3GS Battery Life

[Larzo]

That damn battery % meter is what's killing me. I'm checking that thing like mad, it makes it hard for me to enjoy this awesome device. I've only let it die completely 1 time though. Maybe after 2 or 3 more it will give me some better results.

[GreenLightJerky]

Ive just finished my initial 3 cycle drain and I have been getting some really good battery life.
3g on, wifi on, bluetooth on GPS on, push on, notifications on, fetch every 15(8 accounts), Screen Brightness 100% with no auto feature and I am getting about 5 hours of usage,(watched 2 full baseball games over wifi, games, texting, twitter etc). I usually have 3g off, GPS and screen brightness around 40% so I am very happy. Ill report back after a day of normal use not trying to drain the battery.

[Jellotime91]

Ok after a week with the iPhone 3G S I have an important tidbit about the battery that we should all know.

1. It charges significantly faster via the AC charger, and you may have some old iPod cables around but make sure you are using a newer cable (the ones with the short heads) for faster charge and sync and less compatibility issues.

2. Once you start charging from AC, it will last longer. Believe it or not, from my use, it is true. I haven't been charging it via AC and the battery has been lackluster to say the least. It hasn't been any better than my 3G was (which I charged every day via AC). I haven't been charging the 3G S with AC because I've been using it a lot at my computer because it's new and I've been playing with it at home.

After giving it a full charge last night via AC, I went out today for 8 hours (from 12pm to just now when I got home) with mild GPS usage, 3G on, iPod on for a good chunk of time... And I still have 50% battery left. It is actually very impressive compared to other days when I'd drain it to 50% just by playing with it for an hour or so in my living room.

[SOV]

I believe with these batteries there will be a peak time, And also a period in which it, in a sense - warms up.

[thinkTwice]

Today I was constantly on maps, twitter, 3G network surfing the web and the phone was pretty much dead by mid afternoon. But it saved my life today- makes exploring NYC so much more easier.

[SimplyCoutured]

It's nice having so many people's input on this particular issue. I'm about 99% sure I'll be getting the 3GS in Sept when my bday comes around, but I want to make sure it's not something I'm going to be unhappy with. Battery life is an issue for me. When I'm in college full time, away from home, I need something reliable that will last me through the day until it can be charged again.
Most of you may know about the Curve's battery life capabilities, and that is one thing it looks like I'm going to be missing.
However, I've seen a lot of posts saying the life gets better over time for the 3GS. So hopefully this is true and will set my 'fears' to rest.

[GreenLightJerky]

Originally Posted by GreenLightJerky

Ive just finished my initial 3 cycle drain and I have been getting some really good battery life.
3g on, wifi on, bluetooth on GPS on, push on, notifications on, fetch every 15(8 accounts), Screen Brightness 100% with no auto feature and I am getting about 5 hours of usage,(watched 2 full baseball games over wifi, games, texting, twitter etc). I usually have 3g off, GPS and screen brightness around 40% so I am very happy. Ill report back after a day of normal use not trying to drain the battery.

Ok so im stumped. I had success with the above options turned on getting easily 5 hours of battery life.

Today I turned off: GPS, 3G and reduced my screen to 50% with auto dimming on. I get 3 hours 20 minutes with less agressive usage. WTH?
I have to try this again. very strange. If I have to keep everything ON to get 5 hours, sweet!

[DaReaper911]

i can get almost 15 hours outta mine with heavy email and texting...

[Suzuku]

The battery life is more or less the same in real world usage.

[NormalGuy]

I have brightness set to default (50%), wifi and 3g on constantly, as well as location services and push email turned on. These are roughly the same settings as I used to have on my old 3G, except I am running the screen at a brighter setting on my 3gs. Even with the brightness set higher, the 3gs has significantly greater battery life than my 3g (15-20% better, I'd say).