3 ms·

At this point, it’s pretty clear Apple targets a specific battery life (18 hours) and builds the techs around that. As a result, I don’t think we will get an im

At this point, it’s pretty clear Apple targets a specific battery life (18 hours) and builds the techs around that. As a result, I don’t think we will get an improvement in that area anytime soon. However, it does look like they improved the charging story—something like 80% in 30 minutes? Not bad.

tester89 2y ago
Yeah, they could've made the size decrease less impressive and boasted of a 24 hour battery life if they really wanted to.
Menu_Overview 2y ago
I've thought about this. How much more battery life would they have to build in for it to be noticeably better? When I charge my watch at the end of the day, I usually have plenty to spare, but not always enough to make it through to the morning (especially if I tracked an exercise). Even if a new watch got 24hrs of battery life, I would still have to charge it at night so I wouldn't really matter. I'd guess that 18hrs it a balance that keeps people content and gives Apple's engineers enough room to fit in all the features they want. Of course, I would love to be able to track a long exercise or a 10-hour hike...but there's a different price tier for that.
- MBCook 2y ago
  That’s a good point. Maybe 36-48 hours? Even then you’re still charging every other day, so is that so much better than every day? 18->120 hours would be a real change, but that’s almost a 7x increase.
  - Teever 2y ago
    To me 72 hours is the right number. I want to put that thing on in the morning on a Friday, get a text message from a friend about some crazy party of weekend event and be able to attend that to make it home Sunday night to get ready for work on Monday.
    - mulderc 2y ago
      Apple Watch Ultra in low power mode should do it for you.
  - nickthegreek 2y ago
    For me I need a routine. Charging daily works well for me, else I would want 7 days. I think Apple targeting super quick charging really alleviates the issue for me all together. I’m on an old series 4, and instantly preordered this one. I’m sure it is gonna feel like a whole new level of luxury compared to what I was already pretty happy with.
    - MBCook 2y ago
      If you were on a 4 the speed difference, plus the bigger screen, are going to be amazing. Enjoy it!
- hedgehog 2y ago
  Three days would be solid, that would get me mid day Friday to mid day Monday. Sleep data is a high priority for me and it's go time pretty much from when I open my eyes (little kids) so I wear the watch pretty much 24h/day. On desk work days I charge there (not much activity to miss) but over the weekend or if I'm traveling that gets disrupted.
npunt 2y ago
Yep they do this for all their platforms, set a battery target based on ~90%tile daily usage of particular form factor (e.g. 18hr watch/iphone, 10-12hr macbook/ipad) and then let ID & chip teams do whatever they want to hit that. The value add of every additional minute/hour of battery life drops off from there because daily loops for charging are realistically what everyone will do, and there's more value add in other places like making things thinner, faster, or do something new.
mulderc 2y ago
Looks like they target 18 for apple watch 36 for apple watch ultra.
robwwilliams 2y ago
I moved to an Ultra 2 to get an average of two+ days per charge. And recharging if fast. Size? I have small wrist but it feels fine and is reasonably comfortable with the standard wrist band. Impressive screen and tactile UI. Normal use: up to 36 hours Low Power Mode: up to 72 hours
indoordin0saur 2y ago
I got the 2020 version of the watch and this is how fast it charges.

tester89 2y ago

Yeah, they could've made the size decrease less impressive and boasted of a 24 hour battery life if they really wanted to.

Menu_Overview 2y ago

I've thought about this. How much more battery life would they have to build in for it to be noticeably better? When I charge my watch at the end of the day, I usually have plenty to spare, but not always enough to make it through to the morning (especially if I tracked an exercise). Even if a new watch got 24hrs of battery life, I would still have to charge it at night so I wouldn't really matter. I'd guess that 18hrs it a balance that keeps people content and gives Apple's engineers enough room to fit in all the features they want. Of course, I would love to be able to track a long exercise or a 10-hour hike...but there's a different price tier for that.

MBCook 2y ago
That’s a good point. Maybe 36-48 hours? Even then you’re still charging every other day, so is that so much better than every day? 18->120 hours would be a real change, but that’s almost a 7x increase.
- Teever 2y ago
  To me 72 hours is the right number. I want to put that thing on in the morning on a Friday, get a text message from a friend about some crazy party of weekend event and be able to attend that to make it home Sunday night to get ready for work on Monday.
  - mulderc 2y ago
    Apple Watch Ultra in low power mode should do it for you.
- nickthegreek 2y ago
  For me I need a routine. Charging daily works well for me, else I would want 7 days. I think Apple targeting super quick charging really alleviates the issue for me all together. I’m on an old series 4, and instantly preordered this one. I’m sure it is gonna feel like a whole new level of luxury compared to what I was already pretty happy with.
  - MBCook 2y ago
    If you were on a 4 the speed difference, plus the bigger screen, are going to be amazing. Enjoy it!
hedgehog 2y ago
Three days would be solid, that would get me mid day Friday to mid day Monday. Sleep data is a high priority for me and it's go time pretty much from when I open my eyes (little kids) so I wear the watch pretty much 24h/day. On desk work days I charge there (not much activity to miss) but over the weekend or if I'm traveling that gets disrupted.

npunt 2y ago

Yep they do this for all their platforms, set a battery target based on ~90%tile daily usage of particular form factor (e.g. 18hr watch/iphone, 10-12hr macbook/ipad) and then let ID & chip teams do whatever they want to hit that. The value add of every additional minute/hour of battery life drops off from there because daily loops for charging are realistically what everyone will do, and there's more value add in other places like making things thinner, faster, or do something new.

mulderc 2y ago

Looks like they target 18 for apple watch 36 for apple watch ultra.

robwwilliams 2y ago

I moved to an Ultra 2 to get an average of two+ days per charge. And recharging if fast. Size? I have small wrist but it feels fine and is reasonably comfortable with the standard wrist band. Impressive screen and tactile UI. Normal use: up to 36 hours Low Power Mode: up to 72 hours

indoordin0saur 2y ago

I got the 2020 version of the watch and this is how fast it charges.