iPhone users reported serious battery issues after updating to iOS 14.6

Apple rolled out iOS 14.6 about a week ago to the general public. The update includes changes and some exciting new features for the iPhone. However, it might also be a beginning of a new problem. According to MacRumors, many users on the Apple support forums started complaining about increased battery drain after they installed the latest iOS update.

Some users also noted that it might take a few days before a significant update finishes to settle in on an iPhone. Besides these comments, the reports continue pouring in into this week regarding issues with battery life. It’s clear that there is something more substantial at play.

We can not be sure what might be causing iOS 14.6 to degrade an iPhone’s battery quicker than previous updates because Apple has not issued an official response regarding this issue. However, on the support forums, some iPhone owners claim that the upgraded Apple Podcasts app is the leading cause.

What causes this issue?

Several users found that the Podcasts app could be responsible for the battery usage in the Settings menu, even without using the app. Some users deleted the default Podcasts app that seemed to make a difference. But it did not work for others, so the reason for this issue might vary.

On MacRumors’ forums, one user said that it just happened to her iPhone 12 Pro Max, so she was browsing Safari and found out that the device was heating up next to the cameras, and the battery started to drain.

The Geekbench battery test will check seven latest iPhone models to see how they perform. There is also a video showing that the battery scores for iOS 14.6 are the lowest of any recent update.

iOS 14.5 has a battery health recalibration feature targeting iPhone 11 models that displayed inaccurate battery health readings in the Settings menu. According to Apple, this did not affect the battery itself but updated the tasks to reflect the proper battery health.