2 year old iPhone 3GS battery lasts only 4 hours?

Hi,
My iPhone 3GS (bought in July 2010) battery lasts from 4-6 hours with light usage (no 3G, 5 mins of web browsing, 15 mins of music playback). It is definitely not an issue of iOS 5 as it was giving much better battery life even after the update. Tried restoring but no change. Also, sometimes it displays random battery charge percentages and shuts off on its own. When it is fully discharged, it takes 30 minutes minimum for the iphone to boot up even when connected to an iPad power adapter. Should I replace the battery?

Did you restore from backup or as new? If from backup, restore as new and see if the problem continues.
If it does, take the device to Apple for evaluation of the battery.

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My old iPhone 3GS battery just burned and cracked open

This morning i found my old iPhone 3GS on the sofa with the battery burned and the case cracked open. I am happy that the sofa did not burn, too.
It wasn't connected to the charger. The battery was possibly empty. It lied there already for a while.
Do you know if there's a warranty plan is such extraordinarily cases? I know the phone's old. But it shouldn't start to burn on the sofa.

Apple's hotline robot first told me i had to pay 35 € in advance in order to tell them about the problem. I tried it anyway. The guy on the phone told me that in this case they'll talk to me without Apple Care. Unfortunately they only proposed a repair option for 160 €.
He couldn't tell me what would have happened when the phone had burned the sofa. Anyway i'll now will give my old iPhones to recycling and not display them in the shelf. Poor old first gen iPhone.

My iPhone 3GS battery lasts about 30 minutes

What can I do about my iPhone GS battery? I went to Apple store & they told me to remove & then update the software. I did. Now it's even worse! Help!

The Genius Bar has the ability to do battery diagnostics. Bring the phone in and have them do it. If the batter cannot hold 50% of it's original capacity, it will be replaced free if still under warranty, if not then you can pay for the batter change.

I have my old iPhone 3GS that I only use as an iPod but I've forgotten the password and am locked out. My iTunes account is linked to my iPhone4 and I'm lost as to how I can get back into my old iPhone3GS. Can someone PLEASE help me??

Does anyone know how I can get my old one unlocked?

If you have the computer to which the iPhone was last synched, you can restore the iPhone on that computer. That will remove the lock. If not, then you have absolutely no choice but to place the phone into recover mode (search Google for instructoins) and restore the phone as a NEW device.

I have an iPhone 4s just eight months, it is normal that the battery lasts only 3 hours? please help me thank you very much.

I have an iPhone 4s just eight months, it is normal that the battery lasts only 3 hours? please help me thank you very much.

Three hours if definitely NOT normal. I get at least 48 hours out my 2 year old iPhone 4S' battery with light usage. Did you do the iOS 7 update on the phone it self (OTA) or through iTunes? In my experience most problems are caused by the OTA updates. For this reason I ALWAYS update using iTunes on my computer.
I would suggest restoring your phone using iTunes on your computer and setting it us as a new phone. This downloads a fresh copy of iOS 7.1 from Apple and installs it on your phone. Just make sure that you transfer all purchased items (apps, music, etc.) as well as photos to your computer before restoring as the restore will completely wipe your phone. Do not restore from a back-up. Yes, you will loose all your data on the phone but restoring a back-up can restore the problem you are currently having back to your phone. Once your phone has been restored you can manually sync back your apps and music.
Before restoring you can also check to see that battery-killers like Location Services, Background App Refresh, etc are only turned on for the apps that really need it. I recently read and article that said that the Facebook app can be a real battery killer. If you have this app installed turn of location services and background app refresh for this app and see if that helps. Also go to Settings / General / Restrictions / Location Services / System Services and turn off all the options in that menu. Your phone does not need any of those to function. Constantly using your phone's GPS is a huge battery killer. I only have Location Services enabled for Find my iPhone and Background App Refresh is turned off completely.
I hope this helps.

