I was playing around on my iPhone the other day after noticing the location arrow all up in my business. I checked out Settings and couldn’t find any apps displaying a purple (active) arrow. Puzzled, I closed all open apps. Still, that location arrow was mocking me. Back into the iPhone’s Location Services settings I went one level deeper into System Services and sure enough there was a purple arrow next to Setting Time Zone.
Instead of periodically polling nearby cell towers to determine the iPhone’s location, the new iOS 5 feature constantly talks to cell towers. As a result, and regardless of which iPhone you own, your battery drains and drains and drains. The good news…there’s a fix.
1. Open the Settings app.
2. Tap “Location Services,” scroll down to the the bottom, and select “System Services.”
3.Turn off “Setting Time Zone.”
You can get away with turning off all but “Cell Network Search.” It’s the only one that you actually use, unless of course you like your iAds location based. If you do try this fix, let me know if it works for you. If it does, great, spread the word ’cause I’m sure Apple would like to avoid another iPhone-gate. If it doesn’t, well, you’re free to complain as I am of no help to you.
BTW, my suggestions do not impact the standard stuff you’ve come to love. Sure you could turn off bluetooth, app notifications, and location services to save battery life, but why even power up your phone? Why not just use your $500 investment as a paperweight? Because that’s stupid. Instead, take my advice, turn off these unused System Services and enjoy your phone.
UPDATE (11/10/11): Just update your iDevice to iOS 5.1 and your battery issues will go away.
Got thoughts on how to fix iPhone battery drain? Share ‘em below or send me an e-mail at me@y2kemo.com.
