Apple says that iPhone 4S owners should get up to eight hours of talk time and up to six hours of time surfing the Web when connected to 3G networks and up to 200 hours of standby time. But some users are saying they are getting nowhere close to that.

Battery problems aside, Apple sold 4 million in the first weekend that the new gadget was on sale.