A new post on Reddit has started a big discussion after one iPhone user claimed that Apple’s new iOS 26 update is killing their phone’s battery. The user, named Tasty_Discipline7280, said they “barely use their phone anymore” because the battery drains too fast. They even shared screenshots showing how quickly the battery drops after normal use.
What Happened After Installing iOS 26?
The Reddit user said that after updating their phone to iOS 26, the battery started draining very quickly, even with normal usage.
They shared that during a short trip where they used maps for navigation, their phone battery dropped from full charge to less than 20% before reaching their destination. By the end of the day, it had gone down to almost zero, which had never happened before.
iOS 26 killed my phone battery (iPhone 15 pro max)
byu/Tasty_Discipline7280 inios26
The user also noticed that simple apps like Notes were using too much power. They mentioned that after using Notes just to make a shopping list, their phone battery was already dead.
Because of this, they said they now only charge their phone up to 80% to avoid damaging the battery even more. The user also asked others for suggestions on how to improve battery life until Apple releases another update.
Netizens React To iOS 26 Battery Drain
After the post went viral, many other iPhone users joined the thread to share similar problems. One user under the name punto2019 wrote, “iOS 26 killed my perfect iPhone 16 pm battery. More than 1 year and it was 100% integrity. End of day at 60%. After iOS 26 it is 97% and 20% at the end of day.(sic)”
Another said, “OMG I THOUGHT IT WAS JUST ME! Same with my 16PM! Upgrading it to iOS 26 was such a big mistake. Battery life is totally crap now! Lesson learnt: Never upgrade to newer version of iOS.(sic)”
But not everyone blamed Apple. One user said, “He was driving while the iPhone was with the app displaying the map, add that to the heat of the road and that I’m pretty sure they got music and other things working, also cars don’t have fast charging and we don’t even know if he was using MagSafe charger.(sic)”
Another replied to that comment with, “You being sarcastic right?(sic)”
For now, there’s no confirmation from Apple about any battery issue in iOS 26, but many users online seem to agree that the iOS 26 update is causing battery drain on their iPhones.
