How to fix ipad battery life problems

5 min read

Solve those battery issues on your iPad as soon as you can

An iPad’s battery life is a hugely important factor because you want to be able to use it for as long as possible, whatever it is you’re doing. That could be for watching movies on Apple TV Plus, or using great apps like Drafts to write a newsletter. If the battery starts running down faster than it used to, then that’s only going to hamper your experience of using your iPad.

Fortunately, we have a few tips here to help guide you through any battery issues you may have, so you can enjoy an iPad that lasts for many hours, once again.

Wait for it

Your iPad expends a lot of power in general use, whether that’s downloading apps, playing games, using mail, sharing photos, and using other content. Whenever the Wi-Fi stays on for a long time, or processors use goes way up then your power consumption is going to go way up too.

Sometimes a simple software update can fix poor battery performacnce, so try that first, then give things a day or two to settle down and go back to normal. If you’re fine after that, then great. If not, keep reading!

Test in standby mode

We tend to spend a long time playing with our iPads and their amazing features, especially if they are new. That’s especially true with things like ProMotion or Apple Pencil, or the new drag and drop features, or augmented reality (AR) features. Then the screen stays on longer, storage gets written, Wi-Fi and maybe cellular radios stay lit up, and power gets consumed.

In other words, if your battery feels like it’s only lasting half as long, first ask yourself if you’re using it twice as much.

You can also note how much battery life you have left and then put your iPad down for 20-40 minutes. When you pick it back up, note how much battery life you have left again. If there isn’t a big change in the battery level while in standby, you’re probably okay, and your battery life will return to normal when your usage returns to normal (after the novelty wears off).

Reset your iPad (with a Home button)

Rebooting, restarting, or resetting is the oldest cliche in troubleshooting because it works. Sometimes a good reset is all that’s needed to and fix bad iPad battery life. Here’s how to reset the iPads that have a Home button, such as the iPad (2022) model.

1. Press and hold down both the Sleep/Wake (on/off) button and the Home button at the same time.

2. Keep holding them down as the screen turns off.

3. Keep holding them down until you see the Apple logo.

4. Let go.