The normal operating temperature for iPhones is between 32° and 95° Fahrenheit or 0° and 35° Celsius. Thus it’s expected for an iPhone to get too hot if you are using it in a place that’s warmer than 95° Fahrenheit or 35° Celsius. When the iPhone gets very hot, the battery life is temporarily shortened and so battery draining problem follows. And that denotes an iPhone problem to solve. Keep reading to find out how to deal with iPhone overheating and battery issues.
What causes your iPhone to become very warm?
Aside from ambient temperature, there are also other factors that could cause your phone to get warm. In normal circumstances, a phone could eventually get warm when it’s charging or when using the phone extensively. Other normal conditions that your device feels warmer are during initial setup, restoring iOS backup, updating apps after an iOS update, and when using graphics-intensive apps or augmented features. Leaving your phone inside a car during a hot day or exposing the phone in direct sunlight over a long period of time as well as when using location apps and services like car navigation or GPS tracking are likewise among other higher ambient-temperature conditions and operations that may cause your device to become warmer. Generally in these cases, there’s nothing to worry as the device will just go back to its regular temperature afterwards. But if your iPhone shows a warning message saying that the temperature exceeds the normal threshold, it denotes that something serious and therefore requires appropriate action. If you see this high temperature alert on your iPhone screen, turn it off immediately or move it to a cooler place and let it cool down. This is necessary to ensure safety.
When warm iPhone temperature becomes a problem?
As explicated earlier, your iPhone could get hot under normal circumstances. But if your iPhone feels very hot that holding it is no longer comfortable, your iPhone is overheating. In that case, stop using the phone immediately and give it some time to cool down. If your iPhone continues to overheat and the battery is draining faster than usual, then you’ve got to do something to fix it. To get started, try to determine when your iPhone started to overheat. If it started after installing an app, then that app is the culprit and therefore needs to be eliminated. If the phone started to overheat after installing an update, then an update bug is likely the trigger. Often times, the problem is attributed to the software hence you’ve got to rule that out first. Highlighted below are possible solutions and workarounds that you can use, should you wish to troubleshoot your device. Read on to learn how to deal with iPhone overheating and battery draining issue.
Potential solutions to iPhone overheating and battery draining issues
The following methods will help clear out software-related factors that might have caused your iPhone to overheat and end up draining its battery faster.
First solution: End all background apps.
Apps that are left suspended or running in the background could trigger the device to become warmer. Background apps are in idle state but still can cause the processor to become exhausted especially when they act up. Background apps are apps that you recently used but not closed. To eliminate them from the possible triggers, end all background apps on your iPhone with these subsequent methods.
If you’re using an iphone x or later model, performing these steps will end all background apps:
- Go to the Home screen to get started.
- Then swipe up from the bottom of the screen and then pause slightly in the middle.
- Swipe right or left to find Messages app.
- Then swipe up on the Messages app card/preview to close it.
If you’re using an iPhone 8 or earlier model, this is how you end all background apps:
- Double-press the Home button to view your most recently used apps.
- Then navigate through app previews by swiping left or right.
- And to close the app, swipe up on it’s preview.
After ending all background apps, use your device to test and see if overheating and battery draining symptoms persist.
Second solution: Reboot your iPhone.
Rogue apps that caused your phone’s power or battery system to act up are the next factors to rule out. For minor app glitches that cause overheating and battery draining, performing a soft reset or reboot on the phone will usually suffice. So consider this as the next option if the problem continues after performing prior solution. The steps to soft reset or reboot an iPhone differ between iPhone models.
If you’re using an iPhone X, XS, XS Max, or XR, follow these steps to soft reset:
- Press and hold the Side button and either Volume button until the Power off slider appears.
- Drag the slider to power off your iPhone completely.
- Then after 30 seconds, press the Side button again to turn your iPhone back on.
On iPhone 8, 8 Plus, or earlier versions, performing a soft reset or restart is done this way:
- Press and hold the Top or Side button until the Power off slider appears.
- Drag the slider to power off the phone completely.
- After about 30 seconds, press and hold the Top or Side button again to turn the phone back on.
Wait for your phone to finish booting up and then test to see how it works. If it’s still getting hotter and draining its battery, proceed to the next applicable solution.
Third solution: Enable Airplane Mode, if necessary.
One of the factors that are linked to overheating and battery draining is when your device has poor or no network reception. In this state, your device will strive hard to get a better signal from network bases and eventually forces the processor to work until it gets exhausted. As a result, your phone gets warmer and its battery is draining faster.
If you’re using your iPhone in a place that’s way too far from the network tower, consider turning Airplane Mode on. Doing so will stop the device from continuously attempting to obtain network signal and thereby preserve its battery life. Here’s what you should do then:
- Go to the Home screen then tap on Settings.
- Tap Airplane Mode.
- Then toggle the Airplane mode switch to turn it on.
Doing so disables the phone’s wireless radios and associated functions like Wi-Fi, cellular and Bluetooth connections.
Fourth solution: Update your apps.