I just bought an iPhone 4S 3 days ago, but its battery seems to lose 1% every 3-4 minutes. I tuned off some location services, bluetooth, and even siri, and made its settings similar to my two-year old iPhone 4. The 4S can last much shorter.

I just bought an iPhone 4S 3 days ago, but its battery seems to lose 1% every 3-4 minutes. I tuned off some location services, bluetooth, and even siri, and made its settings similar to my two-year old iPhone 4. The 4S can last much shorter. I’m not sure what I can do with the 4S?

I am having the exact same problem with my iphone 5.
I took it back to the Apple store 2 days ago and they gave me a new one, but they told me not to restore it from backup cos if something (an app) is corrupted it will happen again. The only thing they could keep was my contacts cos they did something there that allowed them to transfer them to the new phone. I went home, and downloaded only ONE app (facebook), and guess what - THE PROBLEM IS STILL OCCURING ON THE BRAND NEW PHONE! It is driving me insane as I cant get through the day without my phone.
Really hoping someone has a fix that will work

Problem transferring old iPhone 3GS to new phone 5S using computer. The iMac which I've been using to back up 3GS for years does not seem to recognize the 5S. No setup assist is coming on screen so I can't begin the transfer. Any ideas for this?

Problem tranferring old iPhone 3GS (ios 6.1.6) to new iPhone 5S (ios 8.1.2) through iTunes on my iMac computer (OSX 10.5.8) . I have backed up the 3GS this way since purchase of 3GS. The computer does not seem to recognize the 5S is there -- no setup assist is appearing on screen. Any ideas welcome.

this may not be your problem my according to the tech specs on apple.com the 5s requires:
Syncing with iTunes on a Mac or PC requires:
Mac: OS X v10.6.8 or later
PC: Windows 8; Windows 7; Windows Vista; or Windows XP Home or Professional with Service Pack 3 or later
iTunes 11.1 or later (free download

I have a 5 yr. old iPhone 3GS, I can't back it up to my laptop, it's not working, but wondered if i can back it up to her laptop, if I create a new user account name, w/out losing her info?

My 5+ yr. old iPhone 3GS is on it's last legs. I desperatly need to "back it up" ASAP, so I can buy a new iPhone, and I really need to be able to transfer my 5 years worth of info to a new iPhone, (a 4S). The computer I used to back my iPhone on when I first got it no longer works, so I was wondering about being able to back my iPhone up to my daughters laptop, but she also has an iPhone 3GS, that's already backed up to her laptop. I know you couldnt back up two iPhones up to one computer, (at least that's what I was told, years ago), but I was recently told by an "Apple" rep that I could "probably" back my iPhone up to her computer without losing anyone's info, if I created a "Secondary User Name Account" on her computer. I'm not comfortble doing this unless I'm reassured more than being told that it's "probably" safe.
Does anyone know what options I have, and if this idea would result in one or both of us losing our info, if we tried to store two iPhones "back up info" on one laptop?
My phone's barely working at all, but I can still access my info, (for now, at least). I really need to do something now.
Could anyone who knows how this works please give me some info?
Thanks in advance.

First, you don't have a 5+ year old 3GS. The 3GS has only been around for under 4 years. In fact, 5 years ago there were NO iPhones; the original iPhone (2 generations before the 3GS) came out on June 29, 2007 - not quite 5 years ago. The 3GS was released June 19, 2009.
That aside, you can sync multiple phones to one computer - see http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1495. boogeyman is wrong. It is 100% safe to create an additional user name on her computer, log in with that name, and back up the phone. See this for details on what you want to do: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2109

