I own an M4 iPad Pro 13” and, after less than a year of usage, my maximum battery capacity has dropped to 89%, with 256 cycle counts. I’m curious if this is considered average. From my experience, iPads typically experience a significant initial drop in battery health that later stabilizes. I’ve tracked the health-to-cycles ratio, which tends to be poor for iPads at first.
For example, I started with 91% health after 320 cycles but fell to 85% after about 780 cycles. Generally, I’ve noticed that iPad battery health declines more rapidly than that of iPhones. It usually hovers around 85% after the first year and then remains stable for three to four years. While these numbers might look concerning, those of us who regularly install beta versions of iOS often find this is a problem experienced by many users.
For instance, my M4 iPad Pro has 158 cycles and is currently at 88%. I’ve noticed significant drops in battery health with the beta updates. It remained around 90-89% until I switched to the 18.3.x regular updates and then dropped lower with the 18.4 and 18.5 betas. Interestingly, others have different experiences.
One user mentioned having a similar cycle count but maintaining a higher battery health of 92%. Factors such as charging habits and daily usage also play a role in battery performance. For example, another user consistently keeps their iPad near a charger, which may help prolong its life. Ultimately, if you frequently install beta versions, you might want to ignore battery health, screen-on time, and other measurements to avoid disappointment.
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