iPhone battery problems: Apple reveals how to fix iOS 14 and Apple Watch charge issues after latest update

(AFP via Getty Images)

Apple has revealed how to fix the major iPhone battery problems that have followed the release of iOS 14.

The complicated solution does, however, require completely wiping the phone and restoring it again.

iOS 14 was released in mid-September, following the company's latest launch event. As soon as it did, some users complained that their iPhone's battery was dropping rapidly, with some reporting extreme drain in just a few hours.

New iPhone software updates regularly cause some unusual battery behaviour, as the phone conducts a number of tasks that come with a new version of the operating system, such as reorganising and scanning through files. But numerous reports suggested the performance was much worse than would usually be expected, and didn’t go away after the initial days following installation.

Since then, the company has released an update numbered iOS 14.0.1, but that has failed to address any of the issues.

Apple released a support note responding to widespread problems with battery drain after iOS 14 has been installed. The same document noted that users could have issues with workouts on their Apple Watch, and other problems with their health and fitness data.

But it noted that the problem requires a significant change to fix: wiping the iPhone and then restoring it.

Before doing that, users are warned to make sure their phone is backed up to the cloud so that the data can be restored after the restore.

Full instructions – as well as more precise details on the Apple Watch and Health app problems that are also ongoing – can be found on Apple's website.

The same trick should fix any issues with the Apple Watch, too, the document indicated.