Official solution for unlocking for an old iPhone 3GS

Last summer, I purchased an iPhone 3GS together with a 2-year contract with Swisscom, one of the mobile telephone operators in Switzerland. A few weeks ago, my phone was stolen while I was on a trip. I contacted Swisscom and informed them that the phone had been stolen. They deactivated the old SIM card, and sent me a replacement SIM card. I reported the theft to the police too. My understanding is that the IMEI number of my old iPhone will be added to a blacklist so that it cannot be used on any mobile telephone networks anymore.
My father, who lives in Texas, recently upgraded from an iPhone 3GS to an iPhone 4. He extended his original contract with AT&T and simply moved his number over to the new phone. Because he no longer had a need for his old iPhone 3GS, he agreed to send it to me. At my suggestion, he went first to the Apple Store in Austin and requested that they unlock the phone. The folks at the Apple Store informed him that they could not unlock it. They suggested that Apple or the mobile carrier in Switzerland could unlock the phone.
My father shipped his old iPhone 3GS to me, and I received it yesterday. This morning, I went to the Apple Store in Zürich and asked if they could unlock the phone so that I could use it with my Swisscom SIM card—the one Swisscom sent me to replace the one in my stolen iPhone. They told me that they could not do this, and that only the original carrier, AT&T could unlock the phone.
What is the official solution for unlocking an old iPhone 3GS?
I have posted this question to the AT&T discussion forum also.
http://forums.wireless.att.com/t5/Apple/Official-solution-for-unlocking-for-an-o ld-iPhone-3GS/td-p/1998765

wjosten wrote:
Does Apple have a recommendation?
Read my post. There is nothing that Apple can do for you. The decision as to whether to unlock your phone or not rests entirely with AT&T, & they will not do so under any circumstances.
I read your post, and appreciate your having taken the time to write it. However, I would like to get an official reply from someone at Apple.
Apple is a company that prides itself on its commitment to the highest standards of environmental stewardship.
http://www.apple.com/environment/
Apple’s partner AT&T is also committed to being a good corporate citizen and protecting the natural environment.
http://www.att.com/gen/corporate-citizenship?pid=8506
Re-using old products to extend their useable lifetimes is one of the most effective ways of reducing the impact we have on the environment. When my phone was stolen, it seemed like a perfect opportunity to put this philosophy into action, using my dad’s old phone to use instead of just throwing it away, or leaving it on a shelf to be discarded later.
I think it would be a shame if there were no officially sanctioned way to put an old device to good use.

Ipod nano 2nd gen, 5 years old, has short battery life. Can the battery be replaced? If not, does apple have a replacement program? how much?

Details:
5 year old 2nd Gen Ipod nano only works for an hour the most. Battery may be approaching end of life.
Can this still be replaced? if not, what are my options? Does apple have a replacement program?

Just would like to share with you, my experience with a friend's Nano with a smiliar problem
The battery level could be too low to boot up the OS of the iPod, which even may corrupted (if you see a folder icon).
The best way to fix it, is to connect it with different device other than your PC as it is likely not get charge at all, e.g.
1. car charger
2. ac charger
3. ipod speaker dock system
4. using firewire cable
5. with a Mac computer
The key is to charge the battery level up to the minimum for you to put your Nano into disk mode
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=93651
once you see the "tick" mark, connect it with a computer, and try to do a Restore for your iPod. In case you still do not manage to get your iPod to be recognized by a PC, I am afraid you have to connect it with a Mac, very likely it will allow you to do a Restore as I did last night

My iphone 3gs battery drains very fast

my iphone 3gs battery drains very fast it won't last for whole day
i just uses mail application and facebook for some time
can u tell why the problem is or need to change battery

I'm having the same problem with my 3Gs. In my case it is not the apps int he background or the brightness, or wifi or email push. The folks at the apple stroe tell me that there is some software glitch that shows up every few months.
I can only get rid of it by restoring my phone as a new device. In which case I lose all of my contacts, settings and all data. VERY frustrating. I had recived two new phones (before applecare ran out) and have done the resotre several times. No one can tell me what is in that creates this probelm. I've tried differenet chargers one by one in case they are the probelm. one int he car, one in a kitchen outlet, one at my home computer (sync) and on at my office computer (non-sync).
Problem just showed up again randomly two days ago, no new apps or hardware. battery drains from full to 0 in two hours.
Apple, please fix.