Installing app updates on your iPhone can also solve the problem if outdated apps are to blame. Apps that aren’t up-to-date are prone to glitches. When your apps are glitching, there’s a tendency for the processor to keep working until it becomes exhausted. If this happens, overheating and battery draining symptoms may instigate. To ensure that this isn’t the cause of the problem, install pending app updates on your iPhone with these steps:
- Open the App Store.
- Scroll down to the bottom of the App Store screen then tap on Updates.
- Tap the Update button next to the name of the application to update.
- Otherwise, tap the Update All button to install all app updates at once.
Wait for your apps to finish updating and once the update is complete, reboot your iPhone to save the recent application changes. Try and see if that solves the problem.
Fifth solution: Delete bad apps.
If installing app updates doesn’t do any good, then you may need to delete the bad apps that caused overheating and battery draining. To delete apps from your iPhone, refer to these steps:
- Tap Settings from the Home screen.
- Tap General.
- Tap iPhone Storage.
- Scroll to the list of apps then tap to select the app that you want to delete.
- Then tap the option to Uninstall.
After deleting the bad apps, reboot your iPhone to dump junk files and corrupted caches from its internal memory. You may opt to reinstall the apps that you want to use again on your device.
Sixth solution: Update your iPhone software.
Aside from app updates, installing the latest iOS version available for your iPhone could also solve the problem of random bugs and malwares are the main trigger. Updates rolled out by Apple usually contain bug fixes or patch codes that are programmed to address existing issues caused by system bugs. If you haven’t set your device to auto-update, then you can refer to these steps to check for new iOS update to download and install:
- Go to the Home screen then tap on Settings.
- Tap General.
- Select Software Update.
If a new iOS version is available for your iPhone, you will see an update notification. Read and review the update details beforehand so you’ll know what the update offers. Then follow the onscreen instructions to start downloading and installing the update. Make sure that your phone has stable Internet access, sufficient memory storage space and battery life to complete the update. Otherwise, use iTunes to update your iPhone manually on a computer. Just plug your iPhone to the computer via USB Cable or Lightning cable, then wait for iTunes to sync with your iOS device.
Seventh solution: Reset all settings.
Performing settings reset can be considered as the next option if the problem continues. There might be some invalid or incorrect settings applied when you customized your device or after installing updates. To reset all settings on your iPhone, simply refer to these steps:
- From the Home screen, tap on Settings.
- Tap General.
- Scroll down to and tap on Reset.
- Choose the option to Reset all settings.
- Enter your device passcode when asked to continue.
- Confirm that you want to reset all settings on your iPhone.
All customized settings are then deleted and the default values and options are restored. Allow your phone to reboot after the reset and then start enabling the features that you want to use again on your phone.
Sixth solution: Factory reset/master reset.
The symptoms usually continue if complex system errors are the underlying cause. In cases like this, a full system reset is usually needed. This is when you may opt for a factory reset. Performing this reset will erase everything from your phone including saved apps, contents and other personal information. Tough bugs that caused stubborn issues are likewise obliterated. Should you wish to proceed, back up your iPhone data to iCloud or iTunes then follow these steps to factory reset your iPhone via settings menu:
- Tap Settings from the Home screen.
- Tap General.
- Scroll down and tap Reset.
- Select the option to Erase all content and settings.
- Type in your passcode to proceed.
- Then confirm that you want to erase and restore your iPhone to its factory defaults.
You can also use iTunes to manually reset your iPhone on a computer. This method is recommended if a factory reset through settings isn’t possible. You will need to use a computer either Windows or Mac if you wish to factory reset your iPhone in iTunes.
Seventh solution: Restore your iPhone in iTunes.
If the problem isn’t resolved by a factory reset, your next option is a recovery mode restore. This will put your device in a recovery state and then repair fatal system errors that caused persistent overheating and battery draining symptoms. Whenever you’re all set to start, connect your iPhone to the computer via USB cable or Lightning cable. Once it’s connected, follow these steps to put your iPhone in recovery mode.
To enter recovery mode in iPhone 8 or later models, refer to these steps:
- Press and quickly release the Volume Up button.
- Then press and quickly release the Volume Down button.
- Finally, press and hold the Side button until the Recovery Mode screen appears.
To enter recovery mode on iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, follow these steps instead:
- Press and hold the Side/Power button and Volume Down button simultaneously and then release both buttons when the Recovery Mode screen shows up.
To enter recovery mode on iPhone 6s, 6s Plus, and earlier models, here’s what you should do:
- Press and hold both the Home button and Top/Power buttons simultaneously and then release both buttons when the Recovery Mode screen appears.
Don’t release the last button if you see the Apple logo because you will need to enter recovery mode. The recovery mode screen is depicted by the Connect to iTunes display.
Other options
If none of the aforementioned procedures is able to solve the problem on your iPhone that’s getting hot and battery draining, take a trip to the nearest Apple-authorized service center. It’s very likely that the problem you’re dealing with is on the hardware like a bad battery or damaged power component on your device that needs immediate fixing. You can ask the technician to run some further tests so as to identify the underlying cause of the problem. If your phone is still covered by warranty, then you better contact your iPhone provider or carrier and avail for warranty either for service or new unit replacement.
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