Is your new iPhone 5S a battery vampire? Here’s why

Apple noted that for a very limited number of new iPhone 5S’, the battery will drain rapidly. Speaking to the New York Times, Apple spokesperson Teresa Brewer said that “We recently discovered a manufacturing issue affecting a very limited number of iPhone 5S devices that could cause the battery to take longer to charge or result in reduced battery life. We are reaching out to customers with affected phones and will provide them with a replacement phone.” Now you know.

We’ll never know how many iPhone 5S’ are affected but we can relax in the knowledge that this is an isolated incident. As the NYT article points out, there’s a difference between a manufacturing issue and a defective battery. A manufacturing issue can be corrected during the next iPhone 5S production run.

If you’re one of the “very limited number of iPhone 5S” users suffering with a poor battery, users of the Apple forum have posted these tips to help maximise battery life. Or you can always get the LG G2 – it has one of the best batteries of any phone ever made (it’s also way prettier, in my opinion). Apple’s official take on battery life says to avoid high thermal zones and it’s best to keep your phone at “room temperature”. Once it passes 35-degrees, the heat’s going to degrade your battery life.

Those who have been affected by the battery issue will get replacement iPhones. With over 9-million iPhone 5S’ sold since launch, we wonder exactly how many people make up the “limited number” Apple speaks about. The Times thinks that it’s a few thousand phones or so, but it’s all thumb-sucking. Now that the news is out there, users with faulty iPhone 5S’ will most likely take to forums to validate that sick feeling of battery-related unease they had.