One year old iphone 5 shuts on and off at random

my one year old iphone 5 shuts on and off at random moments(probably a tech fault) can i get a new one/ get this one fixed?
it just suddently happend, i plugged it into the computer (right after a norton security check) and suddently my phone just dies. and now it won't stop turning on and off constantly every 3minutes, i know it sound wierd but it is true. I have changed batteryes before(sort off the same problem) at a different time off the year. it was during winter last time i got these issues.

Hi okgames,
Welcome to the Apple Support Communities!
I know it can be both concerning and frustrating if your iPhone will not turn on or shuts off randomly. In your situation, I would suggest reading over the attached article and try the troubleshooting steps provided to ensure all steps have been completed before considering a hardware repair.
iPhone: Hardware troubleshooting
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2802
Will not turn on, will not turn on unless connected to power, or unexpected power off
Verify that the Sleep/Wake button functions. If it does not function, inspect it for signs of damage. If the button is damaged or is not functioning when pressed, seek service.
Check if a Liquid Contact Indicator (LCI) is activated or there are signs of corrosion. Learn about LCIsand corrosion.
Connect the iPhone to the iPhone's USB power adapter and let it charge for at least ten minutes.
After at least 30 minutes, if:
The home screen appears: The iPhone should be working. Update to the latest version of iOS if necessary. Continue charging it until it is completely charged and you see this battery icon in the upper-right corner of the screen . Then unplug the phone from power. If it immediately turns off, seek service.
The low-battery image appears, even after the phone has charged for at least 20 minutes: See "iPhone displays the low-battery image and is unresponsive" symptom in this article.
Something other than the Home screen or Low Battery image appears, continue with this article for further troubleshooting steps.
If the iPhone did not turn on, reset it while connected to the iPhone USB power adapter.
If the display turns on, go to step 4.
If the display remains black, go to next step.
Connect the iPhone to a computer and open iTunes. If iTunes recognizes the iPhone and indicates that it is in recovery mode, attempt to restore the iPhone. If the iPhone doesn't appear in iTunes or if you have difficulties in restoring the iPhone, see this article for further assistance.
If restoring the iPhone resolved the issue, go to step 4. If restoring the iPhone did not solve the issue, seek service.
Have a great day,
Joe

How to get official unlock for old iphone 3gs?

Hi, I switched to Verizon iPhone 4, so my old AT&T iPhone 3gs is no longer in use.
I travel internationally and would like to unlock my old iPhone 3gs so I can use it with sim cards when I travel.
I understand there is now an "official" unlocking that can happen through iTunes. Is that true? How can I do it?
Or is there another way to unlock my old phone that is legal?
Thanks!

Yes, it is, however, verizon will unlock your SIM card slot for free. The requirements:
* Must be a Verizon Wireless customer.
* The iPhone 4S being unlocked must be active on a Verizon Wireless line of service.
* The line of service must be active at least 60 days.
* The line of service must be in good standing for the past 60 days.
* Only one SIM Unlock per line every 10 months.
You can go here for all the details.
I can confirm this as I did it last November for my sister before she traveled to London.

My iPad is a few years old but my battery is running down very quickly even when not in use? I have about 16% usage still available !

My iPad is a few years old but the battery is running down very quickly, is there anything I can do ?

Try this first - Reset the iPad by holding down on the Sleep and Home buttons at the same time for about 10-15 seconds until the Apple Logo appears - ignore the red slider - let go of the buttons. (This is equivalent to rebooting your computer.)
The quickest way (and really the only way) to charge your iPad is with the included 10W or 12W (5W on Mini) USB Power Adapter. iPad will also charge, although more slowly, when attached to a computer with a high-power USB port (many recent Mac computers) or with an iPhone Power Adapter (5W). When attached to a computer via a standard USB port (2.5W, most PCs or older Mac computers) iPad will charge very slowly (but iPad indicates not charging). Make sure your computer is on while charging iPad via USB. If iPad is connected to a computer that’s turned off or is in sleep or standby mode, the iPad battery will continue to drain.
Apple recommends that once a month you let the iPad fully discharge & then recharge to 100%.
How to Calibrate Your Mac, iPhone, or iPad Battery
http://www.macblend.com/how-to-calibrate-your-mac-iphone-or-ipad-battery/
At this link http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/galaxy-tab-android-tablet,3014-11.html , tests show that the iPad 2 battery (25 watt-hours) will charge to 90% in 3 hours 1 minute. It will charge to 100% in 4 hours 2 minutes. The new iPad has a larger capacity battery (42 watt-hours), so using the 10W charger will obviously take longer. If you are using your iPad while charging, it will take even longer. It's best to turn your new iPad OFF and charge over night. Also look at The iPad's charging challenge explained http://www.macworld.com/article/1150356/ipadcharging.html
Also, if you have a 3rd generation iPad, look at
Apple: iPad Battery Nothing to Get Charged Up About
http://allthingsd.com/20120327/apple-ipad-battery-nothing-to-get-charged-up-abou t/
Apple Explains New iPad's Continued Charging Beyond 100% Battery Level
http://www.macrumors.com/2012/03/27/apple-explains-new-ipads-continued-charging- beyond-100-battery-level/
New iPad Takes Much Longer to Charge Than iPad 2
http://www.iphonehacks.com/2012/03/new-ipad-takes-much-longer-to-charge-than-ipa d-2.html
Apple Batteries - iPad http://www.apple.com/batteries/ipad.html
iPhone: Hardware troubleshooting (Power/Battery section also applies to iPad)
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2802
Extend iPad Battery Life (Look at pjl123 comment)
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3921324?tstart=30
New iPad Slow to Recharge, Barely Charges During Use
http://www.pcworld.com/article/252326/new_ipad_slow_to_recharge_barely_charges_d uring_use.html
Best Practices for iPad Battery Charging
http://www.ilounge.com/index.php/articles/comments/best-practices-for-ipad-batte ry-charging/
Tips About Charging for New iPad 3
http://goodscool-electronics.blogspot.com/2012/04/tips-about-charging-for-new-ip ad-3.html
How to Save and Prolong the battery life of your new ipad
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/4480944?tstart=0
Prolong battery lifespan for iPad / iPad 2 / iPad 3: charging tips
http://thehowto.wikidot.com/prolong-battery-lifespan-for-ipad
iPhone, iPod, Using the iPad Charger
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4327
Install and use Battery Doctor HD
http://itunes.apple.com/tw/app/battery-doctor-hd/id459702901?mt=8
To Extend a Device’s Battery Life, Get to Know It Better
http://tinyurl.com/b67c7xz
iPad Battery Replacement
http://www.apple.com/batteries/replacements.html
In rare instances when using the Camera Connection Kit, you may notice that iPad does not charge after using the Camera Connection Kit. Disconnecting and reconnecting the iPad from the charger will resolve this issue.
 Cheers, Tom

Something weird happened to my old iphone 3GS

Im now upgraded to Iphone 4S. My old iphone 3GS was kept in the drawer. Today as I come from work, I was surprised to see my 3GS LCD popped out. I don't know how it happened and why. I could not describe it so much because I have not heard of any complaint regarding this. I find it so wierd because the phone was just sitting in the drawer.

The exact same thing just happened to my iPhone 3GS yesterday. I took it to the Apple Store today and they said the battery expanded and that there was nothing I could do about it. I feel cheated though, because I didn't nothing to the device. I kept in my house, never dropped it, and now I can't do anything about it because I don't have a warranty? Does this mean that Apple device will be unusable after 2 years because of faulty batteries?

2 year old iPhone 3GS battery lasts only 4 hours?